On Sat, 25 Jan 2003 22:32:17 -0000, "JimM"
wrote:

I've cleared one of our raised beds in preparation for planting it up as a
'traditional' flower bed. While it's bare is there anything I can treat the
soil with that will kill off any dormant weeds that are bound to be lurking
in the soil.

If you can be patient, you can largely eliminate the weed seeds
by encouraging them to grow. Just keep watering and fertilizing
the bed, and every time a crop of new weed seedlings emerges,
cultivate them into oblivion. It is important to disturb the soil
and bring new seeds up to the surface, so you must cultivate more
thoroughly than just a light hoeing. This process may take all
summer, but it you intend the bed to be a permanent planting, the
results may be well worth a few months' delay. Besides, fall
planting is often considerered better than spring planting for
many things.

Many years ago (late 1970's or maybe early 1980's)the RHS Journal
published a brief note on the use of grain alcohol (ethanol) to
encourage weed seeds to germinate. Unfortunately, I have long
since lost the original article, but I think you diluted the
alcohol with several parts water, then sprinkled it on the soil.
The alcohol acts as a hormone that breaks dormancy and stimulates
germination. It has always struck me that using it in combination
with the water-feed-hoe regimen might come close to eradicating
all the weed seeds in soil.



Is this what serilising the soil with Jeyes fluid is all about ?

No. That's for microscopic pests.

--
Rodger Whitlock
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada