[q]I have a large area of land which has grass, weeds, and a Lot of unpleasant plants. I want to put some sort of chemical on the land to kill all vegetation without hurting the environment. Can someone please recommend a good substance to accomplish this with? Additionally, i’d prefer that nothing grow back on that land. (im eventually going to pave it into a road and parking lot) whats the best way to keep anything from ever growing back? Please too recommend that product as well. It is very important to me to use an environmentally safe product. Please reply with all information related to my questions.[/q]
[a]
Why not skip the chemicals and use a flame gun? Hello. Im in need of some gardening advice. I have a large area of land which has grass, weeds, and a Lot of unpleasant plants. I want to put some sort of chemical on the land to kill all vegetation without hurting the environment. Can someone please recommend a good substance to accomplish this with?[/a]
[a]
I think this defies the purpose of organic gardening. I personally are unaware of a chemical that doesn’t hurt the environment.If you are going to pave it, why don’t you just mow and pave. I can’t think of many plants that will come up through blacktop. I usually will try to cut back and smother unwanted weeds. If they are noxious weeds I dig them out. Then I use layers of newspaper and compost or bark and turn the area into soil. A friend of mine said Home Depot sells a supposedly environmentally friendly weedkiller which she tried on some nettles. She said it didn’t work for her. I don’t know the name of it. Good luck![/a]
[a]
It sounds like you want to know if there’s some sort of organic Round-up on the market. I’m afraid there isn’t. The only way to get rid of all that vegetation without harming the soil & the environment is to either smother it with an organic or plastic mulch or else use a flame weeder. The plastic mulch is probably a better choice long-term if you don’t want anything growing through.[/a]
[a]
High acid vinegar, and a cover of a heavy tarp, and if you are talking about something nasty like thistle you might have to add a layer or two of discarded carpet for a year or two to hold them down. I like the suggestion of using a flame thrower, the parks are starting to do this, they have a torch wand and stand over the weeds and burn them out.[/a]
[a]
Most vinegar in stores is only 5% acidity. If yoy want a higher ratio of acid, check out Marshall Grain in Texas. They sell a 20% vinegar, and its used primarily for weed killing.I even use it diluted for some pickles. Many commercail pickle makers use the 20% stuff as its much easier to transport.[/a]
[a]
Not much is available for the organic solutions. A heavy rototilling and the application of a large sheet of heavy clear plastic set down in spring, and left there through to the next spring can kill off most weeds and seeds. It makes the suns’ heat do the job of killing off the weeds and any insects, bacteria, etc. Aside from that, they do make a chemical you can spray (mixed with water) that is meant for total vegitation killing. First, you might want to consider using a string or wire type weed whacker to bring down the level of foliage before spraying. Most chemical based total vegitation killers will not allow any plant life for at least a full year, so you must also consider the long term effects. Another option would be to apply commercial grass and weed killer first, and then a second application of a killer meant for tougher weeds like poison ivy, or other tough to kill shrubs. Most of the commercial ones do break down within about 2 months of application Something that »kills the root’ would be a bit longer to dissipate from the soil. Once the area has had the weeds and all other greenery killed off, a good tilling this summer, then fall, then next spring should also get the spoil back to a decent plantable state. At the final tilling next spring, you can also add any fertilizers and other nutrients (don’t forget soil pH!) before the tilling of the soil which should give you a good garden growing/going. The final option could be burning, but if the area you live in prohibits any burning, then you have very little in the way of options.[/a]
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