| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| gardening-girl |
Using round-up, or not!My green side is saying don,t use it, but my back is saying use it!After three weeks of non-stop weeding and digging, I feel like giving in. OH says that its bio-degradeable, other plotties say no, any advice please. |
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| gil |
I occasionally crack and use round-up.
Its effects are neutralised by contact with the soil - it acts on the green parts of the plant. The label says not to sow/plant for x weeks after application, and I'd maybe give it a bit more time than that. Seems to take a while to work , before the weeds turn yellow/red/dead, but it is working before that. I now tend to apply it round the edges of the plots to form a buffer zone against the really bad weeds that are encroaching from all sides, and still dig out the ones in the plots themselves. |
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| gardening-girl |
Thanks Gil, you seem to answering all my questions today! | ||
| Tavascarow |
I used to use it but now only on Japanese knot weed. | ||
| sean |
I didn't think it worked on Knotweed. | ||
| Cathryn |
I have just used it to bring a field back into cultivation. I would still be weeding out couch this time next year otherwise. I will probably use it again on the bindweed around the edges but selectively this time and not with a knapsack sprayer. I did not have the time or strength to weed it all by hand. Apparently you could drink the stuff with little ill effect. Not that I would recommend you doing so. 
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| cab |
A single application doesn't. Sometimes injecting it neat into the stems in Autumn does it, or repeated applications to growing material can slow it down or eventually bring it under control. |
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| Slim |
It's not the worse, but it's not as harmless as people used to think.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glyphosate Of course you can't trust everything you read on wikipedia, but there is a lot of information down there at the bottom about the controversies, and a lot of it is referenced. Of note would be the instances that reports had been falsified, the lawsuits against monsanto for its biodegradability claims, and the one article suggesting that it could be deleterious to human embryos, even at low dosages. (I'm not going to pretend that I checked the references on these, but personally, I'd look it into it closely if I were thinking of using it)[/url] |
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| resistance is fertile |
Evil stuff, has no place in a natural system, keeps on killing right out to sea | ||
| Clara |
For the very fact it's made by Monsanto  - NO!
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| cab |
My own take on this is that if you want to use it, use it sparingly. I'm not in favour of the idea that you can spray it once a year to clear the plot before planting attitude I so often see (thats clearly a foolishy expensive, not to say irresponsible attitude), but used specifically to deal with problem weeds the risk is minimal.
Don't use it in shade, its best use is on open sites at the end of the day; you want it to absorb into leaves during the dark, and you want sunlight to help break down any left over in the morning. Don't even think about using it close to water source, its not a frogs friend at all! Don't dig to break up a weed into lots of separate parts, spray first to kill the plant most effectively. And if its raining or its going to rain, don't use it. Waste of time and money. I wouldn't rely on it every year to keep a plot clear, but I keep some on hand for dealing with problem spots. Think I've used it once this year to try to get rid of some creeping buttercup (having got tired of digging it out every year, multiple times, and getting nowhere). |
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| cab |
The patent ran out years ago. Buy a 'glyphosate' product that is not made by Monsanto. |