Bright yellow flowers and white fluffy seed pods of dandelions can break up the look of a pristine, green lawn. Want to know how to get rid of dandelions? It’s going to take more than wishing on these fluffy weeds. There are a few ways to help get them out of your lawn without the use of chemicals.

How To Get Rid of Dandelions Naturally

Pulling out the weeds and blowing on the seeds isn’t going to help you get rid of the dandelions in your yard. In fact, this will make the problem worse by spreading the seeds around. Killing these weeds doesn’t have to mean attacking them with harmful chemicals. However, even organic means of weed killers can negatively affect other grass and plants it comes in contact with. Here are some more natural methods to try:

Water. Weeds take water away from your other plants and grass, but what it needs to thrive can also cause its demise if hot enough. Pour boiling water over the dandelion leaves to burn them. You’ll see the plant yellow and curl quickly, but the hot water can also burn the roots. Damaged roots won’t get the proper nutrients, so the dandelion will die.

Salt. When salt gets into the soil, it can stay there for years, preventing anything from growing there—including grass. That’s why the best place for this treatment is anywhere you don’t want anything to grow, such as cracks in your driveway or under a deck. Mix one cup of salt with one cup of boiling water and pour it over the dandelions.

Vinegar. Pouring vinegar over the dandelions changes the acidity in the soil for long enough to kill the weeds. For a quicker killing process, mix pickling vinegar (which contains more acid) with boiling water in equal parts for your dandelion killer.

When to Apply Natural Herbicides

When using the boiling water technique, you can apply at any time. If you’re mixing with salt or vinegar, apply when there isn’t rain in the forecast for 48 hours to ensure the mixture won’t be diluted or run off.

After any application, you should start seeing the dandelions wilt in a few days. If you don’t, reapply every few days until the dandelions are dead. If you don’t want to risk killing grass, pull dandelions up by the roots with your hand before they turn into puffballs of seeds to limit the spread of seeds.

For more weed prevention and control tips, contact Cardinal Lawns to discuss what’s currently taking over your lawn and how to get it back to green.