I know I planted my garden around here somewhere
Posted on June 30th, 2009 – 8:58 AMBy Robyn Dochterman
I don’t like to weed. So I don’t.
There.
I’m not proud of it. I should have a smidge of shame when other people come over and try to look at my garden. I’m never quite sure what it is they are looking for, but I do know they can’t see past the weeds to “it”. They probably think I’m a public disgrace. Maybe I am.
I just don’t care anymore. I don’t live in the city, so if I want an eyesore for a garden, then, dangit, I’m gonna have one. Don’t like it? Report me to some government official — if you can find one who still has a job.
Yes, yes. I have good intentions. I put down straw. I carefully placed woolch. I used some high tech wonderful pore-something weed mat. I got a swell hoe thingie. Whatever.
The sprinkler goes on. The sun comes out. The weeds grow.
And when it’s hot, I’m not going out there to weed. And when it’s finally cool again, it’s just too daunting to know where to start.
So.
Do I lose my gardener-approved ID card? Anyone want to start a support group? Or, are you defiant like me?
28 Responses to "I know I planted my garden around here somewhere"
I don’t like to weed either! That’s why, unlike everyone else, I downsized my garden about five years ago. Yes, I put in MORE lawn. I also plant very thickly so if weeds dare to show up, they are sickly and weak and easily dispatched.
I get the daunting part. Whatever the task, I often set small goals so that it seems more manageable. I have taken to doing about 15-20 minutes of garden stuff before I go into work and this has helped a lot!
As I have recommended numerous times, adult beverages make any non-motorized garden task more pleasant. Not, of course, before you are heading into work.
I am not bragging, but I wish I had a couple of weeds so that I had something to do. I am waiting for the beans to get bigger, and the cukes to produce. I an cultivating for something to do.
Thankx for the helpful blogs.
I have to say that I really like to weed. I do a little bit everyday before work. It is mine time to wake up and get going in the morning. There is something fulfilling about it.
I prefer weeding to mowing (although having a reel mower has helped that one). I like fussing with plants any way I can–weeding, trimming, moving, etc. I will second Judybusy about beverages. Don’t do anything dangerous while drinking, but tasks like weeding and dead heading can be enhanced by a beverage of your choice.
I concur! I have a beverage (coffee in the morning, adult in the pm) and pull out a few obvious weeds on the way to/from work. I also overplant (stuff is crammed into my boulevard garden like it’s Martha Stewart’s windowbox!) so weeds can’t get much of a foothold. But I must admit there are some non-public areas that are weed havens. ah well.
Ah! Why didn’t I think of combining adult beverages and weeding? You guys are brilliant! Come to think of it though, I could still just skip the weeding part and go directly to the beverages.
I pulled these guys out last night:
http://image75.webshots.com/75/1/4/53/2722104530063034134gXPANN_fs.jpg
http://image96.webshots.com/96/8/92/75/2509892750063034134FADULR_fs.jpg (the flower cone)
There were three of them, one that was over 4 feet tall. So yeah… weeding is sometimes no fun. 
Robyn, maybe you should do some low-maintenance weeding. Use a scuffle hoe and just occasionally scrape them up. It doesn’t take more than 15 min, and I just leave the weeds where they lie instead of collecting, composting, etc. This is America, and we half-ass things around here! It’s good enough to get the job done.
You *could* spend hours each week meticulously treating every square inch of your garden, but…why bother? You just need to give your teams a leg up over the weed team.
Weed or not, OK by me. It’s a lot easier to keep control with a small lot, which I had for most of my gardening life. The worst is when you nurture something along for weeks waiting for the payoff in blooms, and one day you realize that, silly you, you’ve been harboring a big unnamed monstrosity that’s growing like the weed that it is. I’ve done that more than once, usually in a very prominant spot
I enjoy weeding the areas that don’t really need any weeding. My vegetable garden is well-mulched and has hardly any weeds, but I like to get out there and pamper it. Same with my borders/flower beds. The lawn, though, is not fun to weed–it always looks worse after I’m finished! Not very gratifying.
My problem is my neighbor. He cuts his grass 4 times a year, has a very large pile of leaves covering his entire back yard, and has a dandelion and creeping charlie factory for a front lawn. I could weed my garden and my lawn, but within 2 weeks I’d have a bumper crop again. I just try to keep them from growing too high.
Erin, you weed your lawn? How do you do that?
I decided to lower expectations. I no longer have a flower garden, I have a meadow!
