The Unconventional Yet Effective Sugar Hack For A Weed-Free Lawn

Home, sweet — extremely sweet — home. Using sugar to reduce weeds and enhance grass growth in your lawn may seem a little crazy, but it can actually help. Admittedly, DIY sugar hacks ubiquitous, so you might be forgiven for turning an eye at the idea. But an application of a sugar solution to your lawn will not only help to inhibit weed growth, but could green up your grass as well. 

Sugar is carbon, and carbon is an important component that plants use to grow. What sugar, however, lacks is nitrogen, so many people believe that by enhancing lawn growth with carbon, the lawn may consume all the nitrogen, leaving the weeds without any, and allowing them to die. That's one theory. Another is that the sugar encourages microbe development, which will enrich the soil and lets the grass outperform the plants invading your yard. It's possible that this is the same process from different points of view. Either way, sugar is a good option for those who prefer organic vs. chemical lawn care.

One obvious benefit to using sugar to deter weed growth is that it is completely nontoxic, a safe and natural weed control. For people trying to cut down on sketchy chemical use on their yards, sugar could be one safe hack to try. Safe for children, adults, and pets, you needn't worry about generational harm from sugar application to your lawn. It also reportedly breaks down thatch, or the leftover clippings after you mow. This hinders grass growth, so its removal is quite beneficial for your lawn. Overall, sugar could make your lawn healthy and green.

The technique for using sugar in your yard is easy-peasy. Remember that if you are going to use this sugar hack on your lawn, start early in the spring when weeds are most vulnerable. You can apply granulated sugar around specific individual weeds you wish to get rid of; just pour a little around the plant. (It works better on broadleaf weeds than on grasses.) To make application easier, put it in a fertilizer spreader and broadcast across your lawn in even passes. About 1 pound of sugar is sufficient for 10 ½ square feet of lawn surface. Follow up by lightly watering the lawn. 

Another method is mixing 1 ¾ cups of molasses into 10 gallons of water (molasses made from sugar beets is about 50% sugar). Put the mixture in a manual garden sprayer and cover the lawn evenly. Follow the application with a light watering. 

This weed-killing sugar hack has a couple of potential problems, however, and should only be considered one part of a more comprehensive weed control plan. If too much sugar is used or if it is concentrated in one place, it can attract unwanted insects or animals. It could possibly promote fungal growth, too, which is harmful to your lawn. If your lawn has been susceptible to fungus in the past, sugar lawn treatment should be avoided. With those caveats in mind, this environmentally safe and inexpensive yard hack just might be a secret to your success in enriching your lawn this year.