I’m battling a severe case of nut grass infestation in one of the beds along the front of my house. This bed which is about 300 sq ft is home to Black Foot Daisy, Salvia Greggi, Little Bluestem, Rock Rose and a few other varieties. The soil has poor drainage and I’m in the process of converting the sprinkler system to a drip system that drips only at the base of each (desired) plant. All this rain sure hasn’t helped to dry things out though!
I’ve not tried any of the recommended solutions to control the Nutgrass, only used mechanical means in which I’ve used a garden fork to loosen the soil and then with my hands reached under the soil to follow each root to the nut and remove. Of course this has disturbed the soil considerably and likely awakened many other dormant “nutsâ€. I have sent this approach as waking the “sleeper cells of the garden terrorists†so as to discover and remove them. Over the last month I’ve filled my garden cart 3 times with Nutgrass stalks, roots and nodes.
I want to employ as many as Howard’s suggested controls as possible without one ruining the effect of the other.
Can I use vinegar to spot spray while also treating with dry molasses?
Do I need to be careful of the higher dose of molasses around the plants I do want?
What about the hydrogen peroxide before adding the dry molasses?
What does the newspaper do? Isn’t the paper simply a weed block or is there something specific to newspaper that makes it effective under the mulch?
I have been sending my newspaper to the curb for recycling and likely won’t have near enough to cover 300 sq ft for some time. I do have a roll or two of heavy brown construction paper used by contractors to protect floors during construction. Will that do?
Thanks for your help!
_________________ I don't know about you, but I hold my breath when I walk anywhere near the pesticide asile at Home Depot!
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