How to Remove Large Weeds From a Lawn in 8 Steps

Most of us have used lawn mowers, weed eaters, and other yard care tools for weeds. I thought it’d be the same process until I encounter 0.5 to 1.5-inch thick weeds in the backyard. Needless to say, they required heavy-duty treatment.

To remove large weeds from a lawn, cut them with a weed brush trimmer, use shears on small patches, and get a heavy-duty mower. Next, rent a riding mower or get a scythe to slice down to the weed’s base. Remove the roots to prevent them from coming back.

Throughout this article, you’ll also learn the following details about how to remove large weeds from a lawn:

• Simple, effective steps that everyone can try
• Common misconceptions about traditional lawn care equipment
• How to prevent the dense weeds from coming back

Pro Suggestion: Once you remove the weeds, you have to use a spray to destroy the roots. You could remove them by hand, but it’s laborious and time-consuming. Review Amazon’s best weed sprays to figure out which one suits your lawn.

Cut Them Down with a Weed Brush Trimmer

Using a traditional string trimmer to remove dense weeds is one of many reasons that a weed eater overheats. A weed brush trimmer is very similar to a weed eater in style except for the fact that brush trimmers feature very thick blades that are capable of cutting through very thick growth like small sapling trees, reeds, sticks, and stalks.

To eradicate large weeds referred to as brush, you will need a more powerful tool such as a weed brush trimmer. This equipment features a bigger engine with more horsepower to help cut through thicker growth. They can also get into places that are hard to reach and adding to its effectiveness.

To learn more about the differences between weed brush trimmers and traditional weed eaters, check out this article from Backyard Boss.

Use Grass Shears for Small Patches

Grass shears that are also commonly referred to as grass clippers are useful if you have small patches of large brush. The blades of the grass shears have to be sharpened to be efficient.

Try a Heavy-Duty Lawn Mower

Heavy-duty lawn mowers are more efficient than traditional mowers when dealing with a brush with a trunk size 0.5 to 1.5 inches in diameter. Heavy-duty lawn mowers are equipped with strong blades and a powerful motor to enable you to cut through the large overgrown weeds effortlessly.

Additionally, this equipment features a bigger grass bag that reduces the number of trips to the compost pile. Overheating may be experienced when using the traditional mowers as weeds may get stuck in the blades causing the engine to overwork.

Mow the Large Weeds with a Scythe

Large weeds or brush can easily be mowed using a scythe. It’s a tool consisting of a long, curved blade attached to a straight or curved handle. It’s used to mow grain crops or grass. Using a scythe saves you fuel expenses and helps you keep fit by exercising your arms, legs, abdominal, and chest muscles. However, mowing with a scythe is laborious and exhausting. The following steps are involved in scythe-mowing:

1. Get your scythe and position yourself with your knees bent and back straight.
2. With extended arms, place the blade of the scythe on the ground. The blade is usually curved slightly upwards, and the back of the blade is flat on the ground.
3. Smoothly draw the crescent-shaped blade of the scythe along towards you. Sweep the ground before you and into the edge of the weeds that you’re cutting.
4. The scythe blade should move towards your right and slightly behind you. If it doesn’t cut the weeds, then it may need sharpening, or you may have gone too far deep into the weeds.
5. To make progress, continue in this style while moving forward in baby half-steps.

Watch this video by Richard Brown to learn how to use a scythe:

Consider Metal Weed Eater Blades

There are two categories of weed eater attachments; plastic strings and metal blades. Plastic strings are not as effective when cutting rough bushes, edging, or cutting through hard surfaces.

Metal blades are recommended for use if you’re dealing with a brush since they cut with ease. They are chisel-shaped to boost their efficiency. Metal weed eater blades can be shaped for good results.

If your lawn has thick, woody bushes, another class of metal blades with saw-like teeth that are very tough is available. These blades can cut through wood and plastic with ease, and they also require sharpening for efficiency.

Rent a Riding Mower

Due to the strength and density of tall and large weeds, they pose a bigger challenge when mowing. Renting a riding mower proves helpful when dealing with these types of weeds, especially if it’s a large plot of land, although it leaves an environmental footprint. When cutting high weeds, the following steps can be followed:

1. Clear the area to be mowed of stones, large twigs, branches, and other debris hidden under the tall weeds.
2. Position yourself on the seat and press the riding mower on the brake pedal to set its parking brake. Position the transmission on neutral, detach the clutch, and set it to the ‘slow’ position.
3. Start the mower and release its parking brake. Press the button on the attachment lift lever and pull the lever towards you until it’s upright to adjust the mower deck to the highest position.
4. Move the mower to the direction you need to mow by putting the transmission in drive. Move the attachment clutch lever to the on position to engage the mower blades.
5. Lightly hold down the mower’s accelerator slightly. Release the accelerator if you encounter resistance. Repeat the process again and if the resistance still occurs, release the accelerator, put the transmission in reverse, and back up a couple of feet. Switch back to drive on the transmission and continue mowing.
6. Move the mower halfway over the path you just cut after turning If you frequently meet blade resistance.
7. Empty the mower grass bag as frequently as necessary into a compost pile. Continue mowing the area after two days while setting the mower deck to the next lowest position. Make sure to spray the mower blades using a garden horse to avoid spreading the weeds’ seeds to other areas.

Using a riding mower (or a push mower, for that matter) to remove thick weeds is repetitive and frustrating. Once you get rid of them, it’s essential that you follow the next suggestion to prevent them from coming back. Never overwork a mower; It’ll end up smokey and overheated.

Spray the Lawn with Weed Killer

Application of glycophosphate-based weed killer to any remaining weeds on a dry day will kill the stubborn weeds along with their root systems. These may take approximately two weeks to a month to show results.

Other alternative methods to using chemicals on your lawn include using organic methods of weed-killing like applying a thick mulch or covering the weeds with an old rug or a black plastic sheet to prevent the weeds from accessing water and sunlight. However, this method is time-consuming since it may take a year to be fully effective.You may also consider the option of getting synthetic turf.

LawnStarter has an excellent guide on how to safely and effectively use lawn sprays.

Remove the Roots

Ensure that you dig out the weeds deep enough to remove the root entirely. It prevents the weeds from sprouting afresh after a while. You may consider hiring a rotavator if you have a large area or a dense soil composition to deal with. Hunker recommends removing seed pods to prevent weed from coming back down the road.

Wrapping It Up

Dense weeds are a whole different issue than regular weeds. We’re not talking about dandelions and crabgrass; They’re not too much of an issue. I’ve dealt with weeds that feel more like tree branches than stems!

Here’s a quick recap:

• Don’t forget to remove the roots and use spray to stop regrowth.
• Take out the seed pods when you’re finished.
• Scythes, heavy-duty mowers, and riding mowers are all excellent tools to remove large weeds.
• Get a brush trimmer to slice through dense plants.