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Is this Marestail?

abdul.kashemabdul.kashem Posts: 3
in Plants
Can someone please help me identify this weed which is rapidly growing at the bottom of my garden? Never had a problem with them before.

What is the best way to get rid of them? Will regular weed killer do?

Thanks
Kash  
«1

Posts

  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    edited June 2022
    Yes, it is Marestail.
    Very difficult to eradicate it, I just dig it up whenever I see it, that weakens it.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • abdul.kashemabdul.kashem Posts: 3
    The problem i have with digging up is that when I renovated the garden I put down about 4-6 inches of stone and a thin layer of sand.
    Digging requires removal of compacted stone/MOT type 1.
    Is there a good weedkiller which would penetrate and kill the roots?
  • Jenny_AsterJenny_Aster Posts: 945
    It's strange that I've only got this where I have put a layer of bark ≧◔◡◔≦
    Trying to be the person my dog thinks I am! 

    Cambridgeshire/Norfolk border.
  • bcpathomebcpathome Posts: 1,313
    Try pulling it out or use any brand of weed killer or borrow a heat burner .
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    Weed killers do not work very ell on Marestail, because it is covered in silicates, which make it impervious.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • Jenny_AsterJenny_Aster Posts: 945
    If you're not going to grow anything in that area then why not try vinegar?  Watch out for runoff though. 

    How does vinegar get rid of mares tail?
    Pour 10 percent concentrated vinegar (acetic acid) on the bottom of your horsetails and the soil around them. Wait for one week. The vinegar will make the soil too acidic to sustain plant life, killing off the horsetail plants completely within a few days. Cultivate the soil again at the end of the season.
    Trying to be the person my dog thinks I am! 

    Cambridgeshire/Norfolk border.
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    The problem with using vinegar, is that it will kill every other living creature in that area.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • Joyce GoldenlilyJoyce Goldenlily Posts: 2,933
    Marestail likes. to grow in damp conditions. Pick up every scrap of marestail because it grows from each section.
  • Jenny_AsterJenny_Aster Posts: 945
    edited June 2022
    abdul.kashem said:
    The problem i have with digging up is that when I renovated the garden I put down about 4-6 inches of stone and a thin layer of sand.
    Digging requires removal of compacted stone/MOT type 1.
    Is there a good weedkiller which would penetrate and kill the roots?
    punkdoc said:
    The problem with using vinegar, is that it will kill every other living creature in that area.
    I understood that there're no other plants in the area, creatures though, I can't comment. As it's a natural solution, surely it's better than weedkiller?
    Trying to be the person my dog thinks I am! 

    Cambridgeshire/Norfolk border.
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    No, Vinegar will kill all sorts of bugs and worms.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
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