skip to main content

Organic Gardening

How to kill weeds organically between pavers?

14 years ago

Anyone have any tips?

Featured Answer

denninmi

14 years ago

For weeds growing in expansion joints in concrete walkways/driveways, between patio stones or bricks, or in gravel/lava rock mulch, I just fry them with my propane torch. Works great -- in fact, I have company coming this weekend, so I just tonight fried hundreds of little tiny germinating weeds in the expansion joints in my concrete driveway and front walkway -- fast, easy, non-toxic (unless you consider the C02 greenhouse-gas pollution it generates), and the weeds literally burn up and are gone. A few do try to come back from the roots, things like dandelions, but I cook those an extra long time to make sure.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (6)

sunshineboy
14 years ago
1 gallon white vinegar
1 cup salt
1 tablespoon dishwashing liquid

Mix well. Spray on a sunny day.

Or, just pour some boiling water (with or without salt) on paths to kill weeds between cobblestones, etc.

Some people dont like putting salt in their garden, but its a fun way to get rid of slugs/snails.
gardenlen
14 years ago
we lay newspaper and mulch our paths with hay/straw, you can use wood shavings or sawdust, or small stones. the sawdust will help stop the slug's n snails from crawling from bed to bed.

len

Here is a link that might be useful: len's garden page
Related Discussions
How much thyme to plant between flagstone joints?
Q
Comments (17)
I wish you luck. I installed the (basically) same type of flagstone walking path that you are building now. We found that the we really wanted to use the path or walkway more than we though and it became difficult to walk on, especially for guests and friends. Hopefully this will not be the case for you. I just tore it up and we are going to lay down herringbone brick in it's place. Best wishes.
...See More
Do a paver patio or stamped concrete???
Q
Comments (24)
That's an idea, bobbi. I'll talk to my contractor about it. I don't have a huge patio or pool deck. The old concrete didn't have rebar and it lasted a good 60 years without too much cracking. My problem was drainage issues, which are getting addressed. I want a clean look. Minor cracks of course will be inevitable but don't really bother me.
...See More
Lawn/patio ratio and what to do with these pavers!
Q
Comments (12)
I know I am years late to the party, but this yard looks like the "before" picture in a gardening magazine. The house looks good. The neighborhood looks ok. The fence is not ugly either. The rock is stunning, and there is a ton of it! I would check the sun exposures. Perhaps the garden could go up against the house between the sliding doors. I would like to see the stone pulled up and re-used as a meandering path that connects both sets of sliding doors and the front yard to several small and distinct patio areas such as the fire pit and grill/patio area. Replant the lawn to flow around everything.
...See More
Weed prevention in outside paver patio?
Q
Comments (8)
I have a paver driveway and every spring the weeds come. You can just fill a spray bottle with plain old vinegar and it should get rid of them without too much effort. You might want to add some of the "sticky sand" available at Home Depot to fill in the gaps (it's a gluey sort of sand which makes pavers stick together better) and give less room for dirt and weed seeds to settle into.
...See More
dicot
14 years ago
Short of digging out the taproot, a teapot full of boiling water is my usual way.
JAYK
14 years ago
Boiling water works pretty well for this but established perennial weeds will often return quickly. Using dishwashing liquid in the garden is not an organic practice; it's synthetically produced and is not on the OMRI list.
Kimmsr
14 years ago
Vinegar, boiling water, salt, etc. will all kill this growth, for a time and will also allow some organic matter (those dead plants) to accumulate which when combined with the dust from the air will form a good soil for other plants to grow in.
The best way to clean weeds growing between pavers is to lift the pavers up and clean out the plants and any accululated soil that is there, a bit more physical labor but a longer term solution to the problem, unless the pavers are cemented in place.

Related Stories

EDIBLE GARDENS Natural Ways to Get Rid of Weeds in Your Garden

By Abundant City

Use these techniques to help prevent the spread of weeds and to learn about your soil

GARDENING GUIDES 5 Ways to Naturally Win the Weed War

By Jocelyn H. Chilvers

Show irksome weeds no mercy with these tricks for combating them sans chemicals

GARDENING GUIDES 5 Weed-Smothering Ground Covers

Let these landscape plants do the dirty work of choking out weeds while you sit back and enjoy the view

GARDENING GUIDES Tackle Weeds the Natural Way

By Jocelyn H. Chilvers

Instead of dousing your yard with chemicals to wipe out weeds, let time and nature work their magic via smothering and solarization

GARDENING GUIDES 5 Things to Know About Weeding and Mulching Your Native Garden

By Oakley Gardens

What’s the best time to pull weeds? How thick should the mulch be? Here’s the scoop for a healthy landscape

GARDENING GUIDES Let's Weed Out 4 Native Plant Myths

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Plant wisely for a garden that supports pollinators and requires less work

GARDENING AND LANDSCAPING Patio Pavers Go Green in Between

By FormLA Landscaping

Kind to the environment and easy on the eyes, pavers with moss or other foliage in the joints create a charming permeable hardscape

MATERIALS Precast Concrete Pavers Make a Versatile Surface in the Garden

By Falon Land Studio LLC

You can use concrete pavers in a variety of shapes and colors for your patio, walkway, driveway and more

GROUND COVERS Ground Force: 10 Top Ground Covers for Your Garden

By Carol Bucknell Garden Design

Protect your soil from weeds and drought this summer with a living mulch of ground covers

GARDENING GUIDES How to Switch to an Organic Landscape Plan

By Falon Land Studio LLC

Ditch the chemicals for a naturally beautiful lawn and garden, using living fertilizers and other nontoxic treatments

Sponsored

Fairfax County's Foremost Professional Roofing & Siding Craftsmen

More Discussions

SECRET SANTA SEED SWAP 2022 SIGN UP , RULES AND WISHLIST

64

A gardening app for people in developing countries or remote regions

2

Organics in containers: so many questions!

12

How to manage a raised bed when it rains excessively

25

Is anyone familiar with AMBLYforce?

1