The CC&R department is reminding homeowners that now is the time of year when weeds are growing. They have started to pop up in yards all around our community.

Prevention is the key! The unanimous advice from experts is to apply a pre-­emergent every 6 months, preferably in the spring and again in the fall (September) to stop weeds from germinating.

The pre-emergent should be “watered down” after applying to get down to the seeds and prevent germination from taking place.

Once you see the weeds growing, applying a pre-emergent will not kill them. At that point you need to apply a “post­-emergent.” (Please note that most weed killers must have a certain temperature to be effective – read the product label).

Also, the weeds we are seeing this year are part of the sunflower, tumbleweed, or native plant families, and some weed killers will not work on them. A special formulation may be needed to kill these weeds. Ask an exterminator.

Eliminating weeds is a three-step process:

  1. Apply a pre-emergent
  2. Apply a weed killer as quickly as possible to prevent the weeds from developing and dropping seeds
  3. Remove the dead weeds from your yard after they have died

A pet-friendly option is also available: Vinegar is also an effective weed killer. Unlike commercial weed killers, vinegar is ecofriendly and won’t harm the environment, people or pets. Also, add table salt to vinegar to destroy weeds forever! Just make sure not to use salt on soil in a location you may ever want something to grow, as the solution will make sure that nothing grows in that spot again. 

  1. Pour one gallon of white vinegar into a bucket. Everyday five to ten percent household white vinegar is fine for this weed killer.
  2. Add one cup of table salt. Stir until all the salt dissolves completely.
  3. Stir in one tablespoon of liquid dishwashing soap. This will act as a surface active agent and will make the vinegar and salt solution adhere to the weeds more efficiently.
  4. Funnel the weed killer into a plastic spray bottle
  5. Saturate the weeds with the solution on a dry, sunny day. Cover all the surfaces well with the solution.

The plants soaked with this solution will die within a few days. Warning: They won’t be back and nothing else will ever grow there.