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Post by johnrf on Jun 11, 2015 15:55:16 GMT -5
I've been saving beer cases (I seem to have a lot, go figure) and I've been planning to mulch my blueberries with them (flattened of course). The blueberries have become home to lots of poison ivy which makes it hard to weed. I'm hoping to smother the poison ivy with cardboard and then cover it with some kind of mulch.
In the garden I really like using straw. Just got 6 bales and did the tomatoes. The woman I buy my plants from claims that straw keeps the rain from splashing bad stuff on your plants, like blight, with which I am plagued.
But I also like mulching with weeds. I get lots of weeds and pile them up here and there. This year's pile of weeds is next years cucumber hill. And I figure if I mulch around plants as they rot they feed the plants (and I add organic fertilizer also).
I only use black plastic for my sweet potatoes to make them feel more at home here in PA. Just planted them today...
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Post by claude on Jun 11, 2015 17:47:29 GMT -5
Are you talking about sweet peat third? It really does break down quickly. As long as you get some rain to speed up the process.
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Post by tbird on Jun 12, 2015 6:38:08 GMT -5
Are you talking about sweet peat third? no, not sure what that is. Is this in response to my saying I asked the garden person for a mulch that would disappear by next year? I got some kind of pine bark mulch, the particles are pretty small maybe dime sized on average.
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Post by kimmsr🕊 on Jun 12, 2015 6:46:33 GMT -5
Any mulch material will keep rain from splashing onto plants and possibly placing disease pathogens on them, not just straw.
Not even cardboard will suppress Poison Ivy, the only proven method of control is removal of the roots.
"Weeds" can be good mulches. "Weeds" are simply plants you do not want growing where you do not want them growing. There is some evidence that what we call "weeds" are necessary plants to help the pollinators maintain good health.
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Post by brownrexx on Jun 12, 2015 7:30:52 GMT -5
straw keeps the rain from splashing bad stuff on your plants, like blight, with which I am plagued.
I am plagued with Late Blight as well John and I just dread seeing that first lesion in August.
Early Blight spores are in the soil and the mulch keeps those spores from splashing on out plants. I also cut off the bottom leaves of my tomato plants to help keep the leaves away from the soil. I don't have much trouble with Early blight.
Late Blight is the one that kills my plants and those spores are carried in the air so mulching will not help with this one. The spores land onto the plants when the weather is humid and rather cool. They won't grow if it's too hot and dry so if we get some cool and rainy weather in August - poof! Late Blight stars growing. I hate that stuff.
Last year I sprayed my plants with Actinovate which is a beneficial bacterium and it really seemed to help. I still got the Blight but it didn't seem to grow very fast and I was able to harvest tomatoes until frost in the Fall.
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Post by claude on Jun 12, 2015 7:50:39 GMT -5
Tbird...poison ivy..ugh. Something to keep in mind..poison ivy LOVES its roots in the shade and its leaves in the sun...you're going to have to pull up those roots because that mulch is giving it just what it wants to run rampant..not to mention that the oil from the plant will be all over that cardboard too.
I find that waiting after a good rain...double suiting up..and having a pak of baby wipes nearby in case you make contact is the only way to get rid of that stuff.
Sorry.
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Post by johnrf on Jun 12, 2015 14:19:15 GMT -5
I guess I'm hoping that the cardboard will at least kill the other weeds so the poison ivy roots will be more accessible and easy to spot. I read somewhere a while ago that some plants will benefit from the rising levels of co2 in the air. One of the plants they mentioned was poison ivy. Sure looks like that here. Its always been around but now it pops up everywhere. Makes trimming my hedges a real pain, especially when its hot out and I'm wearing long pants. And I've never seen such large leaves...
Do baby wipes really work? I always run for the hose, rinse off and then go in the house and use soap and hot water to clean the area exposed. My wife was recently telling me that she thought she had become immune because she hasn't had it in years. Famous last words. She got a dose just a couple weeks ago. Thankfully not severe.
As usual thanks for all the advice.
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Post by claude on Jun 13, 2015 11:06:40 GMT -5
Yes. If you come into contact, wipe yourself off with the baby wipes...they are cool..they don't open your pores when you use them and they have baby oil..like dissolves like..the oil can remain on tools and shoes..shoelaces for up to 3 years. I'm battling a 200 yard wave of the stuff that's coming over for next door neighbors property. So far, I spray with white vinegar salt solution in the heat of the day..all along the property line. Knock on wood..so far carrying those baby wipes in a pk that's handy has kept me from itching for quite a while. Keep a garbage bag handy to place the wipes in after use.
just added this..always be cautious of what you wore and what tools you use afterwards and clean up. When I come back in EVERYTHING goes into the washing machine..sneakers, socks, clothes. Take care to leave items right side/outside out..use the dryer...then I take first a cool shower w soapy water and switch to a warm one.
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Post by OregonRed on Jun 14, 2015 9:17:09 GMT -5
Dang Claude, you are one handy woman to have around!
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Post by ellenr on Jun 15, 2015 6:44:44 GMT -5
"I read somewhere a while ago that some plants will benefit from the rising levels of co2 in the air. One of the plants they mentioned was poison ivy."
This is true. Not only more of it, but the ingredient that makes us itch, urushiol, is made more potent by the change in co2.
A couple of years ago I started getting poison ivy thru the air - no physical contact! For some reason, even tho there is still PI in the garden, I don't catch it anymore. (fingers crossed)
During the period that I was very susceptible, "Oral Ivy", a homeopathic remedy by Boedricke & Tafel, would prevent me from getting it if I took it before being exposed. And if I got it, would reduce symptoms.
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Post by claude on Jun 15, 2015 17:29:55 GMT -5
Oral Ivy.? I'm going to have to ck that out. I read the same thing Ellen...scary stuff. For the first time I saw a pig weed this weekend. It's huge! The sap is quite inflammatory and it is prolific. It was listed on an invasive list and the same list of ones to benefit from the co2 increase as well.
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Post by lilolpeapicker on Jun 15, 2015 17:38:43 GMT -5
The only way to get rid of poison ivy is pulling it out. Cover yourself all over, pull and go inside, put your clothes in the laundry and wash them and take a shower yourself. I had to do this a couple times to the property we bought when the kids were little. Didn't want them to be exposed to it. No trouble after that.
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Post by brownrexx on Jun 16, 2015 8:31:54 GMT -5
I had access to waste rock salt from a pretzel factory years ago and I poured some salt all around the roots of the poison ivy on our property and it died.
It was growing at the base of a utility pole at the corner of our property so it was an easy area to treat.
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