Grow Your Own Magazine

Hi All

Finally got to do a bit of work up the allotment yesterday. Hard work but really enjoyable.

I think I may have found traces of the dreaded bindweed but am not sure if it is or isn't. Under the carpet covers there are lots of very thin, spindly, dead shoots. When you touch it it just breaks into bits. I should have got a picture of it really.

Anyway. the use of round-up was suggested, which is probaly what I will use as the raised beds will go on top of the affected area. Just wondered if you guys have tackled it in any other way?

Cheers

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If you don't mind using weed killer, then use one that when placed on the leaves during their growing period will work down the plants using its own Eco system and stop the plant photosynthesising. Once that happens the roots will die off. This system is far better than digging at the roots as their roots can go down 20 to 30 feet. If any of the roots gets left in the ground then it will sprout and form a new plant. [Reason number one for not using a rotavator]
Jax

I agree with Jax. I had this in my garden when I moved here and it took three years to get rid of it - or at least bring it to a point where it was a mere inconvenience as opposed to an annual invasion. In areas where I had the heaviest infestation, I stuck in garden canes and the bindweed climbed up these which made it a lot easier to paint the gel based weedkiller - I used Tumbleweed - on to the leaves without getting it on any of the other plants.
Cheers
Rat

So the best course of action is to build the raised beds over the affected areas, then wait for the bind weed to push through and then paint the weed killer on it.

Thanks guys

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I don't know if I would leave it under a new bed and try to kill it off when it appears.It depends on how heavy your soil is of course ,but I would be tempted to try and turn the soil to a spades depth and bash the clod to reveal the 'spagetti', which you could then pick out. This at least would reduce the amount of weed you're trying to kill off. The glyphoshate you buy at garden centres is pretty dilute compared to the stuff the farmers buy at their local farm suppliers. This will do the job better. We had loads of it- like matting under the soil- but we seem to be ontop of it for now. I hadn't realised the roots can go down 20 -30 feet though. Looks like it's an ongoing job then!

Thanks, I may have a go at digging a few bits out and see how I go.

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When we took our allotment on a couple of years ago it was covered in bind weed and marestail. Glyphosate did nothing to it. So, the foliage was chopped down/pulled out and the roots have been removed as the plot gets dug. All of the uncultivated parts of the plot are covered in weedblock. This seems to work and, I think, it is the only way to deal with these pernicious weeds. No quick fixes for such stuff as far as I can tell.

Forgot to say - I have been digging down to the sub-soil and breaking up the sub-soil a bit as well to get the roots out. Hard work in the lovely clay we have but worth it in the long run.