Vinegar and salt are well-known home remedies that can be used to drive weeds out of the garden quite effectively, but also from sidewalks and other surfaces. Even if everyone uses these means in the household, their application is not unproblematic.

Vinegar is not a gentle variant for weed control

Table of Contents

Show all
  1. the essentials in brief
  2. Vinegar - a natural weed killer?
  3. Is vinegar allowed in the garden?
  4. application
  5. Good reasons against vinegar and salt
  6. alternatives
  7. frequently asked Questions
  8. I've heard that baking soda is also great for weed control. Is that correct?
  9. My grandmother recommended me coke to combat the weeds in the joints of the paving stones. Does that actually help?
  10. Can I use Epsom salts instead of salt and magnesium sulfate?

    11. the essentials in brief

    • Vinegar is too acidic for plants and damages their cells.
    • Vinegar is not suitable for use as a weed killer due to its aggressiveness.
    • Vinegar not only harms weeds but all plants and also microorganisms in the vicinity.

    "A weed is nothing but an unloved flower." (Ella Wheeler Wilcox, American writer)

    Vinegar - a natural weed killer?

    Almost everyone has a bottle of apple cider vinegar or vinegar essence at home, after all, the acid can be used in a variety of ways both in the kitchen and in the home. Not only is it used to season food, but it also removes limescale deposits from kettles and bathrooms and can even be used for cleaning - which in turn makes expensive chemical cleaners completely superfluous.

    The old household remedy is also said to do a good job of removing weeds in the yard and garden and at the same time protect the environment. But is that really true? Does vinegar actually help weed control? In this article we will explain whether and what this tip is all about - and why it is better not to tackle your beds with vinegar.

    mode of action

    In order for plants to grow healthily, the acid-base value - the so-called pH value - must be in balance. Because vinegar is an acid, it acidifies the soil and damages the cell membranes of plants. Therefore, the household helper in the garden is not entirely harmless as long as you use it undiluted and in high concentration.

    A small dash of vinegar on a pitcher of watering water, on the other hand, only lowers the pH slightly and has no negative effects on weeds and other plants. In this way, however, you can soften hard water and neutralize limescale - which is not always desirable in irrigation water. Vinegar is indeed advisable for this purpose, but less so as a weed killer.

    If highly concentrated vinegar gets into the soil, it not only burns the roots of the weeds. Neighboring crops are also affected, so that both can no longer absorb water and subsequently dry out. In addition, the soil acidifies when using vinegar, which is why you have to counteract the drop in pH with regular lime applications. All these side effects prohibit the use of the agent, for example, in the vegetable patch or in the flower borders - you would then have to dispose of both together with the weeds.

    Vinegar harms weeds and anything else that lives in the soil

    Vinegar has these advantages against weeds

    Many hobby gardeners give preference to old household remedies such as vinegar and salt, as these are supposedly more environmentally friendly than chemical weed killers. In addition, various vinegar-based brands are available in stores for a lot of money, which is why the vinegar essence seems to be a good alternative for cost reasons alone - after all, the effect of the commercial products is the same. So, vinegar appears at first glance as:

    • effective against weeds
    • inexpensive
    • easy to use
    • safe for children and animals

    The disadvantages speak against an application

    No question, the advantages of vinegar are convincing at first. However, the acid also has a number of disadvantages that speak against its use. The most important counter-argument is the acid, because it gets through the soil into the groundwater and destroys the balance between acids and bases everywhere. To use vinegar effectively against weeds, you would have to apply larger amounts - and that always has a negative impact on the environment. Other disadvantages are:

    • Effect doesn't last long
    • Weeds are often grabbed only superficially, but not by the roots
    • therefore drive out again and again
    • therefore the application must also be repeated
    • Damage not only to weeds
    • neighboring (crop) plants are also affected and die

    tips

    Of course, the effects and disadvantages described here also apply to certified vinegar-based weed killers from specialist retailers. Although it is often advised to use this instead of household vinegar, after all they are tested and therefore safe, but that is window dressing.

