How to remove nettles from the site - simple and effective ways
Nettle in the garden or in the garden is an aggressive weed that grows quickly, drawing all moisture and nutrients from the soil. There are several simple and effective ways to remove nettles from the site - using chemicals, folk remedies, as well as mechanical methods.
Features of the fight against nettle
In April-May, shoots appear from each vegetative bud of root shoots, which by August becomes a full-fledged plant with its own root system. That is why the nettle grows very quickly on the site, filling most of it.
The weed plant can parasitize both outdoors and in greenhouses - its walls are not an obstacle to the nettle root system. Its foliage is covered with small villi containing formic acid - when touched, they cause burns and redness. During flowering, weed pollen can trigger a severe allergic reaction.
Before removing the nettle from the site, it must be borne in mind that even a small fragment of the root left in the ground will help the plant to fully restore its population in 1-2 seasons. Therefore, it is very important to destroy not only the aerial part, but also the root system of the weed.
How to remove nettles from the site - effective ways
There are several ways to deal with nettles in your garden.
The most popular are:
- weed control with chemical herbicides;
- the use of folk remedies;
- mechanical weed removal.
Also, many gardeners and truck farmers plant plants near the nettle that inhibit its growth, development and growth of the root system.
Use of chemicals
Chemical herbicides help to permanently get rid of aggressive weeds, destroying it along with the root system. Contact preparations are completely safe for fertile soil and are effective against most weeds.
The most popular herbicides for stinging nettle include:
- Glyphos;
- Tornado;
- Roundup;
- Fuzilade.
Glyphos is a highly effective and fast acting broad spectrum herbicide. When spraying, it quickly penetrates into the cells of a weed plant and begins to act after 3-5 days. Weather conditions do not affect the effectiveness of the drug. It does not have a negative effect on fertile soil and is not addictive to nettle even with prolonged use.
Tornado - penetrates into a weed plant through foliage and sprouts, together with cellular juices it enters the root system and destroys it. A tornado can be used if the height of the nettle exceeds 4-6 cm. To prepare a working solution, the herbicide is diluted with purified water in a 1: 2 ratio.
Roundup - a fast-acting preparation that penetrates the weed within 4-5 hours after spraying and spreads with juices throughout the plant. The nettle begins to fade, turn yellow and die. The consumption of the drug is 3 liters per 1 hectare of land.
Fuzilad - the product quickly penetrates into the cells of the nettle, causing it to be lethargic, yellowing and dying off. Fusilade herbicide treatment should not be carried out near vineyards, as it acts on the vine in a similar way.
Removing nettle by folk remedies
In gardening and horticulture, several methods are used on how to remove nettles from the garden with folk remedies.
Most often, a solution of potassium salt, boiling water, or moxibustion of the plant are used for this purpose.:
- Potassium salt solution - a working solution is prepared for processing from 300 g of the substance and a bucket of settled water. The beds are watered with this solution, after which they need to be covered with a layer mulch.
- In late March or early April, you can burn the main places of accumulation of nettles with a blowtorch.
- The area affected by weeds can be periodically watered with boiling water.
No less popular among gardeners and "alcoholic" method of dealing with nettles. About 4 weeks before sowing vegetables and fruit and berry crops, you need to water the beds with a solution prepared from a bucket of water and 150 ml of vodka. You can also use a 6% ethanol solution. After watering, thoroughly weed the area.
Planting special plants
One of the simplest and most affordable ways to remove nettles from the site is to plant next to a plant weed that inhibits and inhibits its growth.
These include:
- caspea;
- horseradish;
- Jerusalem artichoke;
- lawn grass;
- any cereals.
For maximum results, it is better to plant several plants near the nettle at once, which oppress it. This method is best used when weeds are growing under buildings or along fences.
Mechanical destruction of nettle
When carried out correctly, mechanical methods of nettle control give good results, allowing you to permanently remove the weed from the site.
Basic mechanical methods for killing nettles:
- Weeding is a classic weed control method that is only effective if there are no large wrens in the area. During weeding, you need to try to remove not only the vertical, but also the horizontal roots.
- Regular mowing - This method can be used if the nettle has taken up a significant part of the area. Frequent removal of the green part as close to the ground as possible forces the plant to direct all its forces to its restoration and growth, due to which the growth of the weed stops.
- Ground cover - any plant, including nettles, cannot survive without sunlight. Therefore, areas where weeds have grown can be covered with pieces of plywood, sheets of slate or black film. When covering the beds, you need to make holes for sowing seedlings.
One of the mechanical methods of weed control is the autumn digging of soil. It should be deep - at least 35-40 cm. It is at this depth that the roots of the nettle are located. During digging, it is imperative to carefully turn over the layers of soil and leave them in this form.
As a result, the roots, turned outward, freeze and die. If individual root fragments remain in the soil, they will need maximum strength to recover. In this case, the nettle shoots, which may appear in the spring, will be weakened, sluggish and insignificant.
If the wren has grown over a large part of the site, another method is used - disking with a flat cutter (carried out twice with an interval of 11-12 days), after 7 days the soil is dug up with the obligatory turning over of the lumps.
Harvesting Nettle Nettle is not only a medicinal plant, but also a vicious weed, which is extremely difficult to get rid of. It has a strong root system that grows rapidly, drawing moisture and nutrients from the soil.To control nettles on the site, it is better to use an integrated approach, combining herbicides with folk remedies and mechanical methods of weed control.