!! I’m not looking for advice on whether or not glyphosate is good/bad/safe etc. !! Just factual information to solve the challenge I’m outlining below, thank you.
I’m a bit unsure about this. Is glyphosate banned for use in domestic gardens, in France, or not? It seems the EU decided against banning it last year, but I don’t know if that applies to household use (farmers can still use it, it seems).
As I’m unsure about this, I’m using a home-made spray of 14% strength cleaning vinegar (I’m buying this i 5L lots for 7 Euros a pop) and salt solution, with washing up liquid, on the weeds on our gravel. It burns the leaves of most weeds as long as they aren’t too established, although nettles are quite resistant. But it doesn’t take long for some weeds to recover. I really have to do this every couple of days to keep the weeds under control.
I’m not sure I can keep this up!
Weedkillers you can buy in the supermarket are very expensive, but if they are more effective, they could end up being no more expensive than the vinegar recipe and mean less work. You see Roundup brands but I am not sure these are glyphosate-based.
Has anyone found a really good way to deal with weeds in gravel? I’m definitely not talking about lawn or any other areas of the garden, just the gravel drive way.
Unfortunately you probably did not have a girotex typeof material put down under the gravel first, the only good and sure way to really keep them down. I have put it down everywhere here after years of keeping a very large gravelled drive free of weeds by doing so, previously. It dosn’t cost a lot in the grand scheme of things and maybe you could re-do the area again or get a gardener to do it for you.
The driveway pre-dates us so I don’t know if there is any protection underneath. But we do have newly-laid gravel areas with membrane underneath and I feel that the gravel acts as a good substrate, above the membrane, for creeping weeds and air-borne seeds - like grass. It, too, needs regular attention now.
It seems that most domestically available herbicides are pelargonic acid based now.
My garden is mainly gravel (already done when I bought the house) , but there is a geotex membrane underneath. I still get weeds, grass etc from air blown seeds but I just wander around with a bucket every few days and pull them up.
In the UK at least, Roundup comes in two flavours, with and without glyphosate. The label will tell you what’s in it.
Glyphosate is approved in the UK until Dec 2025. The EU is currently OK with it as well:
in 2021, the European Commission appointed scientific experts from four nations to conduct an investigation, the results of which led to glyphosate receiving renewed authorisation for use in the EU for another ten years - from November 2023.
Google tells me it is a “non-selective” weedkiller so it will kill all plants - hence OK for use on driveways but not where you have plants you want to keep!
Glyphosate works by inhibiting a plant’s enzyme system. The resulting reduction in enzyme production (specifically EPSP Synthase) weakens the supply of amino acids that are vital for plant growth.
It is absorbed by the leaves and stems and translocated throughout the plant, killing it in around four – 15 days when used according to instructions.
Glyphosate is known as a non-selective weedkiller, meaning that it will kill most plants – hence its popularity. On its own, glyphosate is not toxic to animals and humans, but it is used in different concentrations and mixes, so users must always read product labels carefully and follow manufacturer’s instructions.
I think there is a difference between “amateur gardener” mixes containing glyphosate, which are fairly low strength, and the more powerful versions sold to professionals.
We have used glyphosate-based Roundup on our gravel drive and it’s worked well. Haven’t noticed any ill effects on any surrounding plants and the local pigeons still strut around and crap on my car quite happily.
I don;t think there is a non-chemical alternative that works as well, though would be interested to hear if anyone’s found one.
Is there any opinion on how effective the non-glyphosate Roundup is?
What about heat treatment? I wouldn’t want to use a gas flame eand, but an electric one interests me. In fact I have heat gunthat mightdo asimilar job. I’ve also heard of electrical (electrocution?!) methods that don’t use heat.
I’m on my hands and knees at the beginning of the warmer weather each year manually pulling weeds out of the gravel. It’s easier when the ground is still damp. It takes a couple of days!
Don’t get me wrong - the hands and knees approach is only viable at the start of the season - the weeds still come back and this thread is about how to deal with the rebellion!
I use a Swoe garden hoe… for any plants which don’t come up easily by hand… and I never get on my knees (I’d never get up again…)
Using the Swoe hoe… I used to keep the communal petanque court pristine … just a few minutes every couple of days or so… and I regarded that as my good deed and good exercise… there was no undermatting used, just a decent/proper foundation…
where we had gravel professionally laid (using matting etc) the weeds are now like a meadow/lawn…
Where OH laid gravel himself (years ago), using proper hogging first… there are only easily-removed weeds which try to take a hold and fail…
Our commune, like many others, is “chemical-free”… so it’s all hands to the wheel/hoe hoe hoe
Pelargonic acid sold generally these days functions by the same method as vinegar, i.e. it is not translocated within the plant, unlike glyphosate. All it does is scorch the leaves, which is why the plants recover unless regular application is made. This is even more so with hardier plants, and on grasses, it is pretty much useless. A recent study published in 2023 by an Italian university using field and greenhouse testing indicated that the jury is still very much out on the effectiveness of pelargonic acid.
Mind you, banning it for individuals while allowing agriculteurs to douse their fields in it just feels a bit pointless, and robs gardeners of a very effective weedkiller (when used in moderation).
