I have Caroline Cox's review bookmarked and will read it closely as soon as
I am able. Thanks for pointing it out. I think it's true that Roundup is
the product most used by folks who don't otherwise use herbicides.
We'd rather use none, of course, but in some specific situations NOT
involving production land, an herbicide is useful. I'm highly sensitive to
poison ivy, and the dang stuff loves to grow around irrigation valves,
under the propane tanks, and other places where I can't avoid contact.
I'm gradually making progress in establishing weed-resistant groundcovers
such as bugleweed, dead nettle, hosta, lirope, and creeping thyme in all my
frustrating weed zones. At least we'll have the best-landscaped propane
tanks in the county.
Assuming I'm persuaded I should give up Roundup, Frank, what do you suggest
I use intead? I've tried Sharpshooter (salts of fatty acids), but it is
expensive and only marginally effective. It will burn back the foliage of
some weeds; others it barely fazes.
Remember, we're just talking spot use around the farmstead here, not in the
fields, not close to any streams, ponds, wetlands, or other ecologically
sensitive areas. We manage pretty well in the fields using cultivation,
rotations, mulch, and that old standby, steel on a stick. We're not
obsessive about weed-free fields, anyway. We need some to provide habitat
for all our beneficials.
>When did you begin to use Roundup?
I bought a quart of concentrate in 1981, before I had the farm and needed
to impress my suburban neighbors with a weed-free sidewalk. It just ran out
last year, and I bought another quart. My, hasn't the price gone up.
Cass Peterson
cpete@nb.net
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