Weeding and deadheading become the main focus of the routine chores. I will have to admit to a secret perversion: I love to pull weeds. If done at the right time, and with practical tools and techniques, I find it to be a soothing time to commune with my garden, or just let my mind wander far from the day's problems. However, now that I'm eligible to order my dinner from the "Seniors" section of some local restaurant menus, I find that bending my back is not as carefree a process as it once was. I have become much more attentive to ways to garden that are easier on all my aging parts. Now I sit when I weed. I bought a little contraption that has three wheels and a wide, tractor-like seat that swivels. I can sit on it and reach all the weeds for several feet in any direction around my perch. Then I can roll along to another spot. It has made a great deal of difference.
The wrong time to weed is when the sun is high and the ground is dry. It is the worst of chores then! Plants with rhizomatous roots seem anchored all the way to China. After tugging or chopping, their tops usually break off at the ground line, guaranteeing that they will be back, stronger than ever! Choose to weed at cooler times of the day or on cloudy days for your own comfort. When the ground is damp the weeds will come out much more easily too.
I usually weed the day after I water everything. The ground will be soft and the weeds will come out with their roots intact. Sometimes a weed escapes my attention until it is higher than the plants around it and often beginning to flower or set seed. These are the hardest to deal with, since pulling them can result in severe disturbance to the roots of the plants around them. These I deal with in two ways: 1) I cut them down with pruners and handle resprouting as described below (see Using a non-selective herbicide in the garden), and 2) I use an old serrated steak knife to sever the roots around the stem in the same way you would core an apple.
