Gravel full of weeds :)

Ropo

Hi

Hoping to rescue my front garden.

Total novice here what would the steps be to replace the stone

1. Dig out ...then

Is there a way to reduce weeds coming back .

Thanks!!

Reckless Abandonment

I always find gravel tricky .

Wether you put down a weed membrane or not they will eventually start to grow in the grave.

Personally it's the only part of the garden I've no issues using weedkiller. Spraying that area should clear it up or pick out each and every weed by hand.

Ropo

Weeds seem to be unstoppable

I think it needs to be dug out, we had a year of skips and all sorts on it .. only thing is it needs to be a diy project due to budget 🙄

Water John

There is a seed bank in all soil. In a garden, as in horticulture, you hoe every 5/10 days to let the seeds germinate and then disturb them from rooting. This over time wears down the seed bank. An alternative for you, if it's a small area is, use gas to heat them and burst the cells in the plants.

XLR 8

If it's a small area that will only have gravel on it. Rake off the gravel then spread a few drums of table salt on the soil beneath. Brush gravel back over the area. Do it on a dry day. I guarantee it will work. I do it on the drive way at start of spring and it normally lasts the whole growing season. I literally had a pain in my b011ix spraying or hand picking weeds. Just take note of any slopes as it may contaminate an area of outstanding natural beauty due to run off.

Whatwicklow

Maintenence spraying, one a month walk the gravel with the knapsack.

Tis the only reliable method and eliminates then at first sprout

snowgal

Yes have this in a new (well an old house!) place we’ve moved in to… but not a small area unfortunately. Still I might try the salt thing on the worse parts, there’s moss and grass growing there

looksee

Ropo/Snowgal please just use a reputable, tested weed-killer that is designed for the job. Salt is also chemical but it is not designed for killing weeds. It makes earth barren, poisons it. Weed-killer is inert on contact with soil. I absolutely agree that it is not desirable to spread weed-killer everywhere, but on gravel it is really the only option.

I did half my drive a month ago and it is clear of weeds, the other half I did not get round to, its next on the list, but it has a scattered crop of weeds that I am now going to have to take the biggest out by hand, then spray the rest.

ttnov77

yes plant native wildflowers :)

macraignil

Gravel (recycled road surface) driveway here has lots of plants growing on it but the ones I don't like I pull out with finger and thumb when they are small and if I miss them at that stage I use a trowel to lever the roots out and if they have seeds developing throw them away from the driveway. Lots of pollinator friendly plants are then left to grow on the parts of the gravel that don't get that much traffic like red valerian, fleabane, euphorbia, chamomile and more and all of these would get killed by treating it with chemicals which I am completely against being part of my garden. I like spending time in my garden and I just think using chemicals as well as being damaging to wildlife will diminish my enjoyment of the garden as a place that is natural and not altered by poisons. Posted a video showing some of the results of this treatment of the area here.

Happy gardening!

looksee

That does look lovely and I would have absolutely no issues with having a drive like that. Not everyone's surrounds is the same though or lends itself to that natural look. Before I had it resurfaced after I bought the house my drive/entrance/parking area was a mass of weeds, nothing particularly pretty and it looked a mess. Lots of other bits of the garden are wild or wildish but to have the gravel growing weeds or any other random plants just would not work.