permaculture

[gardenbetty@earthlink.net]

Regarding organic weed control:

On my farm, I use boiling water a lot. Sometimes I take the camping stove out
to the field and boil water all day long to pour onto weeds while I tend to
other garden chores nearby. Boiling water works great on bermuda grass. Soil
microorganisms don't much care for it though, however it is harmless in the
long run.

I also sheet mulch deeply using high carbon layers such as cardboard, leaf
mould, sawdust, and wood chips so it breaks down slowly. Bermuda grass
sometimes has a tendency to creep through sheet mulch and start growing on top
of it if you don't do a thorough and comprehensive job.

Regarding other methods, some advice from the SANET list:

There was an article titled "Farmer Commits to 
Sustainable Agriculture" in the Friday, July 1, 1988 edition 
of The Land newspaper out of Mankato, Minnesota, that 
alluded to molasses and liquid calcium for weed control (1).  

The article described sustainable farming practices used by Robert 
Love, a farmer near Harmony, Minnesota.  Love uses liquid calcium, 
molasses, and water to control weeds like immature Canadian thistle.  
He says, "It doesn't tip them over right over like 2,4-D, but 
eventually, in a couple of weeks, they start tipping and turning 
brown.  A lot of livestock farmers like using it in pastures where 
they don't want the chemicals." 

1) Heidtke, Bonnie.  1988.  Farmer commits to sustainable
     agriculture.  The Land (Mankato, MN).  Friday, July 1. 
     Vol. 7, No. 17.  p. 15.

After reading this article several years ago I located Love and 
called him for details.  He said he got the liquid calcium from 
TransNational Agronomy in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Ron Ward of TransNational Agronomy provided the following 
recipe:     
     2 gallons of liquid calcium and 2 gallons of molasses in 
     20 gallons of water.  

Ward said that sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.  A lot
depends on the soil type, soil tests, condition of the weeds, etc.  

[Note:  TransNational is no longer in business.  Philip Wheeler
formerly of TNA now manages Crop Services International also
in Grand Rapids, Michigan]

"Weeds: Control Without Poisons" by Charles Walters, Jr. of Acres 
U.S.A. is one of the few books that deals with non-herbicidal weed 
control through fertility management.  There are two chapters in this 
book that go a long way towards describing why weeds may be 
controlled through the use of calcium-based materials.  

Chapter 7, "The BE & CEC Concept" goes into the optimum ratio of 
plant nutrients in soil, interpreting soil test analysis, and cation
exchange capacity.  Carey Ream's theory says that weed control is best
effected by maintaining plant nutrients at certain levels.  These are,
stated in pounds per acre, calcium, 2000; phosphate, 400; potassium,
200; sulfate, 200; nitrate, 40; ammoniacal nitrogen, 40; iron, 40.  

Chapter 8, "Fertilizing the Weeds" goes into bio-physics and energy
levels in biological systems and describes radionics instruments and
practices that reduce weed growth.  Radionics is the use of electrical
scanners to diagnose and influence subtle biological energy patterns. 

"Weeds!!!Why?" is a booklet by Jay McCaman that deals with the 
specific conditions that influence weed growth, and practices that 
can be done to decrease their presence.  It is comprised primarily of 
two tables.  Table 1 is a listing of over 160 weeds indicating common 
soil problems associated with each.  It states that the goal of an 
effective soil management program should be first to change the soil 
environment to a point in which the soil grows weeds indicative of a 
healthy soil.  Secondly, it is to change the soil environment to 
reduce weed pressure to manageable levels.  

Table 2 is a listing of weed response to soil applied products based
on an electrical scanning device.  The scanner measured the energy
patterns of ten common weeds when compared to products like dolomite
lime, high calcium lime, gypsum, 0-46-0, anhydrous ammmonia, 0-0-60,
soft rock phosphate, Lasso, and 2,4-D.  The scanner was used to
determine which products lowered or raised the energy pattern of the
weeds.  For example, velvetleaf started with a general vitality (GV)
reading of 470.  Muriate of potash (0-0-60) increased the GV to 740.
Thus, McCaman says that muriate of potash would assist the growth of
velvetleaf.  High calcium lime, on the other hand, reduced the GV to
0.  From this McCamon figures that high calcium lime does not assist
the growth of velvetleaf but rather creates a soil "climate" which is
antagonistic to the growth of velvetleaf.

Adherents of "weed-control-through-fertility management" often draw 
upon the concepts and practices advocated by Dr. William Albrecht 
and Dr. Carey Reams.

For example, Reams stated that:

* grassy weeds are an indication of calcium deficiency
* broadleaf weeds are an indication of improper phosphate-                
   to-potash ratio 

According to Dr. Arden Anderson, author of "Science in Agriculture'"
calcium may be normal on the LaMotte soil test, but in fact be 
biologically unavailable due to high sodium, chemical toxicity,  high 
magnesium, etc.  To reactivate a soil like this, he suggests a 
mixture of liquid calcium, an enzyme product (like Nitron's A-35 or 
International Ag Lab's RL-37), humic acid, and sugar.  This mixture 
will function as a stimulant to free up the calcium present in the 
soil.  Additions of rock phosphate can also improve calcium 
availability according to Anderson.  

For contacts in alternative fertility management, see ATTRA's: 

"Alternative Soil Testing Laboratories" 
http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/soil-lab.html

Regarding double-digging or spading, it's A LOT of work. It takes at least 8
hours for a healthy, fit person to double dig and amend 100 square feet in
moderate soil. You might consider taking it in stages or try building raised
beds for next spring using an advanced sheet mulching no-dig bedding
technique. Basically you mark your beds and fill them with a tall (1 foot at
least) lasagna of organic materials, cover the bed with plastic and a few
stones and let it rot till next season. You can build these no dig beds right
on top of existing sheet mulching for added bulk and for weed suppression
around the beds.

For another similar type of no-dig garden bed, check out: 
http://www.ozemail.com.au/~askpv/Deans.htm

I am in zone 7 so in the fall we plant brassicas, lettuce, spinach, peas,
winter rye, Austrian winter peas, oats, carrots, radishes, scallions, beets.
At this point however, if you are expecting frost in October, you might only
have time for lettuce, radishes, a few brassicas, scallions, and spinach in a
cold frame, winter rye and austrian winter peas.

Some additional websites to help you out:

http://www.nal.usda.gov/afsic/
http://www.attra.org/

Good luck!

dawn
aka gardenbetty

Garden Resources of Washington (GROW)
Urban Oasis Farm
Washington, D.C.
gardenbetty@earthlink.net