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Article Series: Organic Gardening
Organic
Gardening Tips & Advice
Organic
Herbicides For Organic Gardening
Organic herbicides can be used in organic
gardening and farming to weaken or kill unwanted plants, otherwise
known as weeds.
Selective
herbicides are used to manage weeds that are either
growing in between rows of crops, or to kill moss and weeds
in lawns. Non-selective herbicides are used in areas where
no plants are wanted, such as a gravel path. They may also
be used to destroy remains of plants after a crop has finished.
Most organic herbicides are non-selective, i.e. they destroy
all plants, without leaving residues in the soil that would
prevent another crop from being grown in the next season. Generally
they will also not harm the worms, beneficial bacteria and
fungi that are a vital part of the life of the soil. Many non-organic
weed killers will harm these forms of life and therefore weaken
the growing power of the land.
Although technically speaking an organic herbicide could be
any weed killer that includes carbon, which is almost all of
them, these days the term has come to mean herbicides that
are approved for use on organic land. This can vary in different
jurisdictions so if organic certification is important to you
(for example if you are selling your produce as organic) you
will need to check with the appropriate state agency.
Organic herbicides may be either natural substances, synthetic
compounds or processes like burning and mulching.
Vinegar
Vinegar is often used as a weed killer. In concentrations
of between 5% and 20% acetic acid it can be used to kill surface
growth of plants. Most plants will not draw it down into the
root, so they can regrow and will need to be treated again.
Some plants need two or more treatments.
Vinegar or acetic acid is also used in most of the synthetic
compound weedkillers. AllDown, Matran 2 and Xpress are examples
of patent herbicides that contain acetic acid as one of the
active ingredients.
Other Natural Weedkilling Agents
Other agents that are used in compound patent herbicides include
clove oil, garlic, thyme oil, citric acid and plant extracts
such as yucca.
Burning
Fire is a method of weed control that is used in some situations.
The process of burning unwanted plants is something that has
been done for centuries. It clears the land after harvest and
has the advantage of producing ash which enriches the soil.
It burns many of the seeds which can reduce weed growth in
future years. It is also completely natural.
However, open burning on land is now illegal in many areas,
because of the risk of fire spreading and/or because of the
pollution caused by the smoke. Controlled burning is allowed
in some countries with flame being applied to a small area
at a time by tractor.
Infrared
heat treatment is another way of burning the finished crop
which does not involve the dangers of flames. This is
permitted in most areas.
Mulching
Mulching is the process of putting something over the ground
to stop weeds from getting light and oxygen. This is an example
of a selective organic herbicidal process.
All of the ground between the wanted plants is covered with
plastic, canvas or other material and any weeds that sprout
in the ground beneath it will not be able to grow. Putting
straw between strawberry plants is a traditional example of
mulching.
In a garden, and even in many organic farming environments,
the most common form of weed management is simply to pull the
weeds up by hand or with a hoe. This is the simplest way to
control weeds. However, for larger areas of unwanted vegetation,
organic herbicides can be useful. # # # # #
SolveYourProblem.com
: 2008
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