WEEDS....how do I get rid of this??

Errr?

Amazon: 'TumbleWeed Glyphosate 500 ml Liquid Concentrate Weedkiller' In stock. Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk £10.99

or:

http://www.tools4thegarden.co.uk/product.asp?P_ID=577
https://www.heritage-homeandgarden.co.uk/product_info.php?language=en&products_id=18946
http://www.hardware-ironmongers.com/details.aspx?code=881HHHH
http://weedkillershop.co.uk/
http://www.godfrey-diy.co.uk/index.php?sc=43004530&page=show-product
http://www.totallyhome.co.uk/weedkillers/tumbleweed-weed-killer-3l-gun/item43180710
http://www.choiceful.com/choiceful-...l-ExtraStrong-Glyphosate-Weedkiller-3Ltr.html

to name but 8

 

Moving house has been on the agenda for some time actually....not because of this evil **** but I have been hoping to take early retirement and thinking of moving to a flat or somewhere more manageable. With selling up in mind i've been spending money on improving my house, and this certainly isn't helping.

Glyphosate Tumbleweed was one of the things i'd been trying which had absolutely no effect!

I've been told that before applying this Deep Root I need to break (but not break off) the stem to open it so the chemical gets inside the weed. I've uploaded some photos so all of you can judge for yourselves.

First photo is of those where I have damaged the stems then applied Deep Root.

The bottom two photos show the weed in it's full "glory" (depending on your point of view!), where Deep Root is having no effect as I did not break the stems first.

 

Yep, that's mares tails - or horse tails. Ones as bad as the other.
I know the theories about bruising them before spraying - but how ?????
Any method just breaks them, and every little part grows.
I had them on my last property and found the only thing that worked was spray them with soapy water first then spray with Glyphosphate several times. It didn't get rid of them but did keep them under control. The ones I had weren't growing through plants but growing at the side of the (private ) road and coming up through the tarmac.
The other thing that worked was a hefty dose of road salt. Worked for perennial sweet peas too (nothing else did).
You have my sympathy.
As I said before, they can't be got rid off (the roots go all the way to Australia and any little bit will grow) but they can be kept under control.
I wish you well.

 

Thanks. If only I knew then what I know now i'd have totally annhilated the earth soil with whatever poison I could lay my hands on as I had no intention of growing or planting anything anyway as I don't know what i'm doing when it comes to gardening.

I'm amazed at the people who have said to me, "ooh, be careful what you use as you might kill everything off". :dh:
Thats precisely what i'm trying to do!!!

If my back garden was no more than a wilderness or open field i'd have no problem with leaving this stuff to go it's own way.....though the cynical side of me says it probably wouldn't be there!

 

i feel your pain "Bulletguy"

me and my girlfriend recently bought our first house and have been enjoying breaking up concrete etc...an look what seems to be growing in our front garden.....



the neighbours has already complained about it spreading over to their garden too!

i have read you can use a high concentration of vinegar but you need to neutralise it with lime afterwards?

just for good measure we also have elderberry sprouting all over the place aswell as common vetch

 

It was very straight forward to be honest, every single time (without fail) when a new shoot sprung up, it was nailed with weed killer, some of the larger roots were dug out, and weed killer applied to the exposed remaining flesh. It seemed to be a battle of wills, until the plant just gave up

 

flame gun baby!!!!!!

 

Jings, that's beyond me . I think all you can do is keep spraying with Glyphosphate. It won't get rid of, but will reduce numbers and keep under control. I wouldn't bother about digging out - the roots go all the way to Australia and any little bit will grow.

Seriously - how long do you plan to live in that house ? If gardening is your interest I would keep them under control the the best you can and move house. If you're planning to stay long term then spray them all you can and accept they will always be with you - in reduced numbers.
Good luck with it all.

 

But buy one rather than hire.....as you will use it every damn year you live there!

Must admit I was tempted to get one myself, but a membrane was laid down before the plum slate went on.

I thought my situation was bad enough, but yours looks like something out of a horror movie!

 

the back garden is worse!!

admittingly im new to this gardening malarky my self....and im only now realising how bad a situation my new garden is!

my plans of attack are:

1. try some Roundup Pro Biactive @ 360 grams/litre of glyphosate (pretty strong so im told)

2. have a strongbow and Pray

3. dig as much soil out if the roundup doesnt work

4. have more Strongbow and pray some more

5. if they all still aint dead/ less in numbers, boil down household vinegar increasing the strength from 5% to (hopefully) 10%+ an pour that all over the buggers, if that works, i will need to add lime to neutralise the now acidic soil


anyones thoughts?

 

Yes. Read the posts and links of the more experienced on this evil weed and you will see that Roundup won't work. Infact you are throwing money away. Trying to dig out Mares Tail is nigh on impossible unless you can get a JCB and excavate a good 2 metres down. Somehow I don't think that would make you too popular with your neighbour either!

I'm attempting to keep mine at bay with Deep Root which isn't exactly cheap, but it's a battle against the elements.....weather! Whatever weedkiller you use you need at least a couple of dry days and apply it in the evening when it's cool. If it rains it simply washes away the weedkiller, and in the UK we get more rain than dry days. Also quite naturally when it rains.....these damn weeds keep on growing!

If I were you i'd follow AirAssisteds advice and get a flame thrower.....seriously!

 

thanks for the words of incouragement people, i think the people who we bought our house off had just left the garden for years to go wild, spoke to the next door neighbour last night who said "the garden use to be like a jungle, you couldnt see the front door from all the weeds!"

so i think i think the mares tail started with ours and spread.

a question....if i use a flame thrower, will that kill even the roots? im not too bothered about the surrounding soil as im planning on getting a bag or three of top soil to level the whole garden out

or

should i put down plastic liner in the worst effected areas? and just leave it as that