Is it really bad to use weed killer on an allotment, and what is good?

rosie383

Due to circumstances, (and dh's bad back!!) our lottie is covered in weeds again , and still has blasted nasty brambles popping up. The thought of having to go and start all over again from scratch digging all the weeds again doesn't appeal. Is it possible to just put a load of weed killer down?

angelavdavis

You can use something like Glyphosate which will only kill the weeds and won't taint the earth, but choose a day when there is little or no wind to stop it drifting onto other people's plots.

Use a spray and keep the spray head low, work backwards so you don't risk treading in the weed killer and walking it over the grass.

With tougher weeds like brambles, I would bruise them by crushing the stems with a spade before spraying.

You might need to apply it more than once if it is really choked up with weeds.

Don't put the treated weeds in the compost heap.

Another option is to beat the weeds down with a spade and cover the lot with cardboard. Wetten and cover the cardboard with manure or grass clippings to weight it down. Leave until next spring.

lynzpower

Angela

Would it be possible to do this on a garden that has been overtaken by brambles? I have a lawn that was headhigh with brambles and all sorts before we moved in. Its all been chopped right back now and has been mowed but now the brambles and other weeds now poking through with all the rain weve had.

Would this method work on this?

angelavdavis

Hi Lynz,

Haven't seen you for ages!

You can do. You can use the cardboard method I mentioned if you want to avoid using weedkiller or spot treat specific weeds in a lawn, I would cut the top and bottom off a plastic squash bottle and use that as a collar to contain the spray. You will need to treat pernicious weeds like brambles a few times as they are so tough and as you have cut back the brambles, there aren't many leaves to soak up the weedkiller.

I'm not a lawn expert, but I would think you will then have to treat the gaps in your lawn with some grass seed in spring. If there are loads of weeds and not much grass, I would personally treat the lot and then either re-sow the lawn or lay turf in spring.

My husband and I used the cardboard method on some of our allotment this year, but layered the cardboard with grass clippings, manure, newspaper, etc and then topped it with compost and planted straight on top - had the best courgettes ever!!!

Farway

lynzpower wrote: »

Angela

Would it be possible to do this on a garden that has been overtaken by brambles? I have a lawn that was headhigh with brambles and all sorts before we moved in. Its all been chopped right back now and has been mowed but now the brambles and other weeds now poking through with all the rain weve had.

Would this method work on this?

If you now have a lawn, with brambles poking up, mowing the lawn will eventually weaken the brambles, and in spring, once brambles & grass start to grow again a broadleaved lawn weedkiller [the type used for daises etc] should gradually put paid to the brambles, but it will not be overnight

babyshoes

You can target a specific plant with gylphosphate by painting it on the leaves during a growing period. It does take a while to die off and may need repeat applications.

bullybear

Hiya I have used roundup last two years on selected plots and works well does not work on docks or meres tail but when it has killed all other stuff off I rotavatored it after and it then becomes inactive.

Good luck

forgotmyname

Be careful when spraying, You dont want the weedkiller drifting onto other plots, Nearly saw a punchup at the allotments
after a new member sprayed his entire plot, You could smell it everywhere.

Killed his neighbours crop of potatoes, He was not a happy bunny. I thought he was going to kill him.


I used a watering can for mine, Typically within hours it rained.

Problem i had with brambles or maybe they were blackberries? ROOTS.. giant roots.
Some of them are huge i broke a fork already.