After experimenting with several different formulas for organic weed killer, I’m sharing the one that’s worked best for me! Super easy with only two simple ingredients!
Living in Connecticut where the summers are fairly mild, we tend to get just the right amount of rain, sun, and shade for our landscaping to thrive. But unfortunately the weeds thrive too – it’s a constant battle to keep them in check. In our previous home in Ohio, I grabbed weed killer off the shelf at our local hardware store and used that but now I’m much more leery of using harsh chemicals on our lawn since we have well water and have also become more environmentally conscious. Over the past several years I’ve experimented with several different formulas for organic weed killer and thought I’d share the spray that’s worked best for me. (post includes affiliate links – see my full disclosure statement {here})
Organic Weed Killer Recipe
The ingredients for the organic weed killer I use and love is super simple – it requires only two ingredients:
1. Pure 20% vinegar that you can get {here} – this is 4x more concentrated that traditional white vinegar you buy at the grocery store
2. Orange oil concentrate that you can get {here}
Before sharing the recipe that I use and how I mix it, be aware that 20% vinegar is potent (that’s how it kills those weeds so well!) and can burn your eyes and skin. Read all precautions on the label before using it and wear goggles, protective clothing, and gloves (I use {these gloves} that are chemical resistant) when mixing and applying. The ratio that I use of these two ingredients is approximately 1 gallon of 20% vinegar to 1 cup of orange oil concentrate. To mix it, I simply remove about 1 cup of vinegar from the new gallon, add 1 cup of orange oil concentrate to it and mix well. Then I add the mix to a glass spray bottle (I recommend glass spray bottles such as {these} or another type of heavy duty spray bottle since over time the 20% vinegar can eat away at typical spray bottles and containers). Keep people and pets away from any weeds you’ve sprayed until the spray has dried due to the concerns mentioned above with direct contact with high strength vinegar. If you won’t be using the spray frequently, once you’re done spraying, remove the sprayer from your bottle, rinse it, and cap the bottle to keep the sprayer from corroding over time.
Option 2: If you’re not comfortable with using 20% vinegar due to the precautions that must be taken, another option for weed killer is one using ingredients you probably already have in your pantry including store-bought white vinegar, salt, and dishwashing liquid. Fill an empty 32 oz. spray bottle most of the way with white vinegar, add 1/4 cup table salt and stir until dissolved, mix in 2 teaspoons of liquid dishwashing soap like Dawn, and shake well. This is the mix that I used up until last year and it was effective on most weeds but (1) it’s not truly organic since it involves using dish detergent (2) the salt in the mix kills the good microbes in the soil and too much use of it can keep plants from growing in that spot for years to come which could be an issue if you want to plant in that same area the future and (3) it’s not nearly as quick and effective as the 20% vinegar + orange oil concentrate. So while using the 20% vinegar is a bit more of a pain because you have to take care when mixing and using it, for me it’s been the better way to go.
Tips for Best Results
Like all weed sprays, organic weed killer works best when you spray the weeds on a warm, sunny day when it hasn’t recently rained and there’s no rain in the forecast for the next day or two. And it will kill grass along with the weeds so be sure you’re targeted with your spraying. If you’re spraying near other plants that you want to keep safe, one simple tip is to grab a piece of cardboard to shield the plant from any errant spray.
But Does It Work??
Yes! Studies on various organic weed killers have shown that none of them are quite as effective long-term as the harsh chemical weed killers but this spray truly does do a really good job. And it definitely gives me some piece of mind about harmful chemicals getting into our drinking water. I also like that I don’t have to worry about my girls and our dog being exposed to harsh chemicals when playing in our yard.
Another Option for Organic Weed Control
If you don’t want to use a spray, go for the old fashioned kind of organic weed control and pull them! Weeding while crouching down and kneeling is ROUGH but there’s a weed fighting tool that I bought since moving here that I seriously couldn’t live without. It’s Fiskar’s Uproot Weed and Root Remover available {here} and I love it because it’s made to use while standing up (and it’s fun – even my girls don’t mind doing a little weeding with it). It has four stainless steel claws arranged in a circle that you push down into the ground around the weed:
Then you step on the foot rest, lean the weeder back, and it pulls up the weed, root and all!
You can then just push the eject mechanism on the handle and the pulled weed is ejected from the tool. Sooo much better than kneeling or bending down for hours to weed! For the weeding around our house, I use this tool for bigger weeds like dandelions and then spray the smaller weeds with my organic weed spray.
Hope that helps those of you trying to get your lawns in shape this season! I sprayed a bunch of our weeds yesterday and we’re busy this weekend getting our patio area spruced up and ready for all of our visitors that are coming this week. Our oldest daughter graduates on Saturday so my parents and Jeff’s dad are coming to visit and celebrate the occasion with us! I bought some new patio furniture over Memorial Day weekend that we’re going to put together later today – I’ll let you know how it turns out! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Lauren Giusti says
Thanks for the weed tips! I have an endless supply in my yard. Makes me wonder what we were thinking when we put in so many planting areas. Does that weed tool really work? I will buy it in a heartbeat if it does what it says. Dandelion roots grow so deep that it looks too good to be true.
