Aminopyralid Contamination of Manure

Can't identify that mould? Got a great tip for keeping slugs at bay? Suggestions for organic weed control? Post them here...

Moderators: KG Steve, Chantal, Tigger, peter

User avatar
glallotments
KG Regular
Posts: 2167
Joined: Sat Dec 01, 2007 4:27 pm
Location: West Yorkshire
Contact:

What is Aminopyralid?

Aminopyralid is the active ingredient in a range of herbicides including ForeFront and Milestone. More products are listed here http://www.dowagro.com/range/aminopyral ... rdship.htm
Aminopyralid is a particularly persistent chemical which does not affect grass plants. This means that when grass is eaten by animals the chemical passes through the animal’s gut and remains active in any manure produced. Stacking manure for a long period does not remove the problem. It is only when the manure is subjected to soil microbes and all plant material is completely broken down that the residue is released and rendered harmless.

What does Aminopyralid do?

Aminopyralid affects plant hormones. Affected plants display distorted growth typically cupping or excessive bubbling of the leaves and fern like shoots. The leaves may be leathery and have strongly defined parallel veining.
Although plants such as potatoes, tomatoes, bean, peas, raspberries, dahlias and some roses are particularly susceptible other plants may also be affected depending on the concentration of residue.
Some images and video of affected plants are available here
http://ossettweather.com/glallotments.c ... anure.html

How can you avoid obtaining contaminated manure?

Ensure that you only acquire manure from suppliers that can guarantee no herbicide containing aminopyralid has entered the supply chain.
A list on questions to ask is available here http://ossettweather.com/glallotments.c ... nure7.html and a downloadable sheet is available here http://ossettweather.com/glallotments.c ... ealert.pdf
If your supplier cannot give any guarantees then don’t take the manure.

What if I have manure that I suspect is contaminated?

You can try to carry out a bean test instructions here:
http://www.growyourown.info/page164.html
Be aware that the bean test can only prove that aminopyralid contamination is actively present it cannot prove that the manure is aminopyralid free.

If you have reason to suspect that manure is affected then:
Remove as much manure as possible.
Rotavate or dig the soil as often as you can to speed up decomposition.
Don't cover the soil as this will prevent air getting to the soil.
Grow crops that are less likely to be affected such as courgettes, squashes and sweetcorn.
Don't compost any affected plant material
Don't burn any affected plant material - this could be illegal
If your polytunnel or greenhouse is affected then keep turning the soil and keep the soil moist. Moisture and air are needed to aid plant decomposition.
Contact the Chemical Regulation Directorate [email protected] DOW [email protected] and also post your experiences on the KG forum thread viewtopic.php?f=8&t=7423&hilit=aminopyralid

Other information can be accessed following the links below:
http://www.pesticides.gov.uk/garden_home.asp
Links from http://ossettweather.com/glallotments.c ... anure.html

Forum Threads:
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=8433&hilit=aminopyralid
viewtopic.php?f=8&t=7423=aminopyralid
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=5688=aminopyralid
viewtopic.php?f=4&t=7841=aminopyralid

This posting is for advice only and is based on the experiences of visitors to this forum and others. The thread is locked and stuck in position to keep the information clearly visible

If you wish to discuss or make comments on matters related to this issue then please use the other related threads.
Last edited by peter on Thu Mar 01, 2012 9:20 am, edited 2 times in total.
Reason: GLAllotments Website address change.