The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Smallholding => Equipment => Topic started by: Rosemary on June 04, 2014, 04:21:59 pm

Title: Weed wiper - any good?
Post by: Rosemary on June 04, 2014, 04:21:59 pm

We have soft rush every year and a rare crop of thistles this year, despite having cut them before seeding last year.

I'm thinking weed wiper. We sprayed the rushes a couple of years ago with the knapsack sprayer, but even with care, the clover in the sward around the clumps of thistles was pretty devastated.

Anyone got experience of using a weed wiper that they can share, good or bad?

Title: Re: Weed wiper - any good?
Post by: henchard on June 04, 2014, 04:55:15 pm

I suggest that you take a look at this thread on The Farming Forum

http://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/weedwipers.23566/ (http://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/weedwipers.23566/)

and this one for some info on Rush

http://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/cardigan-sprayer-man.20458/ (http://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/cardigan-sprayer-man.20458/)


(although the later thread does meander a bit - not uncommon on that forum!)

Title: Re: Weed wiper - any good?
Post by: shygirl on June 04, 2014, 04:58:49 pm

ohh, im looking too!
are there backpack versions as we dont have a quad and we have alot of area to cover? i have a terrible aim for backpack sprayers and seem to kill everything insight.

Title: Re: Weed wiper - any good?
Post by: shep53 on June 04, 2014, 09:17:33 pm

Cover about 50 acres a year using a quad x wiper use cheap glyphosate at 1=20 mostly rushes and thistles ,  rushes are easy large areas and thick but still takes years with seeds blowing in , thistles more problematic as often just a few plants here and there and they have to be almost flowering to get the height above the grass ,oh and also use an acid type cutter to damage the waxy leaves to allow glyphosate  to stick and penatrate

Title: Re: Weed wiper - any good?
Post by: Rosemary on June 05, 2014, 08:49:54 am

Quote from: shygirl on June 04, 2014, 04:58:49 pm

ohh, im looking too!
are there backpack versions as we dont have a quad and we have alot of area to cover? i have a terrible aim for backpack sprayers and seem to kill everything insight.

Dan looked at the links last night and I'm sure he said there was a backpack version.

It's ground driven, shygirl, so a pony could pull it  ;D

Title: Re: Weed wiper - any good?
Post by: feldar on June 05, 2014, 09:06:38 am

Our neighbour used one last year and had very poor results with it. He only really caught the tall weeds and had some died and some didn't ???  The thistles were hard to kill and as Shep said almost needed to flower before he got them
this year he's using a knapsack spot sprayer