On 1/5/08 18:38, in article , "PB"
wrote:


"chris thame" wrote in message
...
My asparagus bed is being killed off by bindweed - I want to take up
the plants, kill the bindweed and replant - can I do this now?
Thanks - Chris

Put salt on the bed, not just a bit, the ground should be well covered,
almost white over. It's not recommended to do this on a regular basis but
once or twice won't hurt. The sparrergrass won't be touched by the salt.



Take a pinch of salt with this advice...........!
www.hort.purdue.edu/hort/ext/Pubs/HO/HO_096.PDF

"Weed Control: Weed control is very important in successfully growing
asparagus, especially in the first couple of years after transplanting when
the young crowns are at their most vulnerable. Commercial growers use a
variety of herbicides to control weeds. Most of these are either
unavailable to gardeners or are too expensive to use on less than a
commercial basis. If you are really curious about herbicides I suggest that
you visit the following web site,
http://www.msue.msu.edu/vegetable/weeds.htm, which is part of the Vegetable
Area of Expertise web site at Michigan State University. A question I often
get is using salt for weed control. This was widely practiced in the United
States in the 19th Century. Asparagus is very tolerant to salt and most
weeds are not. The sodium in salt can actually replace some of the plant's
potassium need and there may be some small benefit in Fusarium suppression
from salt. But, it takes a lot of salt! In one disease control study by
Dr. Mary Hausbeck at Michigan State University in the 1990s, salt was
applied up to levels of 1000 pounds per acre. At the 1000 pound per acre
level, some weed control was observed. Better weed control would probably
require even more salt. As you can imagine, applying salt at amounts over a
1000 pounds per acre has a few side effects. On a clay soil it could result
in the complete loss of soil structure causing the soil to take on a
concrete-like consistency. On sandy soils this effect wasn't observed, but
that is probably because the salt was washed away by rainwater percolates
through the soil. Before you try salt as a weed control, you may also want
to consider that very few other desirable plants can handle the salt levels
of asparagus, so you are going to be stuck with a dead area in your garden
for decades after it is no longer an asparagus patch. "


--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'