Spraying a weed killer that remains in the soil can prevent weeds from growing through your driveway for up to one year. Natural weed killers like rock salt can prevent weeds from ever growing in an undesirable area again. You can also use weed control fabric, reseal your driveway, or get a new driveway material to prevent weed growth. Any of these solutions will prevent the future growth of weeds.
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5 Ways to Get Rid of Weeds in Your Driveway Forever
Weeds growing through your driveway can destroy your pavement and ruin the look of your home. If you have persistent weeds growing in your pavement cracks, try the following methods:
Use a Long-Lasting Weed Killer
If you want to kill weeds and keep them from growing through your driveway permanently, the easiest solution is to use a long-lasting weed killer. Long-lasting weed killers are formulated to remain in the soil and prevent new weed growth for up to 1 year. One treatment will kill driveways weeds and prevent them from coming back.
- This long-lasting weed killer will kill weeds and prevent new growth for up to a year.
- Spray weeds in paved or gravel areas only—this weed killer will stop plant growth in lawns and gardens.
- Weed killer spray is a safer option than using salt to kill driveway weeds.
Long-lasting weed killers will prevent any new plants from growing in the area, so they should not be used for the lawn or garden. However, they are perfect for paved or gravel-covered areas. These weed killers remain in the area where they are sprayed and won’t be carried to other parts of your lawn by water, which makes them a safer solution than salt.
Salt Your Driveway
Salt is a cheap, effective way of killing stubborn weeds and preventing future weed growth. Simply spread rock salt on its own or mix a cup of salt with hot water and pour into the ground. Use this rock salt in a concentrated salt solution to make an effective weed killer.
- Spread rock salt crystals on driveway weeds to kill plants and prevent them from growing back.
- Make a liquid weed killer solution by dissolving salt in boiling water.
- Be careful: water can wash salt onto nearby soil, killing grass and other plants.
There are downsides to using rock salt as a weed killer. Once you’ve salted the earth, nothing will grow there again for many years. This isn’t a problem in most driveway areas, but salt is easily distributed through the soil by water. If you salt your driveway, there’s a good chance rain and other water can wash the salt into other areas of your yard, creating dead zones where nothing will grow.
Reseal Your Pavement
Weeds can only grow where pavement cracks allow them to grow. Weeds in driveway cracks make for perennial frustrations. Sealing these cracks removes the opportunity for unwanted plants to grow. Fill any cracks in your concrete driveway with fresh concrete. This is an inexpensive fix that stops weeds in their tracks.
- Patch cracks in a paved driveway with new concrete.
- Kill driveway weeds before resealing to prevent future weed growth.
- Reseal asphalt driveways with new blacktop to halt weeds.
If you have weeds growing through new asphalt, you can use similar tactics to stop weeds. Resealing an asphalt driveway can help combat weed growth and keep your driveway looking pristine.
Install a Resin Bound Driveway
Certain driveway surfaces can fully block weeds from receiving the water, air, and sunlight they need to grow. A resin-bound driveway contains a layer of gravel, a layer of asphalt, then a layer of resin. This blocks all light to the weeds and because the resin layer is all one piece, nothing can grow through it.
- Sealing your driveway with resin prevents weed growth.
- Your existing driveway can often be bound with resin to invasive weeds.
A resin-bound driveway is typically more expensive than resealing a driveway with concrete or asphalt, but it creates a more permanent weed barrier. In many cases, your existing driveway can be bound with resin.Â
Manual Removal
You can always manually remove weeds by hand or with a tool. This will not permanently solve your weed issues but it will be cheap and not too time intensive. A weeding tool designed for removing weeds from cracks in concrete will make manual removal simple and quick.
- Use this specially designed tool to easily remove weeds growing through cracks in your driveway.
- Removing weeds by hand requires no chemicals and solves the problem fast.
- Hand-weeding is not a permanent solution to driveway weeds.
Hand-weeding your driveway will remove weeds to the root killing them, but it won’t prevent weeds from coming back. However, it is a great, chemical-free way to kill weeds.
Does Vinegar Kill Weeds in the Driveway?
Some people mistakenly believe that white vinegar kills weeds to the root. However, in reality, vinegar only kills weed leaves. This means that the unharmed root will be free to grow into more annoying weeds quickly. As a result, the vinegar method is not recommended in general and especially not for permanent weed control.
- Vinegar only kills weed leaves and does not kill the root.
- Use another method of weed control to remove weeds permanently.
For a more effective homemade weed killer solution, rock salt will more likely remove pesky weeds. A concentrated salt solution in a spray bottle will clear out all invasive weeds.
Will Driveway Weeds Come Back?
Driveway weeds will usually come back through sidewalk cracks except in rare instances. The main reason for this is that weed seeds are small and can find their way anywhere. Another common reason is that dead weeds may not have been killed to the root.
- Weeds will almost always come back unless a permanent solution is found.
- Resealing your driveway can permanently stop weed growth.
- A long-lasting herbicide can prevent weeds from returning for up to a year.
- Chunks of rock salt will halt weed growth for many years.
Homemade weed killers sometimes prove ineffective (such as in the case of the vinegar method). Generally, nothing but a mixture of salt and hot water will permanently end weed growth. However, repaving your driveway can create an effective weed barrier for years.
What Kills Weeds Permanently in the Driveway?
Weeds can be killed or at least blocked from growing with only a few key tricks. Remember these important facts when it comes to clearing your driveway of weeds:
- Long-term weed killers wipe out existing weeds and prevent new growth for one year.
- Rock salt will kill all weeds and prevent them from growing back.
- You can reseal your pavement or asphalt to prevent weed invasion.
- A resin-bound driveway will impede weed growth.
- Manual removal will quickly remove weeds but it won’t stop them from returning.
With these tactics, you’ll be well equipped to permanently rid your driveway of weeds. Don’t be frustrated if it takes more than one approach to permanently protect your driveway.
