Archimedes Plutonium wrote:

I never thought vinegar was a herbicide, for it is just distilled apple
cider and if it comes from apples then it is good to put on plants. What
gives here? Is it the higher acidity and can it kill a tree?

Question arose as to whether paint-thinner or mineral spirits is a
herbicide and whether pouring it on plants would kill them?

Anyone have experience with these substances poured onto plants and
trees?

Archimedes Plutonium,
whole entire Universe is just one big atom where dots
of the electron-dot-cloud are galaxies

Mineral spirits can certainly kill off plants but then just about anything
in quantity can.
There is a dosage limit at which a chemical would be said to have herbicidal
properties just as there are with chemicals and their related human
toxicity. Table salt is not considered poisonous but eat enough and you will
die. Sodium Cyanide on the other extreme has a very low lethal dose. The
same can be said for mineral spirits on plants. Some plants may be very
susceptible while others are not. White Oil used to treat parasites on
citrus trees contains a significant amount of a mineral based oil. They
spray the stuff all over the foliage of citrus trees with very little effect
on the tree. The same concoction on delicate ferns, for example, would
probably be result in considerable damage if not death. The same goes for
vinegar. Some plants are particularly sensitive to pH changes regardless of
the acid applied while others would go on quite happily.
Just a note on paint thinners specifically. Sometimes they contain other
chemicals besides mineral spirits which can be especially toxic to plants
and animals.