Last night I actually managed to get my four-year-old interested in weeding. He was trying to find a weed that had a bigger root than the one I pulled out! LOL! Now, if I could just get him to want to weed every day…
@Erin - we have to weed our lawn too - Each year we think we’re going to follow behind each other and drop grass seeds into the hole that was left by us digging out the weed at the root - only, we never do. I try and convince myself that it’s the poor man’s version of aerating!!
As for weeding what little bit of flower beds I have…I just do a little at a time - grab what I can when I can - it sure seems to make a difference ~ but I have, embarrassingly enough - tended to weeds all summer long not KNOWING they were weeds - some of them are a little bit pretty - you have to admit!
I’m not a big fan of weeding either… I have nice size garden and what works for me is after tilling, planting and watering for a couple weeks(and waiting for the spring trees to get done seeding)I lay out newspaper like a jig saw puzzle around my plants and cover it with compost.. I’m in the process of figuring out what plants play well with each other so each year it should be less and less newspaper and more mulch/compost… I’ve found this helps keep out the weeds without chemicals…
OMG, okay, I’m laughing out loud. These comments are hysterical - Robyn, OMG, your story was the best…um, been there done that (but never admitted it). LOL I always say, hey, my yard looks great - weeds are green. 
I’m also loving the idea of making the lawn bigger, not the garden beds - note to self, get right on it.
oh…I must confess I do a few 12oz curls while doing it too…
Glad you’re getting a chuckle out of the weed stories. I’ve been out mowing the lawn, thinking “oh, that needs to be weeded” and “oh, I’m running out of time to get that under control” but I know I’m just talking the talk. I won’t walk the walk.
I don’t weed anymore. Lost control last year. Even more shame, I haven’t even pulled out some of last years dead stuff. I did see a bird on one of the old flowers and it looking like it was eating part of it, seeds maybe? So, hey, I’m feeding the birds. And thanks to the birds, I don’t wash my windows anymore. When they are clean, the birds fly into them and die. When they are dirty, no reflection, no bird deaths. Save a bird, don’t clean your windows!
I never weed. The garden still looks beautiful, the tomatoes grow nicely, and I am happy.
“Come to think of it though, I could still just skip the weeding part and go directly to the beverages.”
Or combine the two. A former girlfriend’s grandfather used to make dandelion wine that was allegedly quite drinkable.
I LIKE to weed. Heck, I like to clean the bathroom. But that doesn’t mean I do it.
This year, my garden is full of wood sorrel, crabgrass and, my favorite, Creeping Charlie. Think I’m goint to follow Terry’s lead and just let ‘em go . . .
Weeding depends on how hungry for whatever was in there I am. I usually can at least find where the stuff is so I can clear at least the immediate area around the good stuff. I have learned from past experience that some mulch is never enough if the hot weather comes or heaven forbid, I leave the garden to its own devices and go somewhere for a couple of days. I can usually get back to casual weeding (with the beverage)if I almost bury the stuff in shredded news before I go. This however requires action beforehand. If the weeds have the upper hand already then small forays to treasure hunt are required as often and as long as you can stand it.
One weed at a time. I pick a spot to start and just focus on one weed at a time and before I know it, things start to look better! Otherwise, it is just too overwhelming. And I agree….a beverage makes the job easier!
Yep, I weed my lawn. Usually about once a year via darcie’s method–dig out the weeds at their roots and think good thoughts about following that up with a little grass seed.
I did decide this year to let me creeping charlie be. I know it can take over, but the green leaves and purple flowers are much prettier than the plain old dirt tearing it out would leave behind.
How about weeding early in the year and try using Preen - love it!!
Hey, those thoughts were in my head but you managed to make them into words! Perfect! That’s how I feel, too, and now that I know there are others I feel so much better. Not quite like a gardening novice, but like other people aren’t all that great at it either. But, now that I have a CSA (great idea, I thought) I am stuck with hundreds of vegetables which I think of as hundreds of little responsibilities. Sigh!
So apparently, once I unloaded my weeding issues on y’all, I felt good enough to go out last night and weed all the raised beds of garlic and raspberries. Maybe I’ll work my way up to the actual vegetable garden after all.
Greengirls Connie Nelson, Robyn Dochterman and Jaime Chismar are dishin' the dirt from the backyard garden and beyond. Whether you're a greenthumb or greenhorn, they're eager to learn from your misshaps, mistakes -- and most importantly, your sweet successes -- all growing season long.
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