How effective is rock salt at killing weeds and how long before crops could
be grown on treated soil?

In article ,
"Bobby" writes:
|
| How effective is rock salt at killing weeds and how long before crops could
| be grown on treated soil?

In the UK, almost not at all. Don't do it - it won't kill the weeds
and, in very large quantities, can pollute groundwater.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article ,
"Bobby" writes:
|
| How effective is rock salt at killing weeds and how long before crops could
| be grown on treated soil?

If you managed to add enough to be effective probably a year or two to
wash out. The inorganic weedkiller Sodium *Chlorate* degrades to sodium
chloride and is effective in much lower doses (as the warnings say it
may promote combustion)..

Glyphosate is far more environmentally friendly than either as a
weedkiller.

In the UK, almost not at all. Don't do it - it won't kill the weeds
and, in very large quantities, can pollute groundwater.

In North Yorkshire we have great piles of rock salt on the steep hills.
The run off from them kills grass out to about 6" from a big pile and
ellipse about 8 feet down the hill.

Using rock salt as a weedkiller in the UK is dumber than dumb.

Regards,
Martin Brown

In article .com,
writes:
|
| | How effective is rock salt at killing weeds and how long before crops could
| | be grown on treated soil?
|
| If you managed to add enough to be effective probably a year or two to
| wash out.

Nah. With the rate that it has been droughting here, a month at most.
But let's say that we have a dry summer - it will last until next winter,
when (even in East Anglia), the excess of rain over evaporation will be
at least 9". That will wash out quite a thick layer of salt - probably
at least 1/4", which would be something like 10 Kg/m^2 of salt.

| The inorganic weedkiller Sodium *Chlorate* degrades to sodium
| chloride and is effective in much lower doses (as the warnings say it
| may promote combustion)..
|
| Glyphosate is far more environmentally friendly than either as a
| weedkiller.

No, DEFINITELY not. Sodium chlorate is used in quantities such that the
amount of sodium chloride is negligible - it is probably the MOST
environmentally friendly chemical weedkiller of all!

| In the UK, almost not at all. Don't do it - it won't kill the weeds
| and, in very large quantities, can pollute groundwater.
|
| In North Yorkshire we have great piles of rock salt on the steep hills.
| The run off from them kills grass out to about 6" from a big pile and
| ellipse about 8 feet down the hill.

Interesting. I didn't realise that it was THAT ineffective.

| Using rock salt as a weedkiller in the UK is dumber than dumb.

Quite.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article .com,
writes:
[...]
| In North Yorkshire we have great piles of rock salt on the steep hills.
| The run off from them kills grass out to about 6" from a big pile and
| ellipse about 8 feet down the hill.

Interesting. I didn't realise that it was THAT ineffective.

I now wish I'd taken more notice while living in wet west Wales. But
I'd certainly have noticed an 8' ellipse: I doubt if the downslope
killing zone there amounted to more than two feet. But perhaps the
microtopography was different round our local salt-piles, and it all
ran straight into the ditches.

| Using rock salt as a weedkiller in the UK is dumber than dumb.

Quite.

Quite.

--
Mike.

Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article ,
"Bobby" writes:
|
| How effective is rock salt at killing weeds and how long before crops could
| be grown on treated soil?

In the UK, almost not at all. Don't do it - it won't kill the weeds
and, in very large quantities, can pollute groundwater.

Another idea to cross off the list of what I do with the salt left over
from curing my air-dried hams, then

James

Nick Maclaren wrote:

environmentally friendly chemical weedkiller

Run this one by me again. Seriously.

In article .com,
"La Puce" writes:
|
| environmentally friendly chemical weedkiller
|
| Run this one by me again. Seriously.

Well, I thought that it was pretty clear, but ....

Sodium chlorate works and breaks down by oxidising organic (carbon-based)
compounds. It breaks down into sodium chloride (common salt). In the
quantities it is used, it produces less than 100 grammes of salt a square
metre per annum. The driest part of the UK gets 200 kilogrammes a square
metre excess of rainfall over evaporation per annum. It will therefore
add AT MOST a salt content of 0.05% to the groundwater. That is not a
significant amount. Even if it is used to excess, it causes little harm.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

"James Fidell" wrote in message
...
Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article ,
"Bobby" writes:
|
| How effective is rock salt at killing weeds and how long before crops
could
| be grown on treated soil?

In the UK, almost not at all. Don't do it - it won't kill the weeds
and, in very large quantities, can pollute groundwater.

Another idea to cross off the list of what I do with the salt left over
from curing my air-dried hams, then

James

introduce it some slugs or smails in your garden James.

rob