A Little Weed Problem

[JennieAtkinson]

I've got a little annual weed problem in the polytunnel, which means i need to apply something to combat it very carefully. No matter how regularly I hoe, dig, pick etc I can't seem to control it. Can anyone recommend a good weed killer which would allow me to treat a 5 foot by 5 foot area of the tunnel? I've got garlic growing alongside so need to be particularly careful.

[Shortie]

Sorry jenny, no idea as I don't have a poly tunnel, but I just wanted to pop my head in and say Hi!

[rustylady]

What type of weed is it? You say annual, but is it only one sort or lots of different ones?

[Hazel at the Hill]

Lovely to see you, Jennie!

With regard to annual weeds, can they not be hoed/handweeded?

[Two_Sheds]

What weed is it Jennie? I can't think of one that needs weedkiller (as opposed to hand-weeding ...)

[JennieAtkinson]

Lovely to hear from old friends! Sorry, yes I should have said that it is an annual weed and must be a form of chick weed (it looks like ordinary chickweed) and is very aggressive. It forms a dense mat growing to about 12" high and this year throttled the beans it was growing around. I suppose you could describe the area as damp and cool, so probably ideal conditions.

I've tried hoeing, pulling, weeding carefully, etc. all to no avail. I have an alkaline soil and I've read that chick weed is more agressive in such soil and that organic compost doesn't help It has been getting worse each year but this year is definately the worst and despite the weeding etc. the little blighters are coming up again! I'm loathe to leave the area fallow in case they just take over.

Any further thoughts?

[Two_Sheds]

It's a little sod, isn't it? I have chickweed too. It grows and seeds itself in only about 6 weeks, and it's self-pollinating, so by the time you've noticed it, it's already produced the next generation. http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/orga...weed.php?id=16

Can you let some chickens or guinea pigs in to eat it ?(they both like it... and I'm trying to think "organic").

Otherwise, weedkillers are mentioned here: Chickweed, recognition and eradication

[Flummery]

You could let a chicken loose! However, you won't have any garlic left either!
(Lovely to hear from you again btw.)

[JennieAtkinson]

Thanks Two Sheds for the links. They describe chickweed as prostrate - mine was actually growing up the beans! Perhaps I've got a new variety I do like to be organic so I think I'll just keep pulling and weeding. I like the idea of guinea pigs - but like a chicken I think might run amok!

Nice to hear from you too Flum.

[Two_Sheds]

I like the idea of guinea pigs - but like a chicken I think might run amok!

Yes, it would need to be penned. I have mine in a moveable ark, but for smaller spaces just any open-bottomed pen would do. They won't dig out, like rabbits