weed killer?

[canesisters]

I saw something on Facebook yesterday about this 'wonderful - new - organic - safe' weed killer.
It was (I think) vinegar, epsom salt, blue Dawn dish soap. Has anyone heard of this before? Used it?? Is it bunk? Does it harm the soil for later planting???

 

[lesa]

I tried just vinegar-it did not work...

 

[Ridgerunner]

Cane, did that facebook whatever tell you how to use it? I'd pretty much guarantee it will work if you mix that stuff up, dig up the weed, and seal them both in a black plastic garbage out in direct sun for about two weeks or so. Guaranteed if the sun is hot enough and you get the proportions right.

 

[so lucky]

I think it might top-kill a tender plant, but I doubt if it would kill out the root, too. Salt water would kill grass, etc. But planting anything desirable there afterwards---probably not.
I don't do facebook, but if it is anything like Pinterest has become, you find a lot of photo-shopped pics, and baloney.

 

[Nyboy]

I use a small amount of epson salt on my roses if their leaves are turning yellow.

 

[seedcorn]

1). Will not be effective,
2). No such thing as safe chemical that kills.
3). Too much detergent will kill microbes in soil.
4). Nyboy, I also use Epsom salt on roses-miracle drug.

 

[Smart Red]

My 'guess' is that the vinegar kills the top of the plant, the Epsom salts eventually kill the root system and the soap is a fixative to increase the time the plant stays wet. Most store brands of vinegar and too weak to do much damage. It is possible to purchase stronger (10%?) vinegar that will show better results especially if sprayed in direct sunlight.

For some reason my fingers seem to make the best weed killers -- that and glyphosate painted on leaves with an artist's brush. Nothing but fingers in with the veggies.

 

[journey11]

I'd think that mix would leave your soil unable to grow anything. It might be useful for cracks in the sidewalk or somewhere that you don't want anything growing at all. A little bit of epsom salt is good as fertilizer, but enough to kill weeds would be too much. Vinegar would dissipate eventually. Too much soap wouldn't be good either, but I figure it's just enough added to break the surface tension of the water so the other two will stick to the foliage.

One of the best ways to kill weeds organically is to just pour boiling water on them. Every time I am done canning or have boiled pasta or something, I pour the hot water out onto weeds. This is really good for stubborn grass.

 

[canesisters]

That's pretty much what I thought.
Oh well - back to pulling and digging and pulling and digging and pulling.....

 

[Nyboy]

Is fire organic? I know some people use a blow torch on weeds.