    Can vinegar be used as a weed killer in the garden?

    Especially since the use of vinegar in the garden - especially in combination with salt - is also a delicate matter for legal reasons.

    For a long time, vinegar and vinegar essence were considered pesticides when used against weeds and other plants. For this reason, their use on paved and otherwise sealed surfaces was prohibited. Since the Higher Regional Court of Oldenburg collected this classification in a judgment in 2022, vinegar is no longer considered a herbicide - i.e. a plant protection product, but it may not be used indefinitely in the private sector.

    Vinegar is an environmentally harmful pesticide

    Both the Chambers of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Offices are sticking to a ban on the use of vinegar to kill weeds, especially on non-crop land (terraces, garage driveways, parking lots, etc.) and justify this with a violation of Section 3 of the Plant Protection Act - a "violation of good professional practice Practice". Such a violation can be punished with a fine of up to EUR 175.

    This is not illogical harassment, but has tangible reasons: Vinegar is only biodegradable in small quantities and quickly ends up in the groundwater. However, this is not desired by the sewage treatment plants, since vinegar residues cannot be filtered out and also permanently change the pH value of the water.

    application

    Given the current legal situation, vinegar should never be used on paved and otherwise sealed surfaces. The remedy has no place in the vegetable patch either, after all you still want to eat your harvest afterwards. In general, before each application, check whether there is a better remedy without unwanted side effects - you will find a few of them clearly presented in the table below in the text. However, if there is no alternative to vinegar, use the old household remedy as described in this chapter.

    Vinegar or vinegar essence?

    In the supermarket you can get different types of vinegar, each with a different concentration. Conventional table vinegar, for example, contains up to six percent acetic acid, while vinegar essence is considerably more concentrated with a content of up to 25 percent. This concentrated acetic acid can cause chemical burns if not handled properly - not only on plants, but also on your skin. Therefore, you should strictly observe the following safety instructions when using it:

    • Wear closed eye protection, especially when spraying
    • use protective gloves made of nitrile or another resistant material
    • never use in closed rooms, always ensure good ventilation
    • never inhale the spray mist, otherwise chemical burns in the respiratory organs could follow
    • do not spray in windy weather
    • In case of contact, immediately rinse the affected part of the body thoroughly with water
    • consult a doctor if necessary (e.g. if vinegar essence gets into your eyes)

    Apple cider vinegar, which can also be used to remove weeds in the garden, is considerably milder. However, this does not mean that this type of vinegar is less harmful to the environment.

    mixing ratio

    Vinegar should never be used undiluted

    You should not use vinegar more than twice a year and only in a concentration of 100 milliliters of table vinegar in one to two liters of water. This amount is also the maximum amount that may be applied per square meter of area. Incidentally, the weed killer that you have mixed yourself works better if you boil it up before use and pour it hot over the weeds. In this way you combine the effect of the acetic acid with the thermal one. Also, add a few squirts of dish soap to the mixture to keep the vinegar mixture from just beading off the leaves.

    Best time

    It is best to apply the vinegar in sunny and dry weather, because rain would simply wash the agent off the leaves. In addition, the sun intensifies and accelerates the effect on the weeds to be eliminated. You can observe this very nicely in a direct comparison between weeds growing in sunny and shady locations: With shade plants it always takes a few days longer until the leaves turn yellow and finally dry up.

    By the way, you can save on vinegar by cutting off the above-ground parts of larger plants and simply pouring the solution over the leftovers. In this way you need much less of the agent and thus protect the environment.

    Advice on applying vinegar against weeds

    When using the vinegar, the following tips are also helpful:

    • only spray from a short distance
    • best applied with a brush
    • use only in spring and summer
    • only treat young plants before sowing
    • additionally remove seeds by hand
    • always use as small a quantity as possible
    • never spray in windy weather

    digression

    Vinegar against weeds in the lawn

    When it comes to getting rid of weeds from your lawn, vinegar is a poor choice. You should only treat the unwanted plants themselves - preferably with a brush - and under no circumstances the directly neighboring grasses. However, since this is virtually impossible - after all, some of the acetic acid always gets into the soil and the grass absorbs it - your lawn will also wither and dry out as a result.

