Weed control is an obligation for every good gardener, as well as a responsibility for every Calgary business owner. As a City of Calgary by-law, you could get up to a $400 dollar fine for lack of corrective action regarding weeds on your property. Your garden might look spectacular, yes, but a place with weeds gives an image of neglect and abandonment. However beautiful your commercial landscape design may be, it will always look dull if you have random wild plants affecting the overall design of your space.
In addition to the aesthetic disadvantage of having weeds invade your condo complex or company’s exterior, there are other reasons to eliminate them: they compete with your plants for food as well as cause problems of pests and diseases. If there are nearby weeds, your ornamental plants will be forced to share the nutrients and water available. If resources are limited, your plants may not grow to their full potential, and if you provide fertilizer to try to solve this issue, weeds will take equal benefit from the fertilizer.
Weeds facilitate the appearance of all types of pests like aphids (small pear-shaped insects that feed on plant sap), as well as carry dangerous plant diseases. Some of Calgary’s most common weeds problem are dandelions and lawn mushrooms, and while they are not considered part of the noxious prohibited weeds list according to Calgary’s Weed Control Act, they are easily spread and are difficult to get rid of.
What is the best method to get rid of them? The best thing to control weeds is taking preventive measures like trying to limit watering directly to plant roots to prevent creating the ideal conditions for weed seeds to germinate. If this is no longer an option then removing them by the root is the next best thing; and for that, nothing is better than doing it by hand. Before you do it make sure you pull carefully so that the plant does not break while you yank it from the group. You can make the work easier if you do it with damp soil, either by waiting for rainfall or after watering the yard. If you notice weeds growing in your commercial space, do not wait too long to decide to remove them; you need to remove them before they bloom or leave their seeds.
The second removal option is to use herbicides. There are many types of herbicides depending on the specific need you may have: contact herbicides, systemic herbicides, total herbicides (can kill all types of plants), or selective herbicides (there are typically two types: for grass or broadleaf plants). As you can see there are many different options when it comes to selecting a specific herbicide and the adequate herbicide for you might not work in any other case. The wrong herbicide can potentially kill surrounding ornamental plants as well as the pesky weeds you were trying to get rid of in the first place.
At Make a Difference Landscaping we have a guaranteed weed control program for your residential complex or Calgary business. No weeds all year! It is our mission to help you with your landscaping vision. Give one of our specialists a call today and let us help you with your Calgary landscaping questions.