I love gardening, whether it’s tending to my perennials, planting brightly colored annuals, or managing my herbs and veggies in my raised bed gardens. But what I don’t love are the annoying weeds that seem to grow regardless of the weather.

A deluge of rain? Weeds. Several weeks of drought? Weeds. Drastic highs and lows in temperature? You guessed it, more weeds. Well, I’ve come to accept the fact that I’m likely never going to eradicate all the weeds in my gardens, but I’ve learned a few tricks that at least help keep the pesky plants at bay.

Short of using chemical weed killers, how do you create weed control in your flower and vegetable gardens? Here are some tips from the pros:

1. Minimize Soil Disturbance Instead of raking and digging up weeds, finegardening.com recommends taking a knife to cut through dandelion and other weed roots. The less the soil is disturbed, the less likely weed seeds are to germinate.

With some love and attention, you can have weed-free gardens all summer long!