The area that connects each garden paving slab to another is typically filled with jointing, which can harbour weeds if there is no proper and timely maintenance.
It is important to stop weeds from growing between pavers because if you don’t, the weed can lower their beauty and potentially damage your paving slabs.
Installing garden paving slabs is an investment that you should protect. You can take the steps in this article to prevent and eliminate weeds between the slabs in your patio.
Here’s how to stop weeds from growing between pavers:
- Regular maintenance,
- Weed your garden
- Use chemicals to kill weeds
- Use natural remedies like boiling water or vinegar
- Use a pressure washer
- Pour polymeric sand between the paving slabs
How to Prevent Weeds From Growing Between Paving Slabs
The first step to stopping weeds from growing between paving slabs is preventing them from growing in the first place. To do that, regular maintenance of your pavers and paving area will go a long way.
Regular maintenance involves:
- Sweeping regularly
- Proper installation of your paving slabs
- Ensuring the right water flow
If the seeds of weeds are unable to take root, they won’t grow. Sweeping your garden can stop the seeds from settling between the cracks of your paving slabs. That will inhibit weed growth while keeping your patio looking clean and appealing.
Also, when installing your paving slabs, ensure that you have a tightly packed sand bed with additional sand in the crevices to keep your slabs in place and prevent weed growth.
The point of installation is also crucial to water flow. When installing your slabs, ensure that the direction of water is away from the slabs. That means filling the foundation well enough to ensure water runs down and away from the area of the paving slab to prevent the soil from being damp, stagnant, or encouraging weed growth.
Another preventative measure is pouring baking soda over the patio and sweeping it into the cracks. You can do this every 4-6 weeks to dry out and kill any weed that tries to grow.
Weed your Garden Manually as a Temporal Fix
If your garden paving slabs already have weeds around them, a temporary fix can be the good old weeding. When weeding the area, ensure that you pull the weeds from their roots to prevent them from quickly growing back. You can use a hose to dampen the area to loosen the weeds so you can pull them out easily.
This process does take some time compared to other remedies. Also, this is a short-term solution. For a fix that lasts longer, chemical and natural remedies are the go-to.
Use Natural Or Chemical Remedies To Stop Weeds From Growing
Chemical Remedies to Stop Weeds From Growing Between Pavers
Herbicides and other chemical weed killers are effective in getting rid of weeds. Also, they are effortless and take a very short time to apply. Before using a chemical, ensure you read and follow the instructions carefully to avoid harming your pavers, children, and pets.
Although some of the chemicals are more eco-friendly than others, there’s still the risk of killing your plants in the area. So, if your paving slabs are installed in your garden or a patio with plants, you should stick to the other methods mentioned above or natural remedies.
Natural Remedies to Weeds Between Pavers
Natural remedies have been effective from the days of old in eliminating weeds. Here are some of the effective natural ways to kill weeds:
- Vinegar: Vinegar can kill weeds without damaging nearby plants, causing harm to the paving slabs, or discolouring your patio. You can spray the vinegar in the cracks between the pavers, leave it to sit for a few hours, and rinse it off with a hose to kill the weeds.
- Baking Soda: Baking soda is one of the most effective kitchen items for getting rid of many things, weeds included. It’s safe for the environment and works by overloading the weeds with salt so that they dry out and die. This can kill the roots as well. To use baking soda, moisten the area with a hose and sprinkle some soda on top of the weeds. You can also pour the dry baking soda into the cracks between your pavers.
- Salt: Salt, like baking soda, can dry out the weeds down to their roots. You can mix one part of salt with three parts of water and spray that mixture on the weed. When it’s dry, pour dry salt in between the pavers. It’s best to do this when it’s not windy so that the salt stays in place.
- Hot water: Boiling water prevents the germination of seeds, and this can stop the weeds from growing. Pour boiling water in the cracks to stop weeds from growing.
Use a Pressure Washer
Pressure washing doesn’t only work for cleaning; a pressure washer can also kill weeds. It may not get rid of the largest weeds, but you can eliminate those by pulling them out.
Be careful when using a pressure washer because too much pressure in an area may wash away the sand and destabilise your paving slabs—use a rotating surface cleaner attachment with the pressure washer rather than a jet nozzle to reduce the chances of this.
In addition, don’t use a pressure washer often. Even when used properly, constant pressure washing use can still cause some damage to the soil.
Pour Polymeric Sand (Stabilising Sand) in the Cracks
When you have removed the weeds in the cracks of your paving slabs, pour stabilising sand in the space between your paving slabs to prevent the weeds from growing back. Some sands have a pH that makes the area inhabitable to weeds and even bugs.
Do that when the area is dry and completely free of weeds. Be mindful of the sand, though, as some of the sand may be able to stain your pavers due to containing colourant. So, completely remove any that falls on your slabs. In addition, you shouldn’t step on the paving slabs for some hours after using the sand.
Please note that some polymeric sand comes with instructions, so read those and follow them carefully. You can find them at most convenience stores.
How to get long-lasting paving slabs
Removing weeds that are in between your paving slabs is one major step to long-lasting garden paving. The first step, though, is getting the right garden paving slabs. With the wrong product, your patio will not last for the long haul.
At Minster Paving, we manufacture high quality paving to serve the UK. Click to shop our garden paving slabs or contact us via email or in-store. You can also call 01865 300252.