Weed killer

Author
Discussion

fourstardan

Original Poster:

5,537 posts

159 months

Wednesday
quotequote all
I have an area that just seems to constantly grow weeds, ivy and other undesireables in the garden, it gets cleared down then next year its a jungle.

Id like to wipe out anything growing once and for all and plan to create some paved space.

1. Is summer the best time
2. whats around i could use that wont kill me as well as the weeds
3. Is a killer that worthwhile if eventually digging and paving the area.

Panamax

6,152 posts

49 months

Wednesday
quotequote all
"Roundup" (Generic name Glyphosphate)

Don't spill it anywhere you don't want it. Most economically/effectively used when growth starts in the Spring but it'll kill anything, anywhere, any time.

No weed killers are "permanent" because they're supposed to break down in the soil - although that's a controversial subject.

s p a c e m a n

11,323 posts

163 months

Wednesday
quotequote all
Gallup, get it from eBay/Amazon. Read the instructions and dilute it, don't walk across the grass after spraying it, leave it two weeks and nothing will be alive.

Our front garden was just an overgrown mess as it was owned by an old man with a carer for the past 5 years before we bought it, sprayed everything with Gallup and it was all dead within a couple of weeks. Paved driveway nearly 2 years ago now and nothing has come through.

Edited by s p a c e m a n on Wednesday 2nd July 14:10

steveo3002

10,856 posts

189 months

Wednesday
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as above and/or some salt , not a spoon full of table salt, a few big sacks

hidetheelephants

30,162 posts

208 months

Wednesday
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Unless there's something awful like bamboo leave it, you'll need to dig all of it out when you lay slabs anyway.

Hugo Stiglitz

39,359 posts

226 months

Wednesday
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Salt

worsy

6,190 posts

190 months

Wednesday
quotequote all
s p a c e m a n said:
Gallup, get it from eBay/Amazon. Read the instructions and dilute it, don't walk across the grass after spraying it, leave it two weeks and nothing will be alive.

Our front garden was just an overgrown mess as it was owned by an old man with a carer for the past 5 years before we bought it, sprayed everything with Gallup and it was all dead within a couple of weeks. Paved driveway nearly 2 years ago now and nothing has come through.

Edited by s p a c e m a n on Wednesday 2nd July 14:10
This - It's called Gallup XL.

geeks

10,431 posts

154 months

Wednesday
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You can buy just generic glyphosate from amazon etc works just as well as round up or whatever in my experience. Dilute, spray and job done. Bonus points for a rechargeable electric sprayer. Do ours on the gravel drive and a few other areas probably twice a year early spring and mid summer.

OMITN

2,706 posts

107 months

Wednesday
quotequote all
Unfortunately we have horsetail so have to use some hefty weed killer to keep it at bay. It’s literally pre-historic, so we’ll never get rid of it, but can at least stop it taking over.

The weedkiller we use for this is a combination of glyphosate and 2,4-D amine. Combined with a water conditioner, this is powerful stuff. It is professional use only, so I’m cautious (decent PPE etc). I dare say if it was used on other weeds it would flatten them as well.

Though as others have said if it’s to be paved you’ll be digging out lots of soil anyway.




ssray

1,196 posts

240 months

Wednesday
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I use white vinegar,salt and washing up liquid.
It dries the plant out , then it tries to regrow weaking the roots then you do it again.
Unlike the other commercial weed killers they attack the roots

addey

1,165 posts

182 months

Wednesday
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I bought some Doff advanced concentrated weedkiller off Amazon, it seemed to be the cheapest form of glycophosphate. It's done a pretty good job of wiping out all the weeds just beyond our boundary which were growing through into our garden. Unfortunately when I was pressurising the sprayer I found out that the pipe had perished over the winter and it promptly leaked over the lawn. We now have a very dead patch on the lawn which is showing no signs of growing back 2 months later.....

Pincher

9,393 posts

232 months

Wednesday
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Ammonium Sulphamate.

Pincher

9,393 posts

232 months

Wednesday
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philv

4,621 posts

229 months

Wednesday
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Buy lots of big bottles or bags of salt from asda.
Shake it everwhere.

It will kill it all.

I used to use it on lots of paving slabs and brick paving to kill weeds in cracks.
Saved hours of horrible dirty wet pressure washing.
30 quid twice a year.

Do it when going to rain or use hose pipe to make it soak in.

It doesn't take long to kill.


fourstardan

Original Poster:

5,537 posts

159 months

Wednesday
quotequote all
Thanks, I've seen this Gallup stuff so may give it a go.

What sort of PPE should I need to be wearing?

Panamax

6,152 posts

49 months

Wednesday
quotequote all
fourstardan said:
What sort of PPE should I need to be wearing?
You have a choice,
a) Proceed with caution and be careful not to get it on yourself. If you do get it on your skin, run back to the house and wash with plenty of soap and water.
b) Deep sea diver/Apollo moon landing outfit.

Jeans and wellies - yes.
Shorts and flip-flops - no.

OMITN

2,706 posts

107 months

Wednesday
quotequote all
I also wear a mask and nitrile gloves.

Griffith4ever

5,543 posts

50 months

Thursday
quotequote all
fourstardan said:
Thanks, I've seen this Gallup stuff so may give it a go.

What sort of PPE should I need to be wearing?
Gallup is Glyphosate btw.



dhutch

16,343 posts

212 months

Thursday
quotequote all
hidetheelephants said:
Unless there's something awful like bamboo leave it, you'll need to dig all of it out when you lay slabs anyway.
This,

Whatever you do, weeds will come back if the earth is bare and waiting for growth.

You could might mow it down and chuck some cardboard down if you want to get ahead, but there is no point hitting it with chemicals just to let it all grow back again.

Glyphosate isn't nice stuff to be spraying in large qualities.

S13_Alan

1,378 posts

258 months

Thursday
quotequote all
OMITN said:
Unfortunately we have horsetail so have to use some hefty weed killer to keep it at bay. It s literally pre-historic, so we ll never get rid of it, but can at least stop it taking over.

The weedkiller we use for this is a combination of glyphosate and 2,4-D amine. Combined with a water conditioner, this is powerful stuff. It is professional use only, so I m cautious (decent PPE etc). I dare say if it was used on other weeds it would flatten them as well.

Though as others have said if it s to be paved you ll be digging out lots of soil anyway.
I killed large patches of it by accidentally spilling some Ammonium Sulphamate on it whilst doing other things.

Always a fight to get small amounts since then, and it's never going to disappear completely, but those large areas have never grown back.

It's pretty ridiculous that its use specifically as weed killer was prevented the way it was (via what I understand is dumb bureaucracy) when it's safer than Glyphosate.