Weed control in large yard; I need help!

Okay all you garden-hounds, I need your help again. I have a really large yard (the lot used to have a house on it and it's a BIG job just for little ol' me). It's on a slope, and terraced into levels. All dirt, and WEEDS. And weeds and more weeds. I'm in Los Angeles, so the weeds grow fast and tall and thick!!! It was just cleared today by a gardening service, and I want to keep the weeds from coming back, so I can get the thing into shape!!! I need suggestions. I won't use chemical weed killer; I've read in the forums about the vinegar spray, and also the idea of using newspaper covered by mulch. Both of those sound good, as I can't really afford expensive weed fabric and the like. Any suggestions would be soooo appreciated. Thanks!!

Newspapers, cardboard, plastic, etc. are all good first line of defense barriers. Then comes the mulch which can be anything from lawn clippings to stable cleanings. Or just layers of paper weighted down with rocks, etc. If you don't have the mulch I would probably go with the black plastic. It will help to heat the soil and hopefully kill at least some of the seeds. Then start planting things like daylilies which do a fairly good job of choking out many weeds. Cut holes in the plastic or paper just large enough to plant the daylilies, etc.

margu- Sounds like a big project,good luck. The man from Mo. is steering you in the right direction. I would suggest you divide the large area into section and try different things to see what works for youin LA. i WOULD USE grass clippins on newspaper in alayering method and work into the soil after weeds are gone.

Thanks, I love the daylilies idea, I didn't realize that they were so easy to grow and would choke out weeds. How do they do when planted at this time of year? Should I wait until fall?

My experience has been that the survival rate of daylilies is much, much, better if they are planted in the fall. Newly-planted daylilies do not have much heat and drought tolerance, at least not in old Canoga Park. After about a year to establish themselves though, they'll be fine.

Kelli...quick question (off-topic)..

Will daylilys make for good cut flowers, or will they wilt/die quickly? (I've never cut them to find out.) (I gotta put together a bouquet and wondered whether to add them.)

I have no idea, but I wouldn't think that any of them would make very good cut flowers, as the flowers only last for one day.

That's what I thought ... was wondering about the un-opened buds though, thinking as one flower fades....would the other buds open?

Thanks for the comment!

And now, back to the topic at hand! ô¿ô

Daylilies are are great as cut floweres!! I often take them to the cafe' for decoration.

Okay, I decided on the black plastic, because getting that much mulch would be impossible....here's my next question: how long do I leave the plastic down? Will one summer and fall do the trick? It'll be consistently in the 90's here for at least 2 months...and then in the 80's after that...will that cook the weeds enough and kill them? Can I safely remove the plastic when it starts raining, without the little buggers going wild again?