How to make an effective non-toxic weed killer

Weeds are the bane of the existence of people who want to attract attention to their well-groomed flower beds and landscape, not to the freeloading plants that seem to pop up seemingly overnight.

I let some weeds in some places thrive, like dandelions that can become wine and milkweed to feed the monarchs, but weeds in the cracks of my sidewalk have to go.

I avoid using chemicals whenever possible. It’s scary that crops have been genetically engineered to resist herbicides that will kill other plants—a double whammy—we get genetically engineered food and chemicals dumped into the soil. And we’re still dealing with millions of tons of lead in the soil from leaded gasoline banned in 1996. Ok…off my chemical soapbox and back to weeds.

I love this weed killer because I usually have all the ingredients on hand to make it.

Weed killer formula

I have to give credit to DIY Home Sweet Home for this recipe. I’ve been using it for a couple of years now with great success.

How to make a cheap, effective non-toxic weed killer

Here’s the recipe:

• Put about 1 quart of white vinegar in a saucepan
• Add ¼ C salt
• Heat to dissolve salt
• Add the solution to a spray bottle
• Add a squirt of Dawn dishwashing liquid
• Swirl gently to mix

How to use this effective non-toxic weed killer

While kids should not lick or ingest this, don’t worry about using this weed killer around pets or kids as touching it won’t hurt them.

Using the solution while it’s hot makes it even more effective.

Buy a squirt bottle with a controllable spray. If you use a direct stream, instead of a wide spray, you can zero in on unwanted weeds and grass in a garden full of flowers you want to keep alive.
Spray the leaves of the plant, then zero in on and spray the base of the plant to get the roots.

Be patient! Here are pictures of plants I sprayed and what they looked like 48 hours later.

Please try this weed killer. It might take a couple of applications, but you won’t be adding chemicals to your environment and can feel good about that.

And I love how you can direct the application to a single errant weed. That makes it a good choice for vegetable and flower gardens, too.