[Market-farming] herbicides for use in a cut flower garden
road's end farm
organic101 at linkny.com
Sun Aug 26 19:42:50 EDT 2007
On Aug 26, 2007, at 6:58 PM, Sharon and Steve wrote:
> Is this a vegetable product or petroleum? Some how having a petroleum
> product breaking down in the soil does not sound very organic.
There are/have been several such products on the market; some petroleum
and some of them primarily from plant products. None has yet satisfied
my certifier as acceptable for certified organic use (regular plastic
mulches, pulled from the field at the end of the season, are regulated
but generally permissible). I believe that the problem is usually that
the residue doesn't break down completely and leaves traces in the
soil; and/or that heavy metal contaminants are likely.
I don't know about the specific one being discussed. There are people
working on this, and an acceptable product may eventually appear; or
may have appeared, though if so I haven't heard about it yet.
> We have had
> biodegragable mulch for years but I have preferred taking up the
> regular
> stuff and getting rid of it, our trash goes to an electric generator
> and
> plastics are 19,000 btu per lb so my conscience is clear.
Presumably the generator is burning it properly so that emissions
aren't a problem. Improper burning of plastics can create all sorts of
problems. Home setups (and some commercial ones) can't generally
provide the right conditions.
-- Rivka; Finger Lakes NY, Zone 5 mostly
Fresh-market organic produce, small scale
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