7 Effective Weeding Strategies for Gravel

Gravel is a low-maintenance mulch that creates a natural alpine look in the garden. Though it’s easy to care for, an occasional weed or two may sprout between its tiny rocks. Use these seven effective weeding strategies to ensure your gravel stays weed-free year-round.

Written by Jerad Bryant Horticulture review by Sarah Jay Last updated: July 13, 2025 | 4 min read

Close-up of a gardener's hand pulling a small weed with green leaves and a thin tuft of roots from a gravel garden bed.

Contents

Weeding doesn’t have to be difficult! There are plenty of low-stakes strategies to convert a weedy gravel lot into a weed-free one. Whether you take an active or passive approach to weeding, these methods will help you create the landscape of your dreams.

It’s easier to tackle weeds when they’re young than when they’re mature. Get in on the problem early and you’ll thank yourself later! If you forgot to pull the young weeds, there are ways to mitigate their spread and prevent them from taking over.

No matter the state of the weeds in your gravel, these seven weeding strategies will burn, smother, and kill the unruly plants so they won’t come back. Stay on them and remove them this year, and the weeds will have a tough time returning in future seasons.

CobraHead Original Weeder

Multi-Use Tool for Weeding, Digging, Planting, and More
Precision Steel Fingernail® Blade Cuts Through Any Soil
Comfortable, Ergonomic Handle for Right or Left-Handed Use
Outperforms Similar Tools in Tough Soil and Tight Spaces
Made in the USA with Durable, High-Quality Materials

View at Epicgardening.com

Burning

A gardener with a handheld propane torch burns a large weed growing among the cobblestones with flame. — A quick flame zap weakens weeds before they bounce back.

Burning is an intense method for removing weeds! You use a handheld propane torch to sear the tops of the weeds so they struggle to grow back. Because gravel doesn’t catch on fire, burning weeds is a proper strategy for the rocky mulch.

You can find torches for burning weeds at garden centers, home improvement centers, or online from specialty retailers. They hook up to a propane tank and burn on command when you press a trigger or button.

To burn your weeds, use your torch to sear their leafy tops. Some tough growers, like dandelions and teasel, may resprout from their roots. Burn them every two weeks or monthly to stop them from returning.

Fire can quickly spread out of control in poor sites. Avoid using a torch if there is a lot of dry debris from grasses, trash, or dead weeds. These materials can catch on fire! Instead, use the torch on young, green weeds to prevent accidental fires. And avoid using a torch in fire season, or in fire-prone areas.

Solarization

Transparent plastic fabric tightly covers garden soil, held down by wooden boards and large boulders near a wooden wall to solarize and kill weeds. — Clear sheeting turns heat into a weed-killing sauna.

Solarizing is a weeding method for covering and smothering the young plants. It combines the power of the sun with the act of smothering to snuff out the weeds before they mature. You’ll stop them dead in their tracks!

Start by finding a clear plastic sheet you can lay on the gravel. Place it right on top of the rocks and plants, then weigh down its edges with large rocks, bricks, or other heavy objects. Greenhouse plastic works well, as does any similar clear material. Leave the tarp on for a month or longer until the weeds die underneath.

This method works best in spring or summer when temperatures are high and sunlight is abundant. It doesn’t work well in the winter or fall, as cold weather and cloudy conditions can prevent solarization from occurring.

Occultation

Black tarp surrounds young flowering Bluebeard and Pennisetum alopecuroides plants set in fine gravel used for decoration and mulch. — Cover weeds tightly and let the shadows do the work.

Occultation is a weeding strategy similar to solarization that uses darkness instead of light to kill unruly plants. The method uses a dark tarp made of plastic or fabric. The dark layer smothers the weeds and prevents them from photosynthesizing. Carpets also work well, as do old camping tarps. Anything flat and opaque will do.

Occultation is a passive approach to weeding that works well during most times of the year. It won’t work well in winter, though spring, summer, and fall are ideal seasons. A little warmth helps heat the seedlings beneath the tarp past the point they’d prefer.

Occultation takes four weeks or longer to work well. Check on the area periodically by lifting the tarp. Peer underneath it and see whether the weeds are dead or not. Wait until they’re all yellow and brown before removing the dark layer.

Add More Gravel

A gardener spreads a fresh layer of gravel on a flower bed using a large garden rake. — Gravel needs topping off when weeds start creeping in.

Over time, dirt and dust particles fall between the gravel particles. They build up into soil over time, which traps weed seeds and allows them to sprout. The gravel will begin to resemble a rock garden after many years without maintenance.

If it’s been a while since you’ve replenished the gravel, consider adding a new layer on top of the old one. Remove the largest weeds by hand and leave the small seedlings. Smother the remaining ones by covering them with a fresh layer of gravel.

This strategy may not remove the toughest weeds that can poke through the heavy rocks. Combine this method with the others to remove the toughest specimens. Consider hand pulling or smothering them, then add the fresh gravel layer after you kill them.

Hand Pull Weeds

Close-up of a gardener's hand pulling out a young weed in a flower bed covered with fine grey gravel. — A good tug now saves a mess later on.

Hand pulling is the tried and true method for weeding. It works on big, small, old, or young plants. You can use your hands or a weeding tool, like the CobraHead Weeder, to remove the unruly specimens. When pulling, it’s important to remove as much of the roots as possible.

Many weedy species, like dandelions and blackberries, resprout from their roots. It’s best to get all of their roots if possible, though it’s common to have them break off when you pull. If they do break off, monitor the site for the next few weeks to see if sprouts pop up.

If sprouts reappear, grab your gloves and pull them again! Repeated pulling will snuff them out. They’ll eventually run out of nutrients and energy, after which they’ll wither and struggle to resprout.

Chop Stems

Close up of a gardener's hands wearing black gloves with a small curved hoe chopping the stems and leaves of weeds in a garden bed. — Cut them back before seeds start plotting their takeover.

Sometimes, weedy species escape your grasp. Weeds receive their name because of their spreading and quick-growing tendencies. They’ll mature seemingly overnight! If they mature past the point of the seedling stage, it’s not the end of the world. There are ways to mitigate their spread.

Seeds are one of the main mechanisms for weedy reproduction. If you can prevent seeds from forming, you’ll stop future seedlings from sprouting in the gravel. To do this, simply snip off flowers or seed heads from mature plants. You can spend extra time pulling the plants, but chopping is sufficient to prevent future infestations.

Many weeds resprout new flower heads if you chop them off. They’ll remain in place so long as their roots are in the gravel. If they routinely resprout flowers, consider pulling them out instead of chopping their flowering stems.

Salt the Earth

Close up of a male hand with a large garden scoop filled with white salt, spreading it on weeds growing through rocks in a garden. — A quiet sprinkle now stops seedlings from sprouting later.

Unless you have plants or grasses nearby, grab your salt shaker and salt the earth! Salt is an efficient plant and soil killer. It’s a great weeding tool so long as you don’t plan on planting crops or flowers near the site. Salt harms plant roots and prevents seedlings from thriving.

Salt works well, but it has devastating effects on soil life. It’s not the best tool if the gravel is near wild sites, garden beds, or waterways. Salt kills plants, but it also kills soil microbes, bugs, and beneficial critters.

If your gravel is remote enough for this weeding method, you can apply salt during the growing season. Apply it in the cracks and crevices where weedy seedlings grow. Let it sit, and avoid watering the area for a few weeks while it seeps into the soil.