Things to do this week:

* Weed it or weep. Fall irrigation brought up lots of new weeds so be sure to remove them before they get too big or begin scattering seed. At this point they can easily be scraped off with a scuffle or other kind of hoe. Pull out the weeds by hand if they are near the trunk or base of plants that may be damaged with a hoe.

If weeds are hard to pull, pry them out with some kind of weeding tool or a trowel, making sure you get the roots, especially on Bermuda grass (“devil’ grass) and oxalis (with its shamrock-like leaves).

Don’t water weeded spots for several days to prevent re-rooting, and hoe in the morning of a sunny day so weeds quickly dry out.

Though it’s tempting to toss weeds in the compost pile, don’t, unless you want to spread weed seeds all over the garden. Most compost piles don’t get hot enough to destroy seeds.

* Encourage decay. Remember to keep compost piles moist--even casual accumulations--so leaves and other garden debris decompose quickly. To speed up decomposition, sprinkle a little fertilizer on top of the pile before you wet it down. The nitrogen component will feed the organisms doing the decomposing.