Getting rid of Weeds

Question:

The house next door to mine is a long term empty property. In its garden it is riddled with 2 weeds one is mare’s tail and the other I don’t know the name of but it is like a route that travels under the surface and every now and then it shoots up just 2 or 3 blades of grass type things. My problems I cannot do anything to stop these 2 weeds coming through into my garden. Next to that garden I have a small patch of tended garden which is turned over and is ready for planting up. But because of the weeds next door there is nothing I can do about it can you help. I have had an idea which I would like to run past you, from what I can see both weeds seem to be just under the surface and I wandered if I dug down a spade deep all along the edge of my side along the perimeter, so as too cut off the roots and then somehow put in a barrier would the mayors tail and other dig its way under the barrier and if not I then can to somehow kill off the rots on my side before planting. I have tried weed killing but to no avail and it gets worse yearly. Please can you help?

Answer:

I’m sorry to hear about your weed problem. I think your suggestion is an excellent idea. Once the barrier is in place it is extremely unlikely that the weeds’ roots will go down far enough to make their way over to your side of the garden. Once you have cut the roots and put the barrier in place I would double check all stray roots are removed from the area, wait a few weeks to see if any new weeds appear. If so then treat the area with a good weedkiller such as Roundup and that should be that.

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