How do you get rid of weeds and not harm the vegetables growing ?

June Lawrence
by June Lawrence
How do I kill the weeds and not harm my vegetables? I have been inundated with weeds and spent hours pulling by hand, not working.
This is the weeds I need to get rid of please help. Any ideas?
  13 answers
  • C.B. C.B. on May 03, 2017

    My suggestion: Take a small [artist size...water color] paintbrush & use it to apply a herbicide to the weed's leaf parts [underside is best-so rain doesn't wash it off], being careful not to drip any onto your vegetables [IF you do cut off the part that got the herbicide on it or the plant will die]. Be sure to wear gloves to keep the herbicide off your hands/skin. Once the weeds have died all the way into the ground [they will turned brown & shrivel up] then pull them out...by this time the roots will have died. NEXT YEAR...treat your garden area first, then plant it...or treat it this FALL & cover it with newspaper or cardboard for winter. Happy Gardening!

    • See 2 previous
    • Nancy Kinzinger Nancy Kinzinger on May 03, 2017

      Vinegar works well!

  • Ain20801398 Ain20801398 on May 03, 2017

    layout cardboardor sheets of newspaper before planting


  • Janet Pizaro Janet Pizaro on May 03, 2017

    You will have to either pull them or smother them out with newspapers and black plastic.

  • Charly Charly on May 03, 2017

    I'm sorry but I'm not seeing the vegetables. I'm not trying to be sarcastic either. But the vegetables that you are talking about are they the tall plants against the fence? If they are, it would be easier to pull them out and transplant into a pot until you get your garden ready. To save yourself some work have you considered a raised bed? You just build a box, put weed barrier fabric in to cover the ground because you're not putting a bottom on the box frame. And then you fill it with a good topsoil and peat, till it altogether and then replant your veggies. You can make the box frame as big or as deep as you want it. I guarantee that you will not get any or very little weeds by gardening like this. I have been doing it for years and it is so easy to control the weeds if you get any. You can also try planting in large pots. Looking at your pictures , if you plan on trying to clean out your planting bed, you are going to be doing a lot of hard and heavy work!

    • June Lawrence June Lawrence on May 03, 2017

      The tall plant is a horse radish and some of the tall green things are garlic, this is the lower end of the garden and the weeds are most concentrated here. I am moving to raised beds this year. The real problem is that I am now 79 years old and I am afraid my gardening years are on the wane. I grow peanuts or try along with a variety ever changing of veggies. Last year I tried kidney beans and black eyed peas, the latter did better. I also grow sweet potatoes and am worried that a raised bed won't give me the depth that I need.

      Thank you for your suggestions.

  • 1401470 1401470 on May 03, 2017

    I don't use chemicals so here are a few natural tips. Pull the weeds out by hand after it rains because it's just so much easier or pour hot water and after a few days they will dry out. If you incorporate salt this will also kill the weeds faster. But if you're not careful can kill your plants too. Another tip is to use straight vinegar wait a couple days they die out and you clean up the mess. Might just be a good idea to dig up the plants that are healthy and relocate them to a new bed area that's easier to manage. Fill with a deep mulch so you can keep the weeds from taking over. Then you can tackle these troubled areas with gusto and redo them from scratch. Hope that helps.

    • June Lawrence June Lawrence on May 03, 2017

      I have tried the vinegar and it kills the weeds but apparently they throw out seed and in a few days the weeds are back more so than ever. It is like fighting a war with wave after wave just popping up. I don't know about Texas but here in Pa. the dandelions are everywhere and while I have been able to keep them from the garden it is a fight to do so with so many lawns around here looking like a carpet of yellow.

  • BonBon BonBon on May 03, 2017

    I agree to use vinegar. You can put it in a squeeze bottle or even pancake mixer and get down low to pour directly in the center of the weed. Your least expensive and easiest way to get rid of them. Good luck, you do have a mess there.

  • Suzanne Suzanne on May 03, 2017

    For now lay down cardboard between your rows and cover with a thick layer of mulch.

    in the fall when your garden is done and providing that all of your vegetables are annuals....cover the entire bed in black plastic or something like a pool liner. Cover for the entire winter and into the spring just before planting. You need to really kill off any new weeds.

  • Umma Umma on May 04, 2017

    Boiling water poured directly on the weeds. No toxins that way.

  • Deb K Deb K on Feb 06, 2024

    Hi June, you can soak and pull larger weeds out by the roots, and for other ones, hope this helps, mix 1 cup of salt. 1 tablespoon of dish soap. 1 gallon of vinegar, pour into a spray bottle and spray weeds. Be careful not to spray plants that you love or vegetable plants


    Rubbing alcohol can dry up weeds and kill them. Prepare the solution with one quart of water and two tablespoons of rubbing alcohol, and apply with a spray bottle. It's best to use this solution on a sunny day for better results



  • Redcatcec Redcatcec on Mar 24, 2024

    I have never have gotten very good results with any version of vinegar, dish soap, salt combos. Boiling water kills to the root, Eventually new weeds will come.