Kitchen Garden Forum

I have recently put down some turf and decorated the edges of the garden with bark, I was fed up of weeding and wanted to spend the time enjoying the garden. I laid the membrane an installed the bark but I am still getting weed coming through. :-/

It may be where there is a gap in the membrane or something but I dont want to pull it up and do it again.

Is there anything I can mix with the bark to discourage the blighters?

Spray with 2 ltr coke a cola mixed with 1 ltr vinegar and half a ltr of washing up liquid

What sort of membrane did you use, and what are the weeds ? Couch grass will punch through woven materials and some of the weaker spun polyester fabrics.

If you're sure the weeds are growing through the barrier, not just amongst the bark (in which case they'd pull up easily), I think your options are weedkiller or redo it with a better membrane. It may not take much weedkiller as the bark and membrane will be suppressing them to a degree already.

(A mix of coke, vinegar and washing up liquid sounds pretty likely to have an effect, but technically constitutes a homemade agrochemical, so not permitted. Pelargonic acid based weedkiller would also serve)

How deep is the bark, you have to preclude light to stop weeds growing, you'll need around 2 inches or 50mm

Tony nowhere can I find anything about coke, vinegar and washing up liquid being an agro chemical also it is not unlawful to use agro chemicals as most pesticides and weed killers are agro chemicals

Home made weed killers are illegal.
Only chemicals tested and approved for the stated purpose can be used for said purpose.

A question, do you or your family want to eat anything that comes from poisoned ground? My answer is no, that's why I try to grow as much as I can myself and don't use dodgy chemicals, home made or ones from a shop.

I only spray on paths and the odd place that I don't grow anything near I would not spray the raised beds or growing areas we have a hard time keeping the wild fields around the plot at bay

I will, and do, use commercial systemic weed killers in moderation. Spraying at selected times in selected places helps prepare ground where weeds are growing for a new season. I do not spray near edible crops.
Frightened you might be putting something nasty in soil ?? when was the last time anyone tested their soil ?? Ph tests ? Nitrate tests ?

The idea of using the items listed in earlier post for a home made solution strikes me as uneconomic, potentially ineffective, and apart from anything else there is the aforementioned illegality factor.

I've tried vinegar spray with washing up liquid to bind it on the leaves - it did work, not as quick as 'real' weed killers but died in the end on the driveway. As I consume vinegar anyway & wash my plates & stuff with washing up liquid I actually ingest both. Both I would rather ingest that than some of the stuff in the 'real' spay bottle. I didn't know about coke in the mix but thats been passed as a consumable. (Not that I'm about to consume weeds from the drive or patio).

As for illegal - there must be millions using these mixes as they are all over the internet & neatly pushed as organic as well! Not uneconomic either as the ingredients are generally in the larder. The thing to factor in is patience & that costs nothing. I will continue to use on the paths & patio & even at lottie if needed. Would certainly use it on weeds coming through membrane.

I've used coke to clean both car and boat engines for longer than I care to admit too , I often wonder what it does to your intestines