Chickens and grass killer

[Akane]

I use the black plastic or tarping in the garden world all over the place to kill weeds. I just tilled a new garden section and tarped it all this year to plant next year. It takes a month or 2 at least but it will kill the weeds off for the rest of next year.

Roundup is a dirty word on many garden forums. It is most definitely not safe around animals and stays in the ground much longer than they claim. Most people would prefer if it was only available to professionals or those working on public land and conservation areas that are trying to grow only native plants. If you spray any chemical I would not let them on it for a month minimum.

http://www.helpfulgardener.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1749

http://www.helpfulgardener.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=7790

 

[JennsPeeps]

Boiling water on weeds also works.

 

[WoodlandWoman]

You do not need to use salt with vinegar to kill weeds. The vinegar alone will work. I have used plain vinegar as a spray, to kill weed foliage.

Black plastic works, but so does clear plastic. The weeds cook under the plastic.

Since heat works, there are also weed torches that can be used. There is a long tube between the little gas bottle and the flame at the tip, so you are working standing up. You do not burn the foliage, setting the place on fire! You only use the heat from the flame, to wilt the foliage. Obviously, this needs to be done with the utmost care and with a hose right there! It's not for everyone, but neither is a burn pile, which also requires the utmost care and a hose right there, along with a non-windy day.

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

You could try to do a controlled burn on your driveway or use a torch to spot-burn some areas. Keep a hose handy though LOL.

 

[arlee453]

How about confining the chickens with a portable fence wherever you want the grass to go away?

They are the best grass killers I've got around here...may be a bit slower than roundup, but sure are more persistent!

 

[patandchickens]

Sounds to me like it is time for the driveway to be re-gravelled. I know it is an expense and a pain in the butt, but gravel drives do not last forever (esp. if infrequently used).

Your problem is that once grass starts growing amongst the gravel, its roots un-compact the gravel and also start to increase the organic content so it is more like soil and less like a hard roadway. These effects remain even if you kill the grass by whatever means. Grass will just grow back (much much faster than it did before, since the conditions are now so much more hospitable to it).

The best defense against grass invading a driveway is to have a geotextile liner (nonwoven fabric, like landscape fabric but tougher) laid down under the gravel. You might price this out when you are getting quotes on the driveway. Your other best friend, with or without a liner, is to use the driveway frequently, esp. if it can be used by heavy vehicles, and don't always drive in the same ruts (vary your path to one side or the other as much as you can without actually going off the gravel).

I know it's a pain -- we need to get our barn driveway redone this year, and ideally the rest of the driveway too if we can afford it, since the new farrier has a 3/4 ton NON dually truck and poor steering skills and has already gotten stuck to the point of needing a winch, what with how the grass has moved in and the hardness of the surface deteriorated

But you know, nothing lasts forever.

Good luck,

Pat

 

[RoyalHillsLLC]

I would challenge anyone to come up with evidence that these natural remedies like vinegar or salt are any safer than roundup. It has been around for over 30 years, has been extensively tested, and at the labeled rates is very safe. Most of the food crops you eat have been sprayed with it. Corn, soybeans, and many other crops are sprayed with it.
Many people are just anti-everything without looking at the evidence first. Many "natural" products are much more dangerous than the synthetic options which have been thoroughly tested.
I trim and edge all the time around all my birds. If it killed birds, what do you think would happen when farmers spray hundreds of thousands of acres of farms? You would find dead birds everywhere. You should be fine.

 

[JennsPeeps]

Part of not using roundup in my yard comes from not wanting to introduce chemicals. I do not use any chemicals in my yard. Period.

The other part is that I'm cheap. Vinegar is much less expensive - and boiling water even less so - than a bottle I have buy gas to drive 10 miles and purchase.