Why I hate weeds?
Actually I don’t. In fact, I don’t see anything as a weed anymore. I see everything as part of god’s beautiful creation. Every plant has a purpose. And that dandelion in my pasture, that biden’s alba (little white daisy) has a reason for being there. Those flowers feed our bees, including native bees and even wasps, which are great pollinators. Dandelions also till my soil for me, without the need for any machinery or diesel fuel. And so many other nondescript plants with pale leaves and flowers are there for a reason.
Soil armor. Keeping the soil covered is one of the most important tenants of regenerative gardening and farming. When you pull a weed out, you remove the protective layer of roots, green leaves, and stems that cool the soil and help it retain moisture. You take away the mechanism of evotranspiration that we need to make rainwater and feed microclimates. Perhaps even worse, pulling the weed disturbs all the soil around the roots of that weed.
I no longer looks at a manicured lawn and think it’s beautiful. I feel sorry for it, because it’s devoid of all the plants and microbes that help land thrive.
I was inspired to write this article after I picked up a stinging nettle (urtica dioica), and, true to its namesake, it stung my hand. But I didn’t curse the plant or go to remove it. In fact, I smiled and thanked it for its service - because God put stinging nettle there for a reason. In fact, it’s been used as a medicinal herb for thousands of years. This small but mighty nettle contains polyphenols, amino acids, minerals, and terpenoids. So harvest it, dry it, and enjoy!
Dandelions? They're actually GOOD for your yard. Their wide-spreading roots loosen hard-packed soil, aerate the earth and help reduce erosion. The deep taproot pulls nutrients such as calcium from deep in the soil and makes them available to other plants. While most think they're a lawn killer, dandelions actually fertilize the grass.
Chickweed? It’s called that because chickens love it.
Every “weed” in your lawn is telling you about something going on in your soil. Listen to it!
If you're constantly resetting your soils by pulling weeds out, you're removing the root exudate factories out our your soil that are pumping nutrients into your soil, and because of that, you constrict your soil-food web of life, and because of that you’re producing more nitrates than ammoniums, and because of that, you’re CREATING MORE WEEDS!
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