Patti says
We have the same weed remover tool and it works great … particularly on weeds in the lawn. I carry around a small bucket and drop the pulled up weeds into it..
Kris @ Driven by Decor says
We feel the same way Lauren – we were so thrilled when we bought this house that it had so much beautiful landscaping and now it’s become the bane of our existence 🙂 Truly it does work – I’m really picky about what I recommend. It actually works best for weeds with big roots like dandelions. Where it doesn’t do as well is plants with super thin roots like clover because it needs something to grab on to- we have to spray that. I think you would like it! You can also read the Amazon reviews – there are 1,000+ of them!
Cheryl says
I purchased the fiskar weed tool when I read this last week! I promptly ordered it on amazon, received in 2 days! It’s an amazing tool, saving my back! Thanks Kris!
HGL says
Yes that tool is great!!! Of course if the root is 20 ft long it won’t get it all the 1st time, but you go always put the wee killer in the hole.
Patti says
We have the same weed remover tool and I love it! So mich easier than crawling around on my hands and knees in the yard digging out weeds. Thanks for the recipe for the weed killer! I will definitely try it.
Lauren says
Thanks Patti.
I will order one today!
Kris @ Driven by Decor says
Funny that you have the same one and love it to! So much better than all that bending over!
Taylor Greenwalt says
Thanks..I’m always looking for natural products.
Agina Marie says
I did just salt and water and if worked. A bit slow but did the job.
Brian Lama says
Do you use the spray to kill weeds in your lawn or does the spray kill the grass as well?
Thank you,
Kris Jarrett says
It will kill the grass as well so I don’t use it on my lawn.
Kris Jarrett says
Yes, it can kill the grass too so you need to take care when you spray!
Karen Hernandez says
But does it work on evil Bindweed?
Marty True says
Kris –
I’d love some clarification about the ratio. Initially in the article, you say the ratio is “1 gallon of 20% vinegar to 1 cup of orange oil concentrate.” That’s a 1:16 ratio. Later when you’re ready to mix you say ”remove about 1 cup of vinegar from the new gallon, add 1 cup of orange oil concentrate to it”. That’s a 1:1 ratio. Can you please tell me what the best ratio is?
Thanks for your help.
-Marty
Kris Jarrett says
Hi Marty. There are 16 cups in a gallon so if you’re putting the mix in a different large container, you would put the whole gallon of vinegar in and add one cup of the orange oil concentrate to get a 1:16 ratio. If you want to make it a little easier and simply mix in the vinegar bottle itself, you can remove one cup from your gallon of vinegar and add one cup of orange oil concentrate to the remaining 15 cups in the gallon – what you now have is 15 cups of vinegar and one cup of orange oil. So it’s a 1:15 ratio at that point which is close enough.
denise says
Going to purchase spray ingredients through your site, can’t wait to try it!! So tired of weed whacking every week!
Karen Bunch says
Kris,
That weed remover sounds effective and it would be nice not to be spraying toxic chemicals. Fortunately, I was able to get a handle on the weeds we encountered with this house. It took some vigilance, but the garden space was fairly small.
We’re moving (again) this time to a senior community…in case you’re wondering, of course, I’m not a senior…hahaha. But the garden at the home we’ll be living in looks to have some serious weed issues. I’ll keep your recipe for use.
Karen
Joe Martin says
Cant you boil white vinegar and distill the water out to make the 20% vinegar instead of having to buy the more expensive brand…
Martha says
Your 3 ingredient mix contains orange oil, which is, if my memory serves me correctly, petroleum based. As for salt, doesn’t it permanently destroy the soil so that you cant grow anything in that area, except weeds maybe.
Roberta Whitmer says
Thank you. Good post with good information. Do you know the purpose of adding the orange oil to the solution as opposed to just using the 20% vinegar on it’s own?
Ginger Torres says
How soon can you plant in same area after using the orange oil method?
John Sierra Jr says
I really like the idea of the weed spray. Will it kill grass?
Mary says
I am excited to follow your blog. please do not publush my email. Thanks
MICHAEL M OLZAK says
Way too expensive. Use 1 gal of reg vinegar, 2 cups epson salts, 1/4 cup dawn dish detergent. Weeds will die.
Michele says
Are Epsom salts less harmful than regular salt to the soil?
Carolea Pothier says
Hi,
I’m thinking about buying and making the weed killer (20% vinager /orange oil), however, I only want to kill the dandelions in the grass (lawn). Does this mixture kill the grass also?
Sherry Brandt says
I love the way strong vinegar and orange oil works I just have not found a 1 gallon sprayer to hold up to the strong mixture.