Subject: Re: Organic weed killer question
From: "Bill Robinson" <roseguy@flash.net>
Organization:
Date: Sat, 04 Jul 98 15:01:04
Message-ID: <MOD$980704.13006@rec.gardens.ecosystems>



The question was asked:

>Has anyone tried the organicially friendly weed killer >mentioned by Jerry Baker: 1 oz gin, 1 oz dish soap,
>and 1 oz vinegar?
The moderation policy for rec.gardens.ecosystems
includes the statement," Articles advocating the routine application of
materials prohibited by the International
Certification Standards , as specified in Appendix A of
the group FAQ, are considered inappropriate. . . if such
a posting would actually appear..., the human moderator
would also post an article statting that the application . . .
violates the International Certification Standard."

While not listed, per se, neither gin, vinegar nor dish soap would be
considered as appropriate for use on certified crops
by most certifying agencies..

The issue of home remedies is difficult for the home
gardener. The materials should be effective and, at the
same time, they should be environmentally friendly. The
problem is that some of the home remedies are effective
and environmentaly friendly but many are not and it is
not always self-evident as to what is and what isn't.

A few months ago there was a post on rec.gardens
recommending a mixture of battery acid and salt as a
weed killer and an "organic" alternative to RoundUp.
The use of battery acid and/or salt would be extremely destructive of the
garden environment and, I think, grossly
irresponsible.

There have also been a number of posts on the use of
mouth wash as a fungicide for the control of plant disease.
This struck me as being more "goofy" than envirornmentally
destructive. . . . but, on the other hand, there is the common practice of
using baking soda with or without a vegetable oil additive for the control
of powdery mildew and this mix does seem to work reasonably well. Even the
American Rose Society who usually lean towards the use of synthetic
pesticides recommend the use of baking soda for the control
of powdery mildew on roses. Specifically, some of the
home remedies do work and are environmentally friendly
but sometimes they are not . . . my personal view is
that the best way to grow the healthy garden and to
protect the envirornment is to put more emphasis on
the use of environmentally friendly cultural practices
and less emphasis on materials that are intended to
control pests.

I think hand weeding is still the best way to go.

Bill

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