Hi everone,
I have a post on the poultry forum and I'm more than pleased with the replies so i have decided to post on here hoping for same response.
My problem
We have an allotment hard work but hopefully rewarding,the biggest problem we have is weed control so I'm asking if anyone has any advice on how we can control the weeds with something organic which we can produce ourselves i remember reading somewhere of something that does the job.
thanks for reading this
Can you put chickens on the lotty in a small confined space or are they likely to get nicked .. they will eat almost everything green , once a patch is clear dig it well to bring the subsurface weed seeds and roots to the surface , leave it for the weed to come up put the chooks back and dig over where they were . do this several times , for each area to get rid of the weeds and get some free manure into the bargain.
You have said something you can do/ make yourself.. difficult for an effective solution that's for sure.
There is a product it may even be organic that makes the soil very rich in nitrogen , the weeds over dose on it , out grow themselves to the point of death .. a bit like a decent masive heart attack from eating too much fatty food.
After six weeks the product turns into SULPHATE OF AMMONIA and washes out the soil . As far as i've researched ..... it is not toxic or harmful but I suppose it you ask enough people someone will feel honour bound to say " No don't use it " .
It has not been passed for useas a week killer for no one has decided to pay the masssive sums of money for this cheap readiily available chemical to be tested and approved or declined .
It is good for all weeds including horsetail ( equisetum ) and horseradish .. any awkward root clumps left after the initial application should be retreated again but with more of it up to a quart per yard square once an inch or so of regrowth has started ..
Normal application is on pound in one gallon to treat 10 foot by ten foot once. Use spring to summer and not after September the first , as growth activity slows down in nature & the stuff will be a wasted application .
It has been used since well before the 1960's to my to my knowledge still is by all sorts of professional growers and farmers etc.
It is called AMMONIUM SULPHAMATE in the UK and is avaliable on ebay by the sackful fairly cheaply.
I learnt of it from a gamekeeper where it is in use on the very large estate he looks after..
To find out more go into Wikkipedia and look up Ammonium sulfamate .....there is a fair bit to read.