The combination of longer days and (hopefully) warmer and sunnier days means that April is a great month for the garden. With fresh bud and new growth seemingly appearing by the hour, it is all-too-easy to blink and miss the rapidly changing scene that is all around us in the spring garden.

Whilst April is a great month for our plants, it’s also a perfect month for the weeds. They also enjoy the warmer weather, and will quickly grow and spread given the opportunity. The problems this can cause for gardeners are not just aesthetic- weeds can also seriously affect our more favoured plants by stealing vital nutrients and moisture. Keeping on top of the weeding is, therefore, not just a question of being tidy, its also one of the most helpful things you can do for your plants.

So, here are my top tips to make weeding your garden this spring a little easier…

1. Little and often: it really does pay dividends to tackle weeds on a regular basis. Young or immature weeds are usually a lot easier and quicker to remove, and there is less chance that they will have spread before you got to them.

2. Know your weeds: few of us want to spend too much time learning about weeds, but a little bit of knowledge can go a long way. Try to recognise weed seedlings as they appear (this can also help those nervous of digging out ‘good’ seedlings by mistake), and learn which pull out easily and which need a little more care.

3. Don’t enjoy the flowers: many weeds spread themselves most efficiently by seeds that are formed and released from their flower. Removing the weed before it creates mature flowers can very effectively reduce the quantity of weeds in the future.

4. The ‘big boys’: some weeds are easy to deal with- simple lift them by hand or with a hoe, but others (such as dandelions, thistles, nettles or bindweed) need a different approach. Dandelions and thistles, for example, tend to have at least one long thick root (known as a tap-root) and this needs to be removed entirely or a new weed will quickly grow from any root material that is left in the soil. Nettles and bindweed, on the other hand, have connecting root systems that help them quickly cover large areas. Once again, it is important to remove as much of this root as possible to help reduce the chances of new weeds appearing. Nettle roots tend to be yellow in colour, incidentally, and this can help with identifying which roots need to be removed.

5. Weed after its rained: it can often be a lot easier to remove perennial weeds like dandelions and thistles just after its rained and the ground is more pliable. There’s certainly less chance of those pesky tap-roots snapping off and re-generating in the soil.

6. Destroy the evidence: it is important to prevent weeds spreading even after they’ve been lifted. Some can survive for a short period and continue to spread their seed, whilst others can re-root themselves if left in contact with the soil. On a very hot sunny day it is possible to leave lifted weeds out on the ground to die, but I would suggest that it is more prudent to remove them completely as quickly as possible. Most home composting systems do not generate sufficient heat as a part of the composting process to kill off weed seedlings, so for most of us it is probably not a good idea to add weeds to our compost bins. A better approach is to either burn them (if you have the facility to do this safely) or add them to either your general waste bins or your local authority green-waste bins if you have them. (Local authorities process green waste in large enough quantities to generate the heat that prevents further spread of weed material.)

7. To spray or not to spray: I try to avoid using chemicals in my garden, but weed killers are available that can help with the task. Ask for advice at your local garden centre, but do be careful to use and store them in accordance with the instructions on the box or bottle.

Good luck…