Thistles? Non-chemical solution?

[Neko-chan]

...

 

[FarmerJamie]

I was just reading, and though I don't have an answer for your thistle problem, it reminded me of the time we were chopping blackberry brambles out of the vineyard. We'd been piling them up by the fence, on the otherside of which my aunts boer goats were standing. Like all goats, they were pushing their heads through the wire to reach the brambles. So, I held a long vine out over the fence for them, and was shocked and surprised to see it chomp it down, thorns and all.

The goats got an evidently tasty snack that day. XD

Don't feed the "goat"-ophiles here on this site...
We are NOT getting goats, no, no, no.

 

[patandchickens]

If they are *only* in your garden, pulling them every time they pop up, trying to get as much root as possible, will eventually exhaust them. By eventually I mean you may need religiously-regular attention to it for a couple of years. But it does work.

HOWEVER if the thistles are also in adjacent lawn or pasture, then you are never going to get rid of them (unless you get them gone from the lawn/pasture) as they will continually send runners back into your garden, at a fairly rapid rate IME.

Good luck, "have fun",

Pat

 

[FarmerJamie]

"Battle Thistle" has begun! In the last warm break, I hit the little buggers with Roundup. The weak ones succumbed. Just applied a second treatment and as I was heading back to the garage, I thought I heard drinking songs as the thistles were laughing at me behind my back...

 

[lwheelr]

The Conservation District manager in the 'Bow (where we moved from) said that pulling or digging Canadian thistle "just makes it mad", and it will come back stronger.

The reason is that if you pull it up, you always leave just a little bit of root in the ground. And a new plant grows from EVERY BIT OF ROOT left, even the little tiny bits! So you are just creating 20 more plants every time you pull one up.

Pigs are the best to get rid of them. Takes a while with the pigs concentrated in the area, enough so they have a chance to completely process all the soil in the area. They'll not just dig up every bit of root they can, they'll actually eat the soil and remove even small root fibers. They are just the best for weeds that propagate by root - the worst kind of weed to try to eradicate.

Morning Glory, Bohemian Vine, Canadian Thistle, all those nasties. They all make Dandelions look tame by comparison.

Other types of thistle may be easier to get rid of, but I've never had to deal with them, just Canadian Thistles.

 

[Wifezilla]

The best way to permanently kill of a plant is to stand next to it and declare "I really hope I can grow more _________ since I got this great recipe that uses them as a main ingredient!"

They should all die in a week after that.

 

[BeccaOH]

The best way to permanently kill of a plant is to stand next to it and declare "I really hope I can grow more _________ since I got this great recipe that uses them as a main ingredient!"

They should all die in a week after that.

I have the same battle in my front flowerbed. Seems the acidic soil fed by my landscape pines and years of cedar mulch just encourage them. The plan is -- may not get done -- to pull out the pines this spring, save the day lilies, and completely redo the bed. I expect the thistles will find their way back, though.

 

[Marianne]

Our thistle must not be Canadian then. Out here, everyone digs them out. We were told to dig 6" down, then throw them into the burn pile and set it ablaze. We've done this most years, and last year had just a couple to dig.

But they weren't kidding when they told us 'one year's seed is 5 years weeds'.

 

[patandchickens]

The Conservation District manager in the 'Bow (where we moved from) said that pulling or digging Canadian thistle "just makes it mad", and it will come back stronger.

Yeah but if you KEEP AFTER IT you do get rid of it that way.

And not everyone has hogs, or is willing to use large quantities of herbicides repeatedly over a long time, or can smother the area lightproof for a couple years.

Pulling/cutting/mowing/digging DOES work, but you can't do it halfheartedly or intermittantly, it requires constant vigilance til the stuff is gone.

Again, though, if there is thistle in the area SURROUNDING this garden bed, you will never, ever, ever keep it out of the garden bed. Just have to remove it as it shows up.

Pat

 

[dragonlaurel]

I've heard that until it makes seed, thistle plants regrow very aggressively. Nobody is arguing there, but maybe you could trick it. Could you let it flower and get pollinated - then bag the flowering part so it can't release the seeds? Once seeds mature, the plants energy dwindles and you can pull the whole plant. This wont be practical if you have a field of them- but if they are just getting into an area- it might be enough.