by Sally Gregson

To non-gardeners the act of weeding seems the epitome of boredom. Kneeling in front of a border pulling out unwanted plants can seem a thankless task, but for those who know, it is pure therapy.

Forking out a long-rooted dandelion before it sets its flower-clocks brings a deep sense of satisfaction. It’s no wonder that these days gardening is considered to be an excellent therapy.

It’s therapy for the garden, too. Not just dandelions, but docks, hairy bittercress and chickweed left to set seed and multiply results in quantities of weed-lings that seem to invade everywhere and everything.

That precious peony that cost a lot of money can get smothered with hairy bittercress – its space invaded to the point of annihilation by big, pushy dandelions. An hour spent weeding in April before those interlopers have had a chance to set seed, saves countless hours on hands and knees in May and June.

In the vegetable garden an accurately wielded hoe on a hot dry day speeds up the whole business. It’s worth hoeing slowly so as to avoid beheading the cabbages, or scraping the necks of the carrots. The pulled weeds can be left to shrivel if they are not too well-grown and no rain is forecast.

Once an area is weed-free the soil benefits from a thick, impenetrable mulch of something relatively inert, such as ornamental bark. This will prevent any new seedlings getting a hold in the cleared area, while encouraging the healthy growth of garden
plants.

Weed-free borders can, however, seem a little sterile, but provided that your garden compost is genuinely free from weed-seeds, spreading it all over the surface will produce clouds of annual seedlings to fill in the gaps.

Ensure that when pulling out spent ephemeral plants, such as annual Love-in-a-mist (Nigella) or Poached Egg Plant (Limnanthes douglasii) their spent seed-heads are added to the compost heap, and a whole display of annuals will arise between the perennials to bring a smile to every gardener’s face.