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Michael Bell · 04-05-2007, 06:18 AM posted to uk.rec.gardening

In message
(Paul S) wrote:

Martin Brown wrote:

On May 3, 5:52 am, Michael Bell wrote:

The "resident weed" in my garden, in Forest Hall, Newcastle -on Tyne,
is horsetail. Every garden has a "resident weed" hasn't it?

At least one. Mine is ground elder which I don't find too bad. It
comes in from the field boundary and there is not a lot I can do about
it. There is a small amount of bindweed in hedges but nothing too bad.

Last year I systematically squirted every growth of horsetail with
weedkiller, and I reckon I got the horsetail down to 5% of what it had
been and last winter I dug the whole garden over and pulled out what I
could.

But of course, there is still some coming up this spring. Once again I
am squirting it with weedkiller.

Is there any more productive method of getting rid of it?

Moving house is generally reckonned to be effective provided that you
move far enough away and check that the new house does not have it.

The "roots" of horsetail go down a very long way and store a lot of
energy. You have to hit it meticulously with systemic weedkiller on a
regular basis - bruising the structure first helps prevent its silica
exoskeleton from blocking absorption of the weedkiller. It is almost
waterproof! Never let any of it see light and it will eventually give
up the ghost.

Martin,

I've read about this bruising before, but how do you do it, especially
when you have a lot of the stuff ? I tried scraping some of the plant
stems with a Stanley knive last year, but it was long and labourious. Also
tried sandpaper.

The weedkiller I have used is "Fast action roundup" containing
7.2g/litre of glyphosate.

I haven't been bruising the horsetails - I never thought of doing it -
but I have sprayed the horsetails when they show up and it has been
effective; they turn brown and die. Whether by idleness or an
exploration of possibilities, a man over the road allows horsetail to
grow in one of his beds, fully grown it looks rather nice, like green
hair which I could stroke. It's funny to feel like that about a weed
which I hate in my own garden. The horsetail in his garden is now 6 -
8" high. Only a few horsetails have come up so far in my garden and
only an inch or two and I squirted them straight away, I am fairly
well pleased with my year's work.

Michael Bell

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