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WEED ROOTS need killing !!

allotmentpvGGgmQHallotmentpvGGgmQH Posts: 1
in Problem solving
Just taken on a Allotment in a terrible state - TURF CUT ALL then ROTAVATED ALL 
How do I get to kill WEED ROOTS ?     PLEASE HELP 

Posts

  • Hostafan1Hostafan1 Posts: 34,889
    allotmentpvGGgmQH said:
    Just taken on a Allotment in a terrible state - TURF CUT ALL then ROTAVATED ALL 
    How do I get to kill WEED ROOTS ?     PLEASE HELP 

    Welcome to the forum.
    Go back in time and DON'T rotovate it. 
    You've chopped all the roots up which will now all start growing.
    My advice is to let them grow until there's a decent amount of leaf on them then spray with Roundup. 
    Others will throw their hands up in horror at the very suggestion , but that up to them.
    Devon.
  • angelique 2angelique 2 Posts: 19
    so I would suggest you cover it all over with weed excluder or cardboard or old carpet and leave it for a bit. I agree with the reply above it would have been better not to have rotavated but all is not lost.
    You could still grow a few things through the weed excluder this year by cutting small "X" slits through it so you supress the weeds and still grow a few things this year. You could also grow on half this year and leave the other half dormant.

    looking forward I suggest you order mulch and put it on heavily once you lift the excluder for next years set up. A friend has had good results with something called strulch. She does open garden days for charity in her garden.

     I have perennial weeds in my garden boarders and I just pull them up when I see them. The harder ones like bind weed I grow up a cans and use a weed gel on the leaves which works without getting horrible chemicals in your soil. Remember what you put into your soil will make it into your crops and into your body.

    The ground will never be weed free some just take it slow and there will be less as time goes on. Happy planting.
  • EnnylEnnyl Posts: 24
    Strulch is a fantastic mulch - pricy though.....
  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    If you want the organic solution, you now fork out all the roots , bit by bit.  Or you glyphosate all the regrowth.
  • SkandiSkandi Posts: 1,723
    It really depends what the weeds were. black plastic or weedkiller will take anything that is there, but a good raking will pull out most bits of couch grass and other shallow rooted weeds, but it won't touch anything like bindweed or dandylions that had roots deeper than the rotovator went.
    If it's a full allotment I would say cover most of it in plastic (be careful where it drains to, you don't want to wash away your neighbours plants!) and leave that bit for this year, then go through the bit you can manage with a rake and your hands and pull out everything you can find. If you really want it perfect use a garden sieve. But rememebr no matter what you do there will still be weeds left!
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