Clearing rampant weeds; Toxicity of newspaper ink, carpet and cardboard

[alexanderzangmo]

Hi, am a newbie to clearing a 24ftx24ft plot of weeds which have grown rampaciously through so-called weed control membrane. Second time this has happened.

I want to set up raised beds, which is the easy bit, but how to prevent nettles, brambles and everything else growing round the beds without using systemic herbicide or digging for England? I would happily put down old carpet/cardboard or newspaper, but am concerned about the toxins that go into the manufacture of these items ie glue in cardboard, ink in newspapers and goodness knows what in carpet.

Any suggestions appreciated! Zangmo

[chris]

Welcome to the forum, just off to work but quickly - buy the best membrane you can afford (in terms of thickness/gauge), keep on top of the weeds that do come through the membrane/mulch layer, or opt for a thick plastic membrane.

Inks are vegetable based now, and have been for some years.

Carpet, I agree with you there.

[Two_Sheds]

I use newspaper & card on my plot as weed-suppressing mulch, but not magazine (glossy) paper. Loads of shredded newspaper goes in my compost heap too.

[chris]

Just to add... I too use carboard (plain mind.. I have loads at the moment - doing the house up, all the new stuff comes in it) and newspaper (at least a couple sheets a day - I use it to line my chicken coop) in my compost.

[Aberdeenplotter]

You don't fancy digging for England but 24ft x 24ft is hardly enough to have you break sweat. If you have ground infested by any perennial weeds by far the best way to deal with them is to get in there with a fork and shake them out. Membrane will then at least have a chance of keeping the area clean for you.

[Two_Sheds]

by far the best way to deal with them is to get in there with a fork and shake them out.

The job will be very much easier though, if you are able to cover them for several months, weakening the roots.
I did it on a completely perennial-weed infested patch of ground, and after about 6 months the only weed roots left were a few thin white strings of weak bindweed. Everything else had died.
(I used old fence panels for that one, as it was on site already)

[Aberdeenplotter]

No doubt about that but this is the second time the problem has manifested itself on the piece of ground that Alexanderzangmo mentions and six months from now the growing season is practically over. Covering nettles and brambles won't eliminate them. Digging them out will and the ground will then be immediately available for use. It is a relatively small piece of ground which could be cleaned up in a few hours of graft.

[binley100]

Don't think any amount of covering will weaken brambles and nettles, only way I'd do it is with a bit of elbow grease and just keep digging the b@ggers out.

[zazen999]

I'd recommend a mixture of both. Dig out the perennial weed roots [nettles and brambles] and then put down your cardboard and plant through this where you can [use a bulb planter and grow seedlings in modules] and this will keep the dug soil relatively weed free for the summer. Then put another layer on next autumn and winter and again, where you can - plant through the cardboard [brassicas are great with this method].

[Two_Sheds]

Don't think any amount of covering will weaken brambles and nettles

It's what I did.
6ft high brambles & nettles

[binley100]

How long did it take?

[Two_Sheds]

I got the plot Feb 08 in a terrible state, and I was able to plant up 3/4 of the plot that spring/summer.

I first cut & burned the top growth, then covered up the worst patches with cardboard, wet newspapers, tarp and carpets, anything I could get.


This was Feb 08, a right mess: nettles 6ft high

Mar 08, underneath the nettles was pure couch grass . I dug the roots out a bit at a time, covering as I cleared, & drowned them in butts

I didn't want to use any sprays on this because the plot was full of frogs. I can't dig much because my back, shoulder & neck are knackered, which is why I covered the weeds. I did have the odd few stubborn nettle, dock, bramble coming up in the middle of my crops, but I cut the tops off as they appeared, and levered/sawed/dug the roots out when the crop was over.

April '08, crops in
paper mulch, July '08

The bramble patch (it's behind the debris netting in the next photo) at the far end had to stay covered the longest, simply because I was too busy planting up the rest of the plot.

Aug '08, plot is 6 months old

Jan '09, ivy roots covered with cardboard mulch. This worked well, but it's the nature of ivy to keep coming back, so I still have to be on top of the ivy fence, cutting off any suckers as they appear

paper mulch covering stubborn docks & bindweed

June '09: plot is virtually free of weeds and full of crops. Bean city! and a longer view here

[di]

Can I just say how inspirational those pics are TS...Thank you.

Have already been on a mad mission to find cardboard and papers, it's now been upped a notch!

[Two_Sheds]

Oh bless, thank you.

Cardboard: round the back of local shops, don't bother asking the supers
Newspapers: mug your freesheet delivery person, or ask your neighbours to drop used ones thru your door

[di]

Did you really just tell me to mug an innocent teen?

I've got a couple of local co ops, picked up a couple of huge crisp boxes last night and friends are saving their papers and animal poo for me ... poor D and A, it's one thing accepting hand me down clothes, I've got mums bringing me bags of rabbit poo and sacks of horse