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Any advice on how to kill off 'Bindweed' or 'Bellbind'? (as I have heard it called both names). I live in a block of six flats and each flat has it's own garden seperated only by that green wire council fencing. As I am on the middle floor, I have the middle garden and I seem to be the only 'gardener'. (I use the term loosely! lol) I have struggled throughout spring and summer keep pulling out this bindweed and it seems to stimulate it more!! It wraps itself around my veggies and flowers and I don't want to have to go through the same thing again next year- is there anything I can do? I have been told that weed killer probably won't help!?




Answers

 

Bindweed is depressingly persistent - you can try digging out a lot of the root, but unless you have light soil, it is almost impossible - you'll find the roots are thickish, white and fleshy and go for miles, and a tiny piece left in will regrow. Even so, I'd attempt, when digging, to extract as much as possible and bin or burn it, don't compost it. Then the only recourse, I'm afraid, is to insert canes wherever its growing, let it grow up the cane (next summer, I mean, of course) and then spray or treat with glyphosphate weedkiller.

8 Nov, 2009

 

Thanks Bamboo- it is infuriating!! I will try that but I'm sure the soil will be too dense. I like the cane idea lull it into a false sense of security by giving it a place to grow then WHAM I'll get the pest!!! lol :-D

8 Nov, 2009

 

Since I once had mint in my garden bed and I used the below technique, I got rid of all the mint in 2 years ---a record for some. What is the technique?
Weed, weed, and weed again. Think of two things-do not let seeds form and reduce the bindweed population. How do you do this? Weed in the early spring when the ground is muddy and easy for you to follow along 12 " or more of root (then yank it out). If you need to shovel out some clumps--do it. Weed after the ground has been tilled or weeded in preparation for planting. Weed during the growing season. Do your best to not let any flowers appear on the bindweed. Why? Because flowers soon turn into seeds--many many seeds. Hence yank out a vine that has flowers on it if you do not have time to dig it out. Try not to let tiny seedlets develop roots---pull or grab it out of the garden. Do not compost these bindweed pullings--throw them out, far away from your yard. Even in the compost the bindweed could survive and flower and set seed. Lastly, keep the area where the bindweed is on the droughty side. They do not do well without an ample supply of water. The below lady has seen a 90% reduction in 2-3 years. And, yes, the credit goes to Kanterina at autofree@hotmail.com from the gardenweb forums and my selection of her technique comes from years of gardening experience.

12 Nov, 2009

 

Wow- thanks, I did not know that the bindweed needed water and this is probably why it has thrived in my garden!! I will not rest until I have succeeded :-)

12 Nov, 2009

How do I say thanks?

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