65p gardening hack that 'kills weeds overnight'

Any keen gardener will know how pesky and unsightly weeds are, and keeping them at bay can be an ongoing struggle.

The stubborn plants can thrive in the most annoying locations, such as within patio and driveway slabs. Thankfully there is one way to "kill them overnight" and it involves using a common household item that costs as little as 65p.

A garden expert from PriceYourJob has spoken to the ECHO about a simple solution that you can make in your own kitchen. You simply mix one part salt, which you can get from Aldi for 65p, to two parts water and spray it on the weeds.

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Garden expert Harry Bodell said: “This method works by ultimately dehydrating weeds. Salt interferes with the weed’s ability to absorb essential nutrients such as potassium, magnesium and calcium. The disruption in nutrient uptake weakens the plant’s overall health, causing it to dry out from dehydration and die.

“The salt method prevents further growth of weeds. There are certain ions present in salt which can be toxic to plants when accumulated in high concentrations, interferes with natural processes such as photosynthesis, leading to cell damage and dehydration of the plant.

“Once you’ve prepared your salt solution, lightly pour the solution over gaps in between paving slabs on garden paths, specifically concentrating over areas that have weeds currently growing through. It’s important to do this on a particularly dry day so humidity and rain doesn’t wash away the solution.

“Overnight, the solution will work on drying out the plant to the root, making the weed easy to remove the next day.

However, Harry recommends using the solution sparingly to avoid it affecting other plants, adding: “While salt can effectively kill weeds, it can also accumulate in sand and soil and affect the growth of other plants.

"Use it sparingly and only on areas you wish to have no plants growing through, as it could impact future growth of other plants.”

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