Hi _ I just got my wonderful plot in late October and am digging...hard work! Anyway - after covering the ground and commencing digging over I have found bindweed roots. Any organic tips on eradicating this wonderful weed??
When is it at its worst? What sort of crops will it strangle if I dont dig it all out (which I think is probably impossible to do)
Thanks
Mrs T :-*
Lots of us have this dastardly, weed- all you can do is keep digging it out, trying not to let bits snap off & get left behind. Do a search and you'll find lots of ranting and some tips!
it gathers momemtum from spring onwards and will strangle / smother practically anything in its path if its allowed to run wild, but digging is very effective if done carefully.
I have been digging it out for years but its still around - but on the positive side its reducing
we were in despair when we took our plot on. only thing to do is keep digging
and removing the roots best you can, it really does weaken it i think manual digging is best as that mashine i can,t spell will chop the roots up and spread it
marg
that will be a rotavator then , a palindrome in fact. ;)
Chopping up weeds does seem to be an issue, but do the pro's outwegh the cons?
regards
Ohh bindweed, completely wrecked my last garden. The first time it appeared my husband said I like that plant, what pretty flowers. Several years later, and most of the plants killed, he changed his mind! We ended up removing most of the borders and kept digging. We had very few plants left but last year (before we moved), just soil. At least the new owners can start again, must have been a bit weird buying a house with no plants in the beds! It just annoyed us so much we just got ruthless I suppose. Good luck :)
Just keep digging out the roots and not throwing them into the compost pile! Between that and the ever-present horseradish, we are kept busy on our lottie. :P