With Bermuda grass growing all around, it was impossible to keep it out of the lawn. Eventually, all the fescue was removed and a fine bladed Bermuda hybrid was planted.
Bermuda migrates towards wetter soil. If flower beds are kept wetter than the surrounding lawn, Bermuda will easily invade them. Using sunken concrete mixing tubs as liners for beds can prevent this migration, underground. Keeping above ground migration at bay is much easier.
A hole is dug to accommodate the tub. Plastic is used to line the bottom of the hole. The plastic prevents underground grass roots from growing up through drain holes which were cut into the tubs. Saved fertilizer or potting soil bags are ideal for this purpose.
The tub is placed in the hole, being leveled by the addition or removal of small amounts of underneath soil, here and there. The soil is adjusted so that the rim of the tub will extend about one half inch above the surrounding soil. The lawnmower can then mow over the rim, where necessary. The tub is then filled with a soil rich in organic matter or a soil amended to suit a particular type bedding plant.
The soil can be easily removed from these tubs yearly and replaced with fresh. More often, all that is needed is the addition of a layer of nutrient rich compost to serve as a top dressing.
Pictured is a small bed of purslane. It is being grown in a sunken concrete tub. To the casual observer, it appears the flowers are being grown directly in the ground. Liriope (monkey grass), can be seen to the right of the purslane. It is one of a row of liriope plants being grown in sunken pots. When the first heavy frost has killed the purslane, it will be replaced with pansies or viola to provide a display of color throughout winter and well into spring.
Using mixing tubs to containerize small flower beds has many advantages. Weeding is much easier. Water is conserved. Invading grass can be more easily controlled. There is a fixed, neat appearance.
Once sunken, these tubs will last for many years. They are low cost and readily available in at least two sizes from home and garden centers such as Lowe's and Home Depot. The only preparation would be the cutting of several quarter size drain holes.
Steps:
This is a page about keeping grass from growing in a flower bed. Weed grass seeds can be carried by the wind, birds or be already in your soil ready to sprout when they get water.
Being elderly, we are finding keeping on top of weeding flower beds is getting beyond us. We are wanting to cover a large raised bed with some sort of gravel, on top of weed control blanket, then we shall put some decorative shrubs in. Can anyone advise on whether we should use pea shingle or gravel. We are told that stone chippings will become covered in algae, hence a leaning to gravel. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
By Ann Y
I recently weeded and mulched all the trees and two large flower beds at our school where we have an outdoor learning space. The town's grounds keeping crew cut the grass and blew all the grass clippings over the mulch. (We met prior and they said they would be careful, but someone did not get the message.) All the mulched areas have a thin layer of grass now. Is there anything I can do immediately to prevent grass and weeds in the near future? I'm devastated.
By Katie
What can I do? I have lots of weeds with my flowers. What can I do to get rid of the weeds, but not flowers?
By Gail
I have found that putting vinegar in a spray bottle and spraying the weeds as close to the root as possible really helps! This changes the PH factor and causes the roots to die :-) won't be toxic to your pets if they go into your garden either!
The thistles in my flower garden are certainly competing with the flowers this year. If I were trying to grow thistles, I'd be quite successful! What can I use to get rid of these pesky plants that won't harm the good flowers and our pets?
By Lois C.
Since most thistles spead by both seeds and roots, you need to kill the entire plant and to also cut off the bloom before it can seed. Spray carefully just the thistles with a thistle killer - it take special products designed to kill thistles.
I am having trouble with kosha weeds and sunflowers taking over my wildflower garden patch. Are there any other alternatives to hand weeding?
By Krys
Next year prepare your garden in the winter by spraying with weed killer, remove dead plants and cover with plastic tarp. Check under the tarp and if weeds are coming back from seed repeat the process until no weeds return.
Is there any weed and feed that can be sprayed on flower beds?
By moucheninette from Perth, TAS
Do you already have the flowers up or do you want to spray the ground before you plant the flowers?I do not know of a spray you can use after the flowers are up.Good luck.
Thank you for your feed back, I didn't think it would be that easy, will have to do it the hard way.
I've tried the newspaper, mulch, digging by hand; all in vain. After building our house, I had a roll of leftover brown paper like they use to protect your floors while building.
How do I stop weeds in my flower beds? I pull them up, turn the soil over, and within two weeks they are back with vengeance.
By Nix from England
You can plant lot of small glad bulbs & flowers to choke out the grass & weeds or do as we did with my garden. We made a 30x20 foot garden in our back yard with plastic and cement blocks. You do not have to remove grass. Put down plastic or a thick layer of news papers, and place cement blocks on top around the edge of the space. Then, fill it with composted manure. You have a garden without weeds or grass for years. Add more compost as needed every year. I get manure from Lowe's in 40 pound bags, I have a garden all the year, I also make flower beds the same way.
Good luck.
I have a black thumb, but I squirted some plain apple cider vinegar on a weed that was growing between some bricks and in two days it was gone.
I don't know what would happen if you used it around flowers; would the flowers die too?
