Why we should avoid herbicides (Roundup and glyphosate in general)
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7 years ago
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Glyphosate damage to fruit trees
Comments (19)Bob, Most commercial growers use a pre-emergent to control weeds. I've been reluctant to do this at the farm because the trees are young and more susc. to pre-emergent herbicide uptake. Last year I bought some simazine but never did use it. I've got a huge problem with field bindweed, so I plan to use a pre-emergent next year. I'm looking into Prowl H2O. I've also heard a lot of good things about Sinbar. Chateau and Matrix are a couple other options. Some of these pre-emergent herbicides can be very expensive, so that is a consideration. Glyphosate is pretty cheap at roughly $35-$40 for 2.5 gal. Compare that to hundreds of dollars for some of the pre-emergents. This year we pretty much mowed, or sprayed gramoxone. Gramoxone is good for young, non-bearing trees because it has no systemic activity (so it won't kill young trees, unless the applicator is very sloppy and sprays the green bark of young trees). The downside is that there is no residual effect. It's only a burndown, so weeds pop right back up (although weaker). It's basically chemical mowing. Gramoxone is also very hazardous to humans, so all the PPE should be worn. I don't know if this post helps you, but the real lesson, if you have lots of trees, is a good pre-emergent....See MoreWhy specifically do organic gardeners avoid chemical fertilizers
Comments (63)A lot of interesting info here, and obviously plenty of room for debate. I don't have near the knowledge many of you do but I can share my personnel experience as a hobbyist gardner. For several decades I have refused to use pesticides, just basically not liking the idea of using poisons. Knowing that a healthy plant is more successful in fighting disease and pests I would use chemical fertilizers to help keep my plants healthy. Well unfortunately, or maybe fortunately I was forced into early retirement and the last couple of years I have had a lot more time for hobby stuff. I started composting, having readily available lots of leaf and green matter in the yard. Then I started learning more about soil biology by poking around the web (that's how I found this place). So I decided to up the game and go 100% organic, relying only on my compost, and compost teas. My plants were easily just as if not more healthy than previous years, but the thing I noticed most was it seemed I had more beneficial insects in the garden. A couple of years I tried to introduce lady bugs for the occasional aphid problem. They would just fly away never to be seen again. This year no aphids but I kept seeing the random ladybug. Additionally I have found it hugely satisfying and feel a more complete cycle between my garden and my table. I am increasing my knowledge and experience of composting, and feel my compost is becoming better with every batch by adding simple things such as alfalfa and seaweed (always take my pack when I visit the ocean). Having a microscope I have also been able to see for myself the change and increase of microbial life in my soil and assume that will lead to a more healthy relationship between plant and soil. Now I have to find someone to give my leftover chemical ferts to.....See MoreWHO called glyphosate a "probable carcinogen"
Comments (29)What I've been saying all along is that I believe the best way to test the relative level of those risks is to compare the overall health of people that engage in those risks to those that do not. This is how the risk of smoking was most convincingly established. If OP's create significant risks to human health, how on earth can the people who actually experience high exposures to them on a regular basis completely escape the consequences- are you suggesting that dosage is not relevant either specifically or cumulatively? That makes absolutely no sense to me. Epidemiological research doesn't win any one Nobel prizes, it is not terribly creative stuff for a scientist, but in the end, it is often the best way to sort the wheat from the chafe when trying to determine actual levels of risk of any substance in the environment to human health. In the case of pesticides, such evidence is particularly accurate and useful because we have a very distinct segment of the population with uniquely high exposures to them. One can't sort out which pesticides do what but if collectively no great harm is being done then none of the various exposures in themselves can be very significant. At the time of the last study I posted, the farmers surveyed were using a lot of OP chemicals because much of the banning hadn't begun. So both recent accidents and long term health consequences are in the data. Please address any flaws you find in the logic of what I've posted here before posting more research of potential links to cancer or whatever. They never seem to offer an assessment of the actual level of risk, so they are virtually worthless, except as suggestions for epidemiological research to realistically verify the suggestd links ....See MoreRoundup damage to large roses: should I prune? Can I add more roses?
Comments (13)I think there is some bacteria that will help get rid of the chemical they will absorb it and others will eat them. The ameoba and parameciams and protozoa that we learned about in 9th grade. Eventually the microbes will ameliorate. I like that word ameliorate the soil. It's your garden. Put what you want there. Maybe if you take some good soil from a place that you know grows good plants and sprinkle it on top it will rain down the good microbes. Maybe some good Organic fertilizers at the plant nursery will be good to sprinkle and make the soil good again. Don't they have something called starter fertilizers? To get the good things going again? I think rain eventually takes it away and it dissapates in the air and water and water vapor and the microbes....See MoreUser
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