[the spiv]

Why do some gardening books /websites say you should never weed when the grounds wet. We had a lot of rain  yesterday and none today so i done some weeding. What a difference. The weeds came out that easy. Any ideas

[Spr0ut]

because walking on wet soil compacts it - I dunno, just my guess. Not a problem if you create no-walk beds with paths between.

[Madame Cholet]

Yes I agree my beds weed any weather the moist soil helps too.

[tangojulie]

I think pulling up big weeds is a bit different to hoeing little ones.

Big ones certainly come out more easily when it's wet.

But I prefer to hoe when it's dry because everything just shrivels up pretty quickly.  If it's damp then the weeds can survive longer and even re-root.

I guess if I raked up the hoeings all the time it wouldn't make much difference - but I don't!

[gavinjconway]

A few tips on weeding when wet..

1. You compact the soil wherever you stand.
2. Every weed you hoe and leave with roots on will probably re-grow due to the wet conditions.
3. If you pull the weeds and bin them then thats ok.. but stand on planks or pathways to stop compacting soil.
4. If you hoe in the dry the sun kills the exposed roots so they cant re-grow.

[maloneranger]

It depends on the soil type.

However, I find that when I weed when the soil surface is wet, that I remove a lot of precious soil with the roots.

When the soil is just damp, this soil is easily shaken off.

[Spr0ut]

swill the roots in a bucket of water then return the soiled water to the bed- no wasted soil.

[gavinjconway]

swill the roots in a bucket of water then return the soiled water to the bed- no wasted soil.

Too much faffing... just sling hem on the compost heap..

[Beetroot Queen]

We weed come rain or shine, if I waited for the sun each time I would have a jungle not a plot. I am 90% a hand weeder, 10% done by hoe.

[the spiv]

This is my 3rd year on the plot and i would say ive done more  weeding  than growing because i keep. Waiting for dry wrather to weed. Lesson learnt don't believe  everything  you read

[beesrus]

I believe the compacting of soil is overplayed by some. Yes, of course we can ruin our soils and hard effort by trampling all over a fully soaked allotment on a regular basis. But not to weed after Summer rain is plain crazy, especially this time of year when most beds have been dug and occupied, and weeds are relatively young.
I use a very lightweight 4 feet plank, if it's convenient, and if I stray off it, I'm not exactly heartbroken. One can always loosen where one's feet have been if that worried. Most of the time I gingerly just use my size elevens.

In my experience, after pulling, say, onions and broad bean crops, the onion bed is no more compacted than the broad bean bed, even though the onions have received a good 2 or 3 visits from my feet, and the broad beans, none.

What I do religiously though is turn over one spit of every bed when harvesting, and weed fully.

[Spr0ut]

swill the roots in a bucket of water then return the soiled water to the bed- no wasted soil.

Too much faffing... just sling hem on the compost heap..

- same here but the poster was wanting to minimize soil removal from the bed.