I wonder if this has tips on restoring soil decimated by bind weed. My back yard is a mess and I’m trying to find the safest way to kill the bind weed.
A Soil Owner's Manual: How to Restore and Maintain Soil Health by Jon Stika
https://www.bookpeople.com/book/9781530431267
A book that is short but jam-packed with the basics of soil function and structure as well as a plan to ameliorate degraded and destroyed soils. A must-have in your library.
"The problem lies in that most people do not know what a healthy soil looks or acts like, nor what makes it healthy or unhealthy."
"The five main functions of soil are: maintaining biodiversity and productivity, partitioning water and solute flow, filtering and buffering, nutrient cycling, and structural support."
"There are three main classes of soil properties; physical, chemical, and biological."
#permaculture #regenerativeagriculture #grownostr #permies #gardening
Discussion
We've found only brute force works, can't kill it, best you can do is beat it back for a year
It doesn't really address bindweed. That stuff is evil. If it's really bad you might consider "nuking it from orbit" and tarping the whole shebang with a heavy, clear plastic and let everything die in the sun for a year then reseeding with grass.
I also found this for you: https://www.maine.gov/dacf/php/gotpests/weeds/factsheets/bindweed-ncap.pdf
It’s covered in plastic right now 😂 thanks for this!
Bind weed is the devil. I've been successful digging it up and manually removing the roots, burning and then tarping the area, extreme but it worked. That is in small areas, however, not larger than 20 square metres.
I covered the whole back yard for the summer and killed most of it. Killing small spots with vinegar/salt/soap mix and removing roots. We then used cardboard to cover the dirt, placed new dirt on that and then mulch. Planted all native plants in new dirt. Small patch of grass for the dogs and area for chickens. I guess I’ll have to wait and see after winter what comes back.