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Organic Gardening and Weed Control for Dandelions

Sure, she looks pretty… but organic gardening and weed control for dandelions certainly creates a challenge. I really want to stay organic, but sometimes there is such a temptation to get rid of all of the weeds in one fell swoop. I hand pull by using a weeding tool to dig out the tap root, and I also use vinegar for weed control, but they are still  a challenge.

Dandelions in the garden

But let me tell you, they are free loaders; once they come to stay, they never leave. I know they are supposed to be edible, but after following a few foraging blogs and trying their suggestions, it is not something I would do on a regular basis. The leaves are way too bitter for me even when small. I did out the tap root, which helps a bit to control the dandelion population such as when I weed our pea gravel paths.

danelions in the grass and organic gardening and weed control for dandelions

And they bring friends. Lots of friends. But, no chemicals in my yard! So I gathered the kids around for a fun (and temporary) solution. To see more about organic gardening, check out this post.

Kids picking dandelions

So, meet my new crack “organic weed” squad. We decided to make dandelion picking a game. Even though it doesn’t totally take care of the problem, it does stop the heads from flowering and creating more seeds.

Kids foot and picking dandelions

I told them I’d pay them penny a flowerhead. When they got to $2.00 each, we’d go for ice cream because they’d earned it, …thinking that we’d get a few weeks out of it. Those darn kids reached two bucks before the day was through. It’s going to be an expensive and fattening summer, but I appreciate the exercise and activity they get in our organic weed control!

Rock garden expansion area in the yard for raspberries

While they picked dandelions; we worked on our garden expansion to the raspberry and blueberry area. I moved a few rocks to outline the area. The less grassy area, the less there is for the dandelions to take over.

Pea gravel area with walking path and kids table set

It’s almost there. The plum tree is in, and I added some bags of Moo-nure I bought. I have to be honest, after years of changing diapers, I never thought I would ever be willing to pay for poo, but it really enriches the soil of my organic garden and everything grows in so lush and dense!

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