scotch spanish broom

it keeps coming back

spanish broom is like a hydra

what do you use to get rid of broom?

Reply to
paul
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I have never had broom in my garden. However, I have had other persistent weeds.

Roundup can be your friend. Just wait until the broom is growing vigorously in the spring.

Mix the Roundup from a concentrate, slightly weak. Full strength might kill only the top growth without killing the roots. Include a little liquid soap in the mixture as a wetting agent.

DO NOT SPRAY! Spraying might damage adjacent plants that you want to keep. Apply from a bucket with a paintbrush. You do not have to cover each shoot in its entirety, but you should try to apply to at least a part of each shoot.

Reply to
David E. Ross

I had this problem first with Morning Glory and then Rose bushes that went 'wild'.

In the end I turned over the soil every couple of weeks until everything stopped coming up.

This wasn't a fast process, but where they were planed was not turned into a hazardous waste site. gl

Reply to
azigni

they say for scotch & spanish broom not to turn over the soil as the seeds which last for 30 to 60 years will simply germinate more.

gotta be a better way somehow

Reply to
paul

I read somewhere not to use ionic surfactants.

how would I know if a dish detergent or liquid soap is non ionic?

Reply to
paul

if you are worried about soil disturbance and gemination then i normally would use the smother and mulch approach as this means not disturbing the soil or moving the seeds around. several layers of cardboard with the seams overlapping by 9 inches or so and then after that is down top it with some other mulch to hold it in place. this may last a season or more depending upon your local climate and conditions. it may not be that much work to scrape the mulch aside and to repeat putting down more cardboard on top of the old (leave the bits that are not gone as they'll be worm food eventually) and then put the mulch back. i've yet to have any plant last more than a few seasons once the top has been cut back and then treated like this.

songbird

Reply to
songbird

I really do not know. I know that I use a cheap brand of liquid soap for any spraying I do, and I always get the desired results.

While I indicated not to spray, I do spray Roundup with a small, hand-held sprayer on my hill. Yes, my desired ground cover is sometimes damaged; but new growth eventually replaces the damage. On my paths, I use the same hand-held sprayer whiile bending low to ensure that only the weeds are hit. Of course, I only spray when there is NO wind.

Reply to
David E. Ross

Some commercial agriculture use black plastic film anchored with metal stakes. The area is irrigated first, and then the film is laid. All this is done in sunny weather. Sunshine heats the film sufficiently to cook any seeds and surface roots enough to kill them. However, this works only for large empty fields, not for home landscapes where the weeds are growing among desired plants.

The cardboard mulch idea can be used in small areas. However, it will not eliminate certain seeds that can survive for years in the ground, such as morning glory.

Reply to
David E. Ross

David E. Ross wrote: ...

if i'm using an area where the soil will be disturbed after eliminating a hard to get rid of weed, i have what is called a stirrup hoe which quickly kills seedlings before they can get well established again.

if the area isn't disturbed again the 2nd and 3rd year after this method is used the seeds likely won't sprout again if the mulch is deep enough, but not all seeds are the same. it depends a lot upon the plant. morning glory seeds are a pain in the butt for sure. i no longer let them grow anywhere on our land if i can see them.

songbird

Reply to
songbird

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