Does anyone have any good ideas about how to get rid of weeds and grass
from a rather large sloped area in my garden? Ultimately, I want to
plant a wide flower meadow onto it but I gather I need to get rid of
the grass that's there first.

What do people think?

wrote:
Does anyone have any good ideas about how to get rid of weeds and grass
from a rather large sloped area in my garden? Ultimately, I want to
plant a wide flower meadow onto it but I gather I need to get rid of
the grass that's there first.

What do people think?

Cover them so that they cannot see light they will all perish even deep
roots

wrote in message
ups.com...
Does anyone have any good ideas about how to get rid of weeds and grass
from a rather large sloped area in my garden? Ultimately, I want to
plant a wide flower meadow onto it but I gather I need to get rid of
the grass that's there first.

What do people think?

Depends how much time and effort you have got to spare. You could dig up the
ground and carefully pull out each root of everything in which case project
meadow could go ahead next spring, or you could hire a brush cutter to cut
the undergrowth to a uniform 1 cm and then go down the supermarket and get
huge piles of cardboard packaging and make an airtight layer over the whole
area using bricks etc to hold it down, in which case you would be looking at
2 years before starting operation meadow. Mostly though IME avoid rotavating
as weeds like twitch and dandelions make excellent root cuttings :-(

Gill M

I have done quite a few areas like this and my preferred method is to spray and then cover the area. If you don't like the idea of spraying though covering it will have the same effect but size may be an issue.

Gill Matthews writes

wrote in message
oups.com...
Does anyone have any good ideas about how to get rid of weeds and grass
from a rather large sloped area in my garden? Ultimately, I want to
plant a wide flower meadow onto it but I gather I need to get rid of
the grass that's there first.

What do people think?

Depends how much time and effort you have got to spare. You could dig up the
ground and carefully pull out each root of everything in which case project
meadow could go ahead next spring, or you could hire a brush cutter to cut
the undergrowth to a uniform 1 cm and then go down the supermarket and get
huge piles of cardboard packaging and make an airtight layer over the whole
area using bricks etc to hold it down, in which case you would be looking at
2 years before starting operation meadow. Mostly though IME avoid rotavating
as weeds like twitch and dandelions make excellent root cuttings :-(

The problem with anything where you leave weeds to die down in situ is
that in rotting they will help raise the fertility of the soil, which is
one of the main problems in starting a meadow - in fertile conditions,
grass and things like dandelion out-perform the sort of flowers which
most people want to see - a problem if you want to establish a
permanent wildflower sward. I don't know what the situation is with an
annual meadow of cornfield weed type flowers.
--
Kay

On 15/10/06 20:52, in article
, "
wrote:

Does anyone have any good ideas about how to get rid of weeds and grass
from a rather large sloped area in my garden? Ultimately, I want to
plant a wide flower meadow onto it but I gather I need to get rid of
the grass that's there first.

What do people think?

1. Aren't your weeds wild flowers? Let them be. Obviously, they suit your
terrain.
2. And isn't it lucky we have so many new contributors just now?
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/

"Gill Matthews" wrote in message
wrote in message

Does anyone have any good ideas about how to get rid of weeds and
grass
from a rather large sloped area in my garden?

as weeds like twitch and dandelions make excellent root cuttings :-(

Why aren't dandelions considered to be a meadow flower?

I've always liked dandelions and have always left them in the garden
(and I'm interested in the hstory of food and in self sufficiency so
they also get a thumbs up with me for that aspect).

Mu husband hates them and keep spreading them by trying to dig them
out (I don't tell him he's really multiplying them :-)) so I was
delighted to show him the picture from "The Garden at Highgrove" where
Prince Charles has them in his wildflower meadow.

Farm1 writes
"Gill Matthews" wrote in message
wrote in message

Does anyone have any good ideas about how to get rid of weeds and
grass
from a rather large sloped area in my garden?

as weeds like twitch and dandelions make excellent root cuttings :-(

Why aren't dandelions considered to be a meadow flower?

Because we have too many of the damned things! They're ubiquitous.

I've always liked dandelions and have always left them in the garden
(and I'm interested in the hstory of food and in self sufficiency so
they also get a thumbs up with me for that aspect).

If I left mine, I wouldn't have room for anything else.

--
Kay

Farm1 wrote:
I've always liked dandelions and have always left them in the garden
(and I'm interested in the hstory of food and in self sufficiency so
they also get a thumbs up with me for that aspect).

Oh. My heart just jumped ) As a kid, I spent days picking them for
the rabbits. I had my own knife and I thought it was a grand job. All
the guineas pigs and rabbits we've had as pets here got the same
treatment. But not entirely the same ending, since they were pets ....

Mu husband hates them and keep spreading them by trying to dig them
out (I don't tell him he's really multiplying them :-)) so I was
delighted to show him the picture from "The Garden at Highgrove" where
Prince Charles has them in his wildflower meadow.

I keep some, especially at the front of my plot, but I have to be
careful - I once was told some plot holders didn't like them and I
could get into trouble if I didn't get rid of them. Now it's the job of
my youngest to pick them up. He only take off the heads to keep the
neighbours happy. However, I don't know how much you get in your
climate (not sure which part of oz you're in, I've seen plots here
entirely covered in them. It's pretty, but it's a big job to get rid of
them all.

"La Puce" wrote in message Farm1 wrote:
I've always liked dandelions and have always left them in the
garden
(and I'm interested in the hstory of food and in self sufficiency
so
they also get a thumbs up with me for that aspect).

Oh. My heart just jumped ) As a kid, I spent days picking them for
the rabbits. I had my own knife and I thought it was a grand job.
All
the guineas pigs and rabbits we've had as pets here got the same
treatment. But not entirely the same ending, since they were pets
.....

Budgerigars like them too.

Mu husband hates them and keep spreading them by trying to dig
them
out (I don't tell him he's really multiplying them :-)) so I was
delighted to show him the picture from "The Garden at Highgrove"
where
Prince Charles has them in his wildflower meadow.

I keep some, especially at the front of my plot, but I have to be
careful - I once was told some plot holders didn't like them and I
could get into trouble if I didn't get rid of them. Now it's the job
of
my youngest to pick them up. He only take off the heads to keep the
neighbours happy. However, I don't know how much you get in your
climate (not sure which part of oz you're in, I've seen plots here
entirely covered in them. It's pretty, but it's a big job to get rid
of
them all.

We have far worse weeds and the dandelions aren't too numerous so I
leave them.