Weed your garden!

When we think of weeds, most of us think of the things that grow uninvited in our flower beds or in pavement cracks.

But weeds -- innocuous as they may seem in well-preened city streets -- spread rapidly from backyards to parks to wasteland to farmland. If you live in a rural area, you'll know exactly what I mean: weed seeds are transported by vehicles and people as well as wind, weather, water and animals.

What's so bad about the humble weed?

Weeds can choke good land, outgrowing indigenous plant species and reducing the food sources and liveable space available to native animals as well as stock.

They can undermine native ecosystems, flora and fauna, and once you have an infestation, it can be almost impossible to remove -- many weed seeds survive for years (sometimes decades) in the soil.

They also end up costing tax payers money, as local and state governments spend millions trying to control weeds on public land.

Weeding 101

Spraying weeds isn't the ideal way to weed: manual removal is best. Depending on the weeds you have, you may need to use a garden fork, hoe, mattock, crowbar or dozer to remove the weeds.

Remember, it's always important to get the roots, but you may also want to do research to understand how your weeds reproduce and when, so that you can time your weeding to greatest effect. As an example, we had a contractor bulldoze gorse on our block at the end of winter, before it had a chance to seed.

Of course, many weeds require follow-up tactics (periodic weeding, or deliberate planting of a competitive species) to ensure that their offspring don't get a foothold in the earth that you disturbed when you were grubbing them out. And yes, ultimately some of us need to use management techniques (goats, sprays, and so on) to manage serious infestations in an ongoing sense.

You need to weed. It's a good thing it's such a satisfying job! I'm about to go and pull some gorse from along my fenceline. What weeds do you have to deal with this season?