RE: Organic weed killers > wetting agents
perennials@hort.net
  • Subject: RE: Organic weed killers > wetting agents
  • From: &* M* <1*@rewrite.hort.net>
  • Date: Thu, 3 Jul 2014 18:57:32 -0400
I always add some dish soap to break surface tension when I use Canadian
Sphagnum Peat.  It makes it soak up the water more quickly. I know some
people use sphagnum dry straight from the brick but I'd rather prepare it
before mixing with other materials for potting soil or even when mixing into
a bed. I have found that, without a wetting agent, sphagnum pretty much
repels water and have seen it still dry in moist soil a year after mixing.

Kitty

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-perennials@hort.net [o*@hort.net] On Behalf
Of Cheryl Isaak
Sent: Thursday, July 03, 2014 10:40 AM
To: perennials@hort.net
Subject: Re: Organic weed killers

I often add a tiny tiny bit of mild soap when watering things that soil has
dried out (containers). It breaks up the water tension and helps soak the
soil faster C On Jun 30, 2014, at 10:14 AM, Christopher P. Lindsey
<1002@rewrite.hort.net> wrote:

> ----- Original Message -----
>> I've had some luck with vinegar. I have a friend that swore by 
>> boiling water.
> 
> I second Cheryl's vinegar solution, although a stronger vinegar 
> solution is best.  Thistle is especially vulnerable to vinegar, but 
> many other plants will be unfazed by the ~5% strength stuff that you 
> can buy in the store.
> 
> 20% concentration is much more effective, and it's actually available 
> online from many different suppliers.  You could pay $25 for a gallon 
> with shipping through Amazon, but local farm supply companies might 
> have it for less.
> 
> Whether you go with 5% or 20% vinegar, adding a little dishwashing 
> soap to the solution will help it stick to leaves and break down any 
> oils the plant might use as a defense. Just mix it all up, put it in a 
> sprayer, and spray the leaves of whatever you want to kill.  Whatever 
> it touches will be damaged or killed, although you might have to 
> respray later if new growth comes up from the base.
> 
> I've seen some online recipes that involve salt, but I won't use it 
> because it could affect the soil and many of my plants have salt 
> sensitivity.
> 
> Here's an older article about it:
> 
>   http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2002/020515.htm
> 
> For sidewalk cracks I've also used a blowtorch (mostly because it's 
> fun burning weeds).  It didn't work very well in the garden.
> 
> And, of course, there's the old Borax trick for removing creeping
> charlie:
> 
>    http://www.extension.umn.edu/yardandgarden/ygbriefs/h519borax.html
> 
> Just make sure that you don't do it too often or else everything will 
> die from boron toxicity.
> 
> I hope that helps!
> 
> Chris
> 
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the 
> message text UNSUBSCRIBE PERENNIALS


---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the message
text UNSUBSCRIBE PERENNIALS

---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE PERENNIALS
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index