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Alternate weedkilling tips

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ClarkeKent
ClarkeKent Posts: 336 Forumite
edited 3 September 2016 at 4:13PM in Gardening
Found this great article on killing weeds using "natural" means.

http://www.everydaycheapskate.com/home-and-family/hands-down-the-best-way-to-kill-weeds-and-its-not-roundup/

Quick article overview
Replanting areas - White Vinegar and Washing up Liquid
Non-pant areas - mix two cups ordinary table salt with one gallon of white vinegar, Add 1 teaspoon of liquid dishwashing soap

Just need the cheapest place to buy table salt/vinegar in "large(ish)" quantities?(Tesco Value etc)

Has anyone else got any alternative ways which work and kill weeds effectively that doesn't include Roundup etc?

Comments

  • Davesnave
    Davesnave Posts: 34,741 Forumite
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    ClarkeKent wrote: »
    Has anyone else got any alternative ways which work and kill weeds effectively that doesn't include Roundup etc?

    Alternatives to Round-Up? Yes, there are many products out there for specific purposes, as it would be a bit silly to spray my fields with either glyphosate, salt or vinegar, unless I wanted to kill all the grass, that is. They can selectively take out bracken, docks, creeping thistle...you name it.

    And do you know the best thing about them? Now the difficult weeds are controlled, I can ease right back on my targeted spring spraying and use very little in the way of chemicals at all, which is great, because they're expensive.

    Seven years ago I inherited a mess of thistles, docks, ragwort and bracken with a sad bit of grass straggling through it, all courtesy of an organic farmer. No one even wanted to cut it for bullock hay, and those things not fussy!

    This year, looking at the same field, at much the same time of year, I could see a few thistles, so I got my brushcutter and knocked them down, That was it. However, now I can actually see the field, I've counted more wild flowers than ever and the real diversity of the native grasses is also much more apparent.

    But that's not what you meant by 'alternatives' is it? And this is not what you want to hear.:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:
  • TheGardener
    TheGardener Posts: 3,303 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 3 September 2016 at 10:00PM
    I've had moderate success with a 'flame thrower' type weed wand. One of the benefits of burning them is that it burns any surface lying seeds too. The gas bottles obviously are not as cheap as salt but 1 bottle (about the size of a large can of hairspray) seems to last about 2 years. You don't have to actually set the weeds on fire - just scorch the leaves. Dandelions and docks usually take a couple of goes but I find it very effective for paved areas and the cracks between slabs.
    Its not a total solution but great for some situations/areas of the garden.
    In the lawn; thistles and dandelions - stab them though the heart (into the ground) with a knitting needle (wiggle it about a bit) then pour some salt in the resulting hole.
    The deep sense of satisfaction to be gained from stabbing a dandelion though the heart is a bonus :)
  • Ectophile
    Ectophile Posts: 7,972 Forumite
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    I do like the idea that washing up liquid is "natural".

    Looking on the back of my Fairy Liquid bottle, it carries the big warning:
    "Causes serious eye irritation. Harmful to aquatic life with long lasting effects. Keep out of reach of children."
    If it sticks, force it.
    If it breaks, well it wasn't working right anyway.
  • Davesnave
    Davesnave Posts: 34,741 Forumite
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    Ectophile wrote: »
    I do like the idea that washing up liquid is "natural".

    Looking on the back of my Fairy Liquid bottle, it carries the big warning:
    "Causes serious eye irritation. Harmful to aquatic life with long lasting effects. Keep out of reach of children."

    I like the idea that salt makes a semi-permanent weedkiller.

    In high enough concentrations it certainly kills everything, but sustaining those would be environmentally damaging and far removed from organic practices.

    Just think about those areas next to A roads which are sprayed with rock salt every winter. Are they barren? The ones near me certainly aren't.
  • 50Twuncle
    50Twuncle Posts: 10,763 Forumite
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    Try a Goat - they are good at eating weeds !!
    They are the ultimate green weed killer...
  • Davesnave
    Davesnave Posts: 34,741 Forumite
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    50Twuncle wrote: »
    Try a Goat - they are good at eating weeds !!
    They are the ultimate green weed killer...

    It's not in a goat's best interest to kill perennial weeds. They may eat them down, but the weeds will shoot up again when the goat has passed on to pastures new.

    Then the goat can eat them all over again. :D

    On the other hand, a pig will do the job properly, taking out the roots as well.

    So, next to Dow, Monsanto and all the other evil chemical companies, the pig is the ultimate killer of weeds.
  • Davesnave
    Davesnave Posts: 34,741 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Ectophile wrote: »
    I do like the idea that washing up liquid is "natural".

    Looking on the back of my Fairy Liquid bottle, it carries the big warning:
    "Causes serious eye irritation. Harmful to aquatic life with long lasting effects. Keep out of reach of children."

    It's worth pointing out, though, that a weak soap solution, made from eco washing-up liquid, is all that's usually necessary to control aphids etc in a greenhouse.

    And mentioning washing up..... my marigolds were mostly eaten by slugs in the polytunnel this year, and for the first time ever I've had a problem with whitefly.

    It's not just eco warriors that use...ahem...'natural' methods of control. ;)
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