Hassle free growing with lack of time

[Potstubsdustbins]

Is it me or have weeds been a problem for other folks this year? Growing in containers I don't usually suffer more than the odd one or two but this year they have been and still are a real pest.

[1Bee]

My boys love watering, clod bashing, digging muddy holes and dens.... BUT we're going to retire the bean teepee this year, as in spite of all my best effors, eldest is afraid of bees and therefore as soon as the beans start to flower he just finds being in the teepee too scary.

I'll have to think of another den idea.

[alldigging]

If you're at home then grow less and cover up extra soil - OR live with the weeds.

If you're on an allotment then cover as much up and try not to let the weeds win.

[Kirk]

I suspect there is acttually little you can do in significant terms.
Membrane is sold as weed suppressant, it doesn't remove them and will I guess present it's own problems. Having what amounts to a sheet of fabric over the plot is not easy to work with.

Seeds under the fabric just sit dormant so lift the fabric and weeds appear.

Have found that constant removal of anything as often as I can has been the best approach. Surface gets raked over a lot but that upends the small growing weeds.

I tend to plant small veg not seeds as then I know which are the veg abd what is not. Seeds go in well defined rows so again anything not in the row gets terminated. Will say I am not that good at getting all the actual seed in the row but that is the way it goes.

There is no real magic bullet. Graduates of Hogwarts may have a different opinion.

If the bed/plot were smaller I would say get containers, pots, troughs and grow in those as this has generally been the most hassle free method I have found.

[lolie]

Is it me or have weeds been a problem for other folks this year? Growing in containers I don't usually suffer more than the odd one or two but this year they have been and still are a real pest.

I find it varies from year to year, as do the type of weeds I get. This year I ended up with clover in some of my containers, and that's unusual. I'm just thankful it wasn't Scottish thistles - those blow in about once a decade and are terrible to get rid of.

[Penellype]

Thinking about it I did seem to get quite a few weeds in amongst the carrots this year, which is unusual. One of my main weeds is willowherb, and I think the problem arises from a passageway behind the neighbour's garage which tends to end up very weedy. Its south of my garden, and guess which way the wind has been blowing for much of this year...