How to Kill Weeds With Vinegar
Buy white vinegar., Pour the vinegar into a garden sprayer., Choose a sunny day to spray weeds., Spray directly onto the weeds., Avoid spraying vinegar on desirable plants., Clean the sprayer out after you finish.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Buy white vinegar.
Go to your local grocery store and buy a bottle of basic vinegar, typically a 5% concentration of acetic acid.
The best bargain is probably to buy a one gallon jug unless you only have a few weeds.
If you are killing a lot of weeds, you may need to buy more than one gallon, but one gallon will cover a large area.The acid in vinegar is what kills the weeds.
White vinegar is most recommended, and probably the cheapest, but you can use apple cider vinegar as well. -
Step 2: Pour the vinegar into a garden sprayer.
Choosing a pump sprayer with a hose and long nozzle will make spraying large areas of weeds easier.
Fill the sprayer up with vinegar, or put as much vinegar in the sprayer as you’ll need.Another option is to pour the vinegar into an empty spray bottle.
You can buy an empty bottle or you can use a bottle that used to contain window cleaner or another gentle household cleaner.
Make sure to rinse it out well if you use a bottle that had other liquid in it.
If you are only killing a few weeds, or covering a small area, you can poke four or five holes in the cap of the vinegar bottle and use the bottle to douse the weeds.
You have the option of diluting the vinegar with water, which is sometimes recommended, but diluting only makes the vinegar weaker.
Some weeds are easy to kill with diluted vinegar and others are more stubborn. , The acetic acid in vinegar dries weeds out, so applying vinegar on a day when the weeds will get at least a few hours of direct sunlight increases the drying power of the vinegar.
Spray in the morning so the weeds can get lots of sun.If it rains unexpectedly shortly after you spray the weeds, you’ll most likely have to apply a second round of vinegar.
In this case, sunny means hot as well, ideally in the range of 70+ degrees. , Using the pump sprayer, spray bottle, or vinegar bottle with holes, thoroughly douse the weeds you want to kill.
Cover the leaves with vinegar, but also spray down around the roots.
You don’t need to soak them so they are dripping wet but spray an even coat.
Wait around 24 hours and check the weeds.
If you aren’t satisfied, you can spray the weeds a second time. , Vinegar kills crops and flowers as well as weeds, so take care any time you are spraying weeds around good plants.
Vinegar is not always a good option if you are spraying weeds in a garden, flower bed, or in your yard.Vinegar shouldn’t soak into the soil and kill other plants unless it makes direct contact with them. , Vinegar can corrode your sprayer if you let it sit for a long time.
Carefully rinse your sprayer out after every use.
Dump the excess vinegar out and then fill the sprayer with water.
Be sure to pump and spray the water to clean out the hose and nozzle. -
Step 3: Choose a sunny day to spray weeds.
-
Step 4: Spray directly onto the weeds.
-
Step 5: Avoid spraying vinegar on desirable plants.
-
Step 6: Clean the sprayer out after you finish.
Detailed Guide
Go to your local grocery store and buy a bottle of basic vinegar, typically a 5% concentration of acetic acid.
The best bargain is probably to buy a one gallon jug unless you only have a few weeds.
If you are killing a lot of weeds, you may need to buy more than one gallon, but one gallon will cover a large area.The acid in vinegar is what kills the weeds.
White vinegar is most recommended, and probably the cheapest, but you can use apple cider vinegar as well.
Choosing a pump sprayer with a hose and long nozzle will make spraying large areas of weeds easier.
Fill the sprayer up with vinegar, or put as much vinegar in the sprayer as you’ll need.Another option is to pour the vinegar into an empty spray bottle.
You can buy an empty bottle or you can use a bottle that used to contain window cleaner or another gentle household cleaner.
Make sure to rinse it out well if you use a bottle that had other liquid in it.
If you are only killing a few weeds, or covering a small area, you can poke four or five holes in the cap of the vinegar bottle and use the bottle to douse the weeds.
You have the option of diluting the vinegar with water, which is sometimes recommended, but diluting only makes the vinegar weaker.
Some weeds are easy to kill with diluted vinegar and others are more stubborn. , The acetic acid in vinegar dries weeds out, so applying vinegar on a day when the weeds will get at least a few hours of direct sunlight increases the drying power of the vinegar.
Spray in the morning so the weeds can get lots of sun.If it rains unexpectedly shortly after you spray the weeds, you’ll most likely have to apply a second round of vinegar.
In this case, sunny means hot as well, ideally in the range of 70+ degrees. , Using the pump sprayer, spray bottle, or vinegar bottle with holes, thoroughly douse the weeds you want to kill.
Cover the leaves with vinegar, but also spray down around the roots.
You don’t need to soak them so they are dripping wet but spray an even coat.
Wait around 24 hours and check the weeds.
If you aren’t satisfied, you can spray the weeds a second time. , Vinegar kills crops and flowers as well as weeds, so take care any time you are spraying weeds around good plants.
Vinegar is not always a good option if you are spraying weeds in a garden, flower bed, or in your yard.Vinegar shouldn’t soak into the soil and kill other plants unless it makes direct contact with them. , Vinegar can corrode your sprayer if you let it sit for a long time.
Carefully rinse your sprayer out after every use.
Dump the excess vinegar out and then fill the sprayer with water.
Be sure to pump and spray the water to clean out the hose and nozzle.
About the Author
Kathryn Harvey
Committed to making DIY projects accessible and understandable for everyone.
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