For many people around the country, the patio is like another room of their house, even during milder winter days. But nothing is more unsightly than stubborn weeds that pop up between the pavers.
If you pull one out, more grow back but a home and lifestyle guru has a simple solution that “you wished you’d known sooner”.
Clever cleaner Chantel Mila, known as mama_mila, has shared her hack on social media, revealing the two-ingredient weed killer made from common household items.
In a recent TikTok video, Mila revealed several useful household tips, including her DIY weed spray. In the clip, she adds a cup of white vinegar to a spray bottle, mixes in some dish soap, and shakes it to combine. She then sprays the mixture directly onto unwanted weeds for an easy, effective solution.
The hero ingredient, vinegar, is an effective herbicide as it contains acetic acid, but has no residual effect on the soil, while dish soap helps the solution adhere to the weed’s leaves, allowing the vinegar to do its job.
@mama_mila_ Say goodbye to foggy car windows 👋 which trick will you try first? #homehacks #hometips #homesweethome #mamamilastips #tipsandtricks #cleaninghacks #cleaningtips #cleaningmotivation ♬ original sound – nicole
While vinegar is a great help, some gardening woes require more creative solutions. Aphids, for example, may be tiny but they can cause big problems in your garden if left unchecked. Over time, they can weaken growth, distort leaves, spread disease, and even kill vulnerable plants.
Thankfully, a helpful green thumb has come to our aid. Gardener Ish has provided not one, but three methods on social media to rid your garden of its aphid issues for good.
In a video he uploaded to TikTok, Ish begins with his first hack using ordinary dishwashing liquid that he said is “so super easy and super effective.”
“This one is super simple, take a few tablespoons worth of dish soap and just pop it in a spray bottle and top the rest off with some water,” he said.
Just shake the spray bottle after securing the nozzle and spray over your aphid-affected plant.
Next, Ish said to use marigolds as a trap or barrier to protect your flowering plants and vegetables from the little nasties as their fragrance deters aphids and other bugs.
“A little tip for you about marigolds, whilst these do have a bit of a fragrance to them they might still try and go for the leaves so some people also use these as a bit of a trap plant so it keeps your bigger plants healthy and they’ll go for these instead,” he said.
Lastly, Ish recommends using the spray setting on your hose to blast them off with water or introducing predator bugs like ladybugs if the first two suggestions fail.
@gardening.with.ish Aphids (or greenfly) are sticky little pests that latch on to our plants and can be a nuisance to remove. However using one of my easy methods should keep your garden Aphid free with my gardening tips for beginner gardeners I’ll be going step by step on how to keep greenfly away from your plants and flowers. #gardeningtips #gardeningforbeginners #aphids #greenfly #gardening #gardener #planttips #gardenhacks #gardenhack ♬ original sound – Gardening with Ish 🇬🇧
With these clever hacks, anyone can keep their outdoor oasis in top shape—no green thumb required.
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