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Writer's pictureKat Cervoni

How to Prevent Weeds From Growing in Your Patio


A small herringbone brick patio with antique bricks, free-standing fiberglass planters and ipe privacy fencing in a small Manhattan backyard garden.
A weed-free brick patio allows the beauty of the antique bricks and herringbone pattern shine in this small Manhattan backyard garden. Image courtesy Staghorn NYC.

If you’ve ever had your brick or stone patio overrun with weeds popping up between the every crack, you know how frustrating it can be. Those persistent little plants find their way into every nook and cranny, disrupting the clean look of your path or patio (and adding to your to-do list too). The good news? With a few strategic steps, you can greatly minimize the chances of weeds taking root in your hardscape.


Note that the following steps are best for dry-laid hardscape spaces. While it's technically possible to patch mortared hardscaping with polymeric sand, it may look a bit mismatched.


  1. Clear Out Weeds + Dirt

    1. I suggest using a hori-hori (my tool of choice), a crevice weeder, or a flat-head screw driver to clear out the narrow spaces between the stones. Save your knees with a kneeling pad or knee pads.

    2. The most important thing is getting the weeds out. The lingering dirt and dust will come out with the pressure washer.

    3. It helps cut down on overall mess if you sweep up this debris ahead of pressure washing.

    A hori-hori garden knife and green garden kneeling pad on a brick pathway.
    I prefer using a hori-hori to clear out the weeds of my front pathway. A kneeling pad is also essential and I use mine all the time.
  2. Pressure Wash

    1. The focus of the pressure wash is to thoroughly clean out the cracks between your stones. Even tiny amounts of dirt can support tenacious weed seedlings.


  3. Allow the Space to Thoroughly Dry

    1. Your patio or pathway must be completely dry before you apply the polymeric sand or else it will stick to everything and make a mess.


    Polymeric sand is swept into the crevices of a patio or pathway and wet-set with the mist setting on your garden hose. Image courtesy Yellow Brick Home.
    Polymeric sand is swept into the crevices of a patio or pathway and wet-set with the mist setting on your garden hose. Image courtesy Yellow Brick Home.
  4. Apply Polymeric Sand

    1. Your local hardware store will likely stock polymeric sand (brands like EZ Sand and Dominator are available at Home Depot and Lowes).

      1. Gray/Beige is almost always my color of choice as it plays as a nice neutral with most stones and brick.

    2. It's common for polymeric sand to settle and shift a bit after it's been applied and you may need to top it off in spots a few weeks after you've finished. This is especially true if you've had to do a full application rather than little spot treatments.


Take it from me, this is the most effective chemical-free and long-lasting way to prevent weeds from growing in your patio. As they say, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!

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