Tried my hand at some weed smoldering over the weekend..

[RickF]

Our front yard is infested (ok -- not the strip by the street) with Bermuda grass that is running all over creation.. I put down clear plastic and the weeds just at me.. So, this weekend I ripped out all of the plastic sheeting (double-layer), tossed it into the recycle bin and mowed the stuff down (some of it was 10 inches tall after being covered for 5 months). I then, after getting some Kingsford charcoal, got some coals going and spread them out in a neat pile on some of the grass which immediately started smoking very well.. Anyway, I was able to do almost 1/2 of the front yard (about <20x15) and the ground is now black with ashes on it.. I found the water does not soak into the ground anymore now that it's charred and had to use some "water-in" to get the water into the soil. I've got little faith this will kill the deeper rhizome's that I've found >1 ft deep in the past. I'm very tempted to build a vibe table using an old washer motor and a frame with a very fine mesh (~1/4" holes) to shake the good stuff into a waiting push cart and catch the crap (rocks, weeds and whatever else remains). I'll play the game with the burned ground but am not going to count my 4 chickens just yet..
The reason I'm being a bit pessimistic is that I read (after the fact) that many places burn this sort of grass to stimulate growth..

I'm hoping that's not the case here!!

BTW: I should note that I had a hose handy at all times and only worked a very small piece at a time monitoring it always. This is not something you should undertake lightly and in some cases it may be illegal in your area..

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

i'm hoping you haven't wasted your time just to make that grass come back more than before!

in our area during the spring and summer at the local Home Depot or Lowe's they carry a propane weed 'torch'.

this was the only site i could find that had a pic of what i am talking about. http://www.walmart.com/ip/Weed-Dragon-Garden-Torch-Kit/6435919

 

[hoodat]

Bermuda grass is a fact of life in our part of the country. You'll never get all of it out and if you ever do the next Santa Ana will bring the seeds to replant it. The best advice I ever got was from an old time nurseryman who told me to,"learn to like it".

 

[Collector]

Bermuda grass is a fact of life in our part of the country. You'll never get all of it out and if you ever do the next Santa Ana will bring the seeds to replant it. The best advice I ever got was from an old time nurseryman who told me to,"learn to like it".

sounds like good advice!

 

[RickF]

I've got a weed torch but wanted something that would not only kill off the top-layer but would heat the ground for a while to kill stuff below the surface..

 

[hoodat]

I've seen stolons go under a two lane street and come up on the other side. Good luck.

 

[vfem]

You are in for the fight of your life, and you will lose! My entire front yard is bermuda, and my biggest battle is keeping it OUT of my front bed.

My husband is planting fescue (sp?) in the back... why I don't know. Even he said in a couple years the bermuda will swallow the back of the property. We're trying to thickly seed with clover at the far back of the property, and that may be enough to keep it at bay.

However, I wouldn't hold my breath.

I totally agree with Hoodat!

And the bad news is YES, people here burn their bermuda lawns so it comes back thicker and greener.... but it does kill off and choke out the other usual weeds that aren't well liked. Like the onion grass, dandolians and other creeping weeds. (Also kills seed that hadn't germinated yet.)

 

[JimWWhite]

Have you tried one of the Red Dragon Weed Burners yet? I got one last year at Northern Tool and it is absolutely the best way to get rid of weeds and grass bordering around your garden or house. It uses one of the 18lb propane takes you have for your gas BBQ. You don't have to burn the weeds down either. Just a quick pass around a box or your brickwork is enough to kill what you want. It's also a great edger along your driveway and walkway too. Here's the link to it.

http://www.flameengineering.com/Red_Dragon_Propane_Torch_K.html


I don't know what the guy's doing in the pic but the flame on mine is almost invisible. Like I said, use it lightly and you're done in a few minutes. I had this large bolder in the yard where the grass way always a problem. A minute around the rock once or twice a season and I never have to use the weed eater.

 

[RickF]

I've got a cheapie from Harbor Freight that is a bit rusty but works fine.. Unfortunately the issue with these weeds is that they just don't have all of their root systems near the surface so the weed burners just don't do much outside of killing the obvious part of the plant.. They'll just come back in a few weeks.

 

[JimWWhite]

I've got a cheapie from Harbor Freight that is a bit rusty but works fine.. Unfortunately the issue with these weeds is that they just don't have all of their root systems near the surface so the weed burners just don't do much outside of killing the obvious part of the plant.. They'll just come back in a few weeks.

It's been my experience that if you keep them knocked down as often as you can the plant will give up and die. I had a lot of dandelions, wild carrots, clover, etc around my boxes in the garden last year and I've pretty much wiped them out. Not completely but they're a lot let invasive as they were. Before I'd hoe them out and a week later they'd be back.