    Why you should better avoid vinegar and salt

    The combination of vinegar and salt is touted by some hobby gardeners as an insider tip against weeds - but be careful! If the use of vinegar is already a legal gray area, the use of salt in the garden is strictly forbidden and can be subject to high fines of up to EUR 50,000. The reason for this is as simple as it is obvious: salt not only changes the pH value of the soil, but also massively endangers the groundwater. In addition, nothing grows on salty soil - and your garden gradually mutates into a desert. Therefore our advice: Stay away from the salt!

    Alternatives to vinegar

    Whichever way you look at it: The best and most environmentally friendly method against weeds is and remains good old weeding or shoveling. Of course, such work is unpopular, time-consuming and tedious, but without any alternative. The following video with tips for weed control without chemicals shows very impressively how much work it is to remove weeds from the garden mechanically:

    youtube

    The following table provides an overview of other effective but environmentally friendly alternatives to a homemade vinegar and salt weed killer:

    method material / tools execution Per cons
    flaming Flaming device (mostly Bhutan-based) Flame the area in question with the flame burner Reliable weed killing, clean surfaces, fast only for asphalt or paved surfaces, risk of fire, weeds keep coming back
    baking powder (baking soda) Baking soda or baking powder containing baking soda mix the solution containing baking soda and spray the weeds similar to vinegar similar to vinegar
    nettle manure Let nettles ferment in water Spray weeds with undiluted manure highly effective, natural and without any unwanted side effects also damages nearby crops
    rock flour rock powder,(14.13€) e.g. B. quartz sand Apply rock flour to the areas to be kept weed-free (e.g. joints of paving stones) reliably keeps weeds away must be renewed regularly
    weeding / shoveling Hoe, shovel Chop and dig up weeds ecological, without side effects, at the same time loosens the soil very labor intensive
    Boiling water hot water pour hot water over weeds reliably kills weeds without side effects also kills neighboring crops, weeds always grow back
    mulching Mulch material such as bark mulch, sawdust, etc. Mulch the area to be kept weed-free Weeds do not grow, decomposing mulch material acts as an additional fertilizer for crops is not suitable for all surfaces and plants

    Effectively prevent weeds

    Better than tedious work to combat annoying weeds, however, are preventive measures that significantly reduce the risk of infestation and thus give you more time to relax in the garden:

    • Scarify lawn in spring and lime if necessary
    • Always keep grass short and never let weeds reach seed maturity
    • Cover beds with mulch (€239.00).
    • alternatively plant ground cover
    • Lay out weed fleece (21.70€) under paving stones and paths

    frequently asked Questions

    I've heard that baking soda is also great for weed control. Is that correct?

    Even our grandmothers tackled stubborn weeds with baking powder. To do this, mix two to three packets with five liters of water and pour the mixture over the plants to be removed. But be careful: Firstly, the trick does not work with all baking powders, only with baking soda and secondly, this agent does not differentiate between weeds and useful plants: All of them are simply destroyed, and the pH value is also adversely affected.

    My grandmother recommended me coke to combat the weeds in the joints of the paving stones. Does that actually help?

    In fact, because of the phosphoric acid it contains, cola is a tried and tested means of removing moss from pavement joints, for example. The disadvantage, however, is that the agent is also extremely sugary and therefore sticky. So you don't save any work because you

    1. spread the cola on the area to be treated
    2. remove the dead moss or weeds
    3. and clean the sticky surface

    have to.

    Can I use Epsom salts instead of salt and magnesium sulfate?

    Even though it's called Epsom salts, there's no salt in it. Magnesium sulphate is not suitable for killing weeds; on the contrary, it even supplies them with valuable nutrients. After all, it is a fertilizer that is mainly used on lawns.

    tips

    Instead of a Bhutan burner, you can also use infrared devices to burn off the weedy areas. These weed burners are available in well-stocked specialist shops.

Category:

Herbs