Eliminating weeds in a garden can be a tough job. It's easier to just prevent weeds from growing. Learning how to prevent weeds is one of the steps you should take when thinking about starting a garden, whether it's a vegetable garden, flower garden or a lawn.

There are many different weed varieties. Some grow for long periods of time and some live only for shorter periods. They all have one thing in common and that is they are undesirable plants. Weeds can reproduce very fast by setting seeds and spreading roots. Before you realize it, your garden, flowerbed or lawn can be infested with them. They can become a problem because they steal nutrients from your existing plants and if you don't remove them properly they will come back. Besides this, weeds also take away from the appearance of your lawn. http://gardening.wsu.edu/library/weed001/weed001.htm

Preventing weeds doesn't have to be difficult, if you stop the problem before it gets out of hand or if you prevent the problem from the very beginning. Your local garden center or nursery sells various products that can help with weed prevention and maintenance. This article will cover several of them. Some people don't use store bought weed management products, instead they make their own product knowing that it won't hurt their kids or pets. Whichever way you choose to fight and prevent weeds, the following steps are sure to point you in the right direction.

If you want to prevent your garden, flowerbed, or lawn from producing weeds you have to start before doing any planting. Even if your garden or lawn doesn't show any sign of weeds, you can still treat the soil to prevent them from turning up. You will need the following items to prevent, manage or eliminate weeds:

• Mulch
• Store bought weed prevention products
• Black plastic
• Ground cloth
• Store bought weed killer
• Gardening tools
• Water
• Gloves

Some steps to follow to prevent weeds:

1. Prevent weeds from growing in your garden by avoiding seeds entering your garden or yard through various perennial plants or manure. http://gardening.wsu.edu/library/weed001/weed001.htm
2. Make sure to watch out for any weeds that border your garden. They might set seeds, reproduce and cross over into your garden.
3. If weeds have already taken over your yard you can pull them out using your hands or garden tools. Make sure to remove the entire root to prevent them from growing back.
4. If you decide to use chemicals like weed killers, make sure to check with your local garden center or nursery which options you have and how to use the products. Weed killers are used on existing weeds. Some are made specifically for certain weed plants. Make sure to check that whatever you use, won't kill your desired plants.

Once you have either pulled out or killed the weeds using chemicals your lawn or garden seems free of them. However, the threat of weeds reappearing is always present. There are numerous things you can do to help in the prevention on reappearing weeds.

Mulch: Mulch is great to use because not only does it hold onto moisture, it also keeps weeds at bay by acting as a shade to the soil. For mulch to be affective you need to place at least 2 inches onto the soil. Some weeds might grow regardless of the mulch, but these can easily be pulled out because the mulch keeps the soil soft. Besides being great on weeds, mulch comes in several colors and can look quite decorative on the lawn.

Black Plastic: Another way to protect from weeds growing back is by covering the soil with black plastic. The plastic keeps sunlight away from the soil making it hard for weeds to grow. You can make holes in the plastic for your plants. Using woven ground cloth will give you the same results but has a larger chance of weeds growing through the small holes in the cloth. http://www.doityourself.com/stry/mulch-weed-prevention-made-easy

Growing Plants Close Seeds need light to grow. Taking that light away from them will prevent them from growing. A way to do this is to grow your plants close together. This is often done with ornamental plants. http://www.gardengatemagazine.com/extras/49weed02.php

There is no set way to control weeds or to prevent them. Each situation is different and because of the large variety of weeds your approach might differ also. It takes a little bit of testing to find out what works well for your lawn or garden. Your local garden center will be able to advise you on which products to use depending on your weed situation. There are products to use before weeds grow, after weeds grow and during weed growth. You can even make your own products.

Some people have difficulty fighting and preventing weeds. Even though there are many store bought products available, the cost of these can add up, especially if you are not sure which products work the best for you. A solution that can save money is to make your own weed killer, right from home. Not only that, but you will also have the peace of mind that you aren't using toxins that kids and pets might get exposed to. http://www.creativehomemaking.com/gardening/homemade-weed-killer.shtml

To make homemade weed killer you will need:

• 1 gallon of white vinegar
• 1 cup of table salt
• 1 tablespoon of liquid dish soap

Just mix all these ingredients together and use a spray bottle to apply the mixture to the weeds. Be careful not to spray it onto other plants because it might affect them also. Don't spray on windy days because the solution might carry in the wind and settle elsewhere. http://landscaping.about.com/od/weedsdiseases/qt/vinegar_weeds.htm