couch grass + round up = gone???

[SueA]

As you've not got long to establish your plot Buttercup, I'd say do whatever is necessary. Alan Titchmarsh champions the organic way of growing now but even he admits to resorting to weedkiller initially to clear his plot.Good luck.

[buttercup]

thanks for the support!

thanks everyone!
whatever we decide it'll be for the best!

this wont apply to many grapes, and im sure it has been said before and will be said again,
if you cant cope with your allotment , get help or give it to someone else!
think about the people who will take it on after you!
we have paid a £50 deposit which is refundable if we return the allotment in a weed free usable condition.
ours was a competely neglected mess with rubbish in the soil, and the council sprayed it before we got there, taking away the decision to be organic in the
first place!
with more and more people taking on allotment now maybe the horrible nightmare of clearing allotments will be a thing of the past !
thanks everyone,
your helping me live the dream!
cheers buttercup x x

[leona]

the plot ive just taken on was covered in couch. most of it still is as ive only had 3 days digging. i was going to double dig but i noticed that the couch roots dont go down very far. if i double dig and couch roots go in further down, will i effectively be infecting the lower soil or will they not grow to far down?

[clarelouise4]

Hi Buttercup
I took a plot on at the August bank holiday last year covered in knee/waist high couch grass and thanks to the advice and motivation of the lovely grapes here on the vine I'm pleased to say I've nearly beaten it. I only resorted to glyphosphate on a third of the plot (something that I really didn't want to do originally but I'm glad now that I did) and on monday of this week I planted my first early potatoes in that very same area - so don't give up hope. Even if you only get part of the plot in a state to grow then its a real start and it can only get better.

I don't know how true this is but I did read somewhere that outdoor tomatoes can help to kill off couch grass. And apparently potatoes can really help in clearing areas that have been full of weeds.

It is back breaking at times but little and often seems to be the key and you will get there. And on the really tought days red wine seems to be the cure all !!!!

Good luck
Clare

[Norm]

Hi Buttercup, I'm one of the old fashioned gardeners (30 years service before the mast, man and boy) and I'm sorry is this upsets all the organic types, but I tried organic once and apart from breaking my back, the results were a shambolic mess. Now I hit the weeds running with B&Q weedkiller when they're big enough to absorb it, wait until they're dead, spread the muck, then rotovate. All that's left is to hoe the annuals off and feed the crop without feeding the weeds as well.

I shall now retire to the fallout shelter, don my tin hat and await the bombardment.