How does flame weeding work? How effective it is getting rid of weeds with fire is and whether it’s safe to do

Before you get too excited or scared, flame weeding is not about lighting a match and setting fire to your garden or patio weeds. So please don’t do that!

But it is an effective method how to kill weeds using the power of fire with the help of a specialised tool, also known as a weed burner. And it is slowly becoming a mainstream one as even the likes of Aldi are releasing weed burners for as little as £19.99, while Amazon has sold several hundreds of its bestselling weed burners in the last month with prices starting at £16. So don’t worry, it’s not an expensive way of getting rid of weeds.

But whenever fire is involved, one must proceed with caution. Which is why we’ve consulted our gardening experts to see how safe flame weeding actually is, as well as effective. And whether this is the best way to get rid of weeds in our outdoor spaces that we’ve been sleeping on.

How does flame weeding work?

Firstly, there are two types of weed burners you can use to flame weed.

So you can choose which type you prefer – gas or electricity-powered one. One thing to note is that this method is best used on patios rather than to get rid of weeds in a lawn as you could torch your lawn by accident, too.

Perhaps surprisingly enough, experts recommend this method over some others like using bleach to kill weeds or weed killer as it is less harmful to the environment.

‘Flame weeding is as effective as traditional herbicide and mechanical weeding methods,’ says Petar Ivanov, Fantastic Gardeners' gardening expert. ‘Aside from the fact that it can even be more effective than these other methods of weed control, it also offers several additional advantages, the most important of which is that it is less harmful to the environment.’

Fiona adds, ‘It is particularly good for people who cannot bend down to pull up weeds or for those who have organic gardens and don’t wish to use chemicals. Homes with pets and small children would also benefit from using a flame weeder rather than chemical weed killers to avoid accidental exposure.’

Petar Ivanov

Petar Ivanov is one of the company's top-performing experts and manages over six teams of gardeners, delivering stunning landscape results and fostering a deep connection with nature through his work.

What you’ll need

• Weed burner
• Safety boots like these at Amazon
• Safety goggles like these ones from Amazon
• Safety gloves such as BBQ gloves like these from Amazon

Is flame weeding safe?

As previously mentioned, whenever there is fire involved, questions of safety and fire hazards are raised. So is flame weeding safe to do for the everyday gardener?

Yes, but use only for its intended purpose and follow all instructions carefully.

But if it is your first time using it and you don’t feel confident, you can have a professional do it for you, at least for the first time around, Petar recommends.

FAQs

Will weeds come back if you burn them?

Eventually, the weeds should stop coming back. But first, you’ll need to repeat the process of flame weeding a few times. After a couple of days weeds will have withered, but for those with very deep roots you'll need to flame weed up to around every three weeks during growing months but they will eventually die off entirely.

So as long as you follow instructions and take the necessary safety precautions, flame weeding could be a game changer for your efforts to get rid of weeds.