Hi all,

Being on a farm I have a lot of unwanted weeds of all kinds, from short, tall, thin and thick, etc., including some thistle. Mainly in areas where they used to have livestock (years ago) that is now overrun with weeds.

I've been researching homemade grass and weed killers with the common ingredients being vinegar (preferrably 20% opposed to the standard 5%), liquid dish soap (minute amount) and either salt (rock salt, pool salts, table salts, etc.), or a citrus additive such as orange oil, each serving their own purpose i.e., vinegar to kill the plant, soap to allow it to stick and the acid from the citrus getting to the roots.

I have a good acre or two that need cleaned up but I hate the thought of that much Roundup, Trimec, etc. And, I wasn't planning on using this around the pond but definately could if not harmful to the BOW and/or fish.

Anyone have any experience with these DIY grass & weed killers?

As always, thanks!

I would be very careful with homemade brews. They can be dangerous to you and the environment. I would stick to commercial herbicides as they are the safest and most economical solution to weed problems. Unless you want to kill all plants, Roundup is not a good herbicide to use. Identify the weeds and choose a selective herbicide.

Generic glyposate products are not that expensive considering the recommended rate per acre. The patent for glyphosate is "up" so generic glyphosate is now common and low cost. For agricultural weed control in fields which would include most of the weeds & grass in your 2 acres the standard rate per acre is 1 quart diluted appropriately per acre. I have purchased generic glyphopsate (41% with 15% surfactant) for around $15-$20/gallon from places such as Rural King - Tractor Supply. Cost of treating your 2 acres is relatively low. Also look into Crossbow and Crossroad brush killer and Agri-star 2,4-D as broadleaf weedkillers in grassy areas.

Bill and RAH, I agree. For me, the PITA factor in making a home brew, combined with the uncertainty of it's effect on EVERYTHING makes the generic glyphosate much more attractive.

I can't see his home brew being more dangerous than commercial herbicide.. I'd rather eat vinegar, salt, dishsoap over roundup anyday..

I think salt may be the real issue here. Don't know how much salt it would take, but it would surely change the soil. I've always heard that asparagus is salt tolerant and using table salt in a small bed keeps weeds and grasses under control. Salt is also attractive to deer. A few years ago I put four or five pounds of salt on by 150 sq. ft. asparagus bed. Did a great job of killing weeds: also a great job of attracting deer who tore up the bed for months. That salt disolved and went several inches into the soil. The deer ate the dirt to get the salt and also tore many plants up by the roots. Never again.

Bing, you should have put out a salt lick for the deer to go after instead of your asparagus bed.

I too was going to try something like this out. The one I found consists of the following:

1/2 Gallon of Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 Cup Table Salt
1/2 tsp Dawn Liquid Dish Soap

Do we think this would not be a good idea to spray on your yard?

http://www.unitedstatesag.org/Vinegar.html

The question is where do you get 20% Acetic Acid?

Other info:

Ecotoxicity: Fish: Fathead Minnow: LC50 = 88 mg/L; 96 Hr; Static bioassay @ 18-22°CFish: Bluegill/Sunfish: LC50 = 75 mg/L; 96 Hr; UnspecifiedFish: Goldfish: LC50 = 423 mg/L; 24 Hr; UnspecifiedWater flea Daphnia: EC50 = 32-47 mg/L; 24-48 Hr; UnspecifiedBacteria: Phytobacterium phosphoreum: EC50 = 8.86-11 mg/L; 5,15,25 min; Microtox test If released to water or soil, acetic acid will biodegrade readily. Evaporation from dry surfaces is likely to occur. When spilled on soil, the liquid will spread on the surface and penetrate into the soil at a rate dependent on the soil type and its water content. Acetic acid shows no potential for biological accumulation or food chain contamination.

Thank you all for your replies, info and input and I apologize it's taken me so long to respond. It's been a day!

You all offered some great points and things to consider. My main consideration was not so much cost as it was the chemical makeup of "roundup" type products on the area I have to cover, and from what I've read the DIY ingredients didn't seem too harmful (in comparison).

Esshup, excellent information on vinegar in that link, thank you! Many people said they use straight vinegar for weed control but apparently the soap helps it adhere and the salt offering a more long lasting effect, maybe due to soil penetration to get to the roots (if I understood that correctly)? And even using orange oil in place of the salt for the acidity factor, in however that helps.

MRHELLO - Be careful when you say "spraying that on your yard" as your recipe is a "kills-all" from what I understand!

I'm going to do some more research and maybe even experiment a little bit on some different areas. The easy way out may be to heed Bill's advice:


And due to the number of Deer I have I will be putting out a salt lick if I do this. Thanks for sharing your experience, Bing!


And this may be where I end up!


Thanks everyone!

PB Rocks!

Another link:

http://www.garden-counselor-lawn-care.com/vinegar-weed-killer.html

Thanks Esshup, great info!

And due to all the info, input and research, my decision has been made.

Tractor supply, FarmWorks 41% glyphosate with surfactant, 2 1/2 gal for $50, covers up to 630,000 sf. I think that'll cover it.

(well, the DIY sounded like a good idea )

Thanks again for everyone's input!

PB Rocks!

Keep in mind the that glyphosate will kill all or most all the vegetated plants in the two acres providing you get good even coverage. It attaches to soil particles and decomposes farily quickly in the soil (short half life) so after few days new sprouts from seeds or dormant roots will survive. Glyphosate is not a pre-emergent herbicide.

And remember it takes a lot less then most people think. Try to follow labels and don't over do it.

I'll spray a mixture of Glyphosate, Imazapyr and Diuron for short and long term weed control on gravel areas. Even applied at the label rates, there will be weed growth before the killing frosts arrive.

Many weeds and grasses have already sprouted, yet I'm sure many have not due to ground temps still below 50ish. This weekend is upper 70's for the next several days so by this time next week I should get a good handle on the majority.

I'll be applying this with a boom-sprayer behind the ATV due to uneven terrain and large areas (on a calm day), so I should get some even coverage. And thanks Blair, I know it's easy to overdo it when it comes to weed killer, and I'm not an overly patient person

Esshup, with the Imazapyr and Diuron, is the Diuron the pre-emergent of those two? If so, it would seem to be a good idea to mix that in as well?

Thanks again y'all

Best time to spray is when the plant are not stressed.
-day after a rain is good
-morning is best but after the dew is dry.
- don't spray after a night of frost.
- the less water you use the better the chemical works but you have to still do a good job of coverage. Our high clearance spray roundup at .6litre per acre with 3 US gal/ac with the best results. But with my quad sprayer I probably use 2litres/ac and 10 gal/ac to get my coverage

The mix that I noted is Generic round-up and Sahara. Sahara is supposed to last for up to 6 months.