[brownp]

I took on half an allotment plot on good friday. It was previously 'grass'/weeds
There were no thistles at all on the plot. A neighbour accidently sprayed my plot with round up or similar.
I gradually dug over beds and planted a variety of crops....and then the thistles started
I am plagued by them - and I am baffled by a couple of things:

1, the cultivated areas have some thistles coming through but only about 10 % of the walkways - they are solid thistles, spreading by the minute and growing at a rate of knots.
2, My half of the plot has this issue - the other half doesn't get anywhere near as many! I've spoken to my neighbour and he gets a few but nothing compared to mine!

Any ideas?

[Yorkie]

I guess that when you started digging the plot, you disturbed the weed seeds which then started growing.  Your walkways and the other half of the plot may not have such recently disturbed ground, hence fewer thistles?

[brownp]

Hi
no...it's the other way round...walkways (undisturbed) are snided with them - veg beds have hardly any in comparison - not logical is it?

[Yorkie]

erm  :blink:

[Elcie]

Has the plot been previously rotivated?  This might explain your problem.

[mobilekat]

What is on your walk ways?

Are they solid earth, or do they have mulch or woodchip on?

Could you have walked the seeds around when doing other work- an maybe where you neighbour sprayed has killed off most on the soil, but guess he didnt spray the paths.

[brownp]

Hi- no it hadn't been rotovated - it was completely un cultivated. The walkways are just the areas that I haven't cultivated ie, the gaps between beds.
I've taken to strimming it down over the last week and that makes it look better. I was thinking of putting weed fabric and chippings down - but i'm worried that thistles will come straight through that.

[mobilekat]

I would think that the reason for less on the paths then, is that you have trampled them when they were little!- very good way of killing things!

And if you think how many seeds are on a couple of thistle heads it doesnt take many to provide a good crop!- and once you disturbed the ground they got a chance to grow in clear earth, rather than a tangle of weeds!

Where as you neighbour has probably been hoeing them off when young and thus not noticing them.

They shouldnt come through good weed-fabric. But if you are really determined to get rid of them spraying again may be the answer.

[Trillium]

While I don't like to spray any more than I have to, the only way you'll get rid of your thistles is by spraying. The best way is to cut the growth top off at the base so there's a teeny stump left and immediately spray with Roundup or glyphosphate. This will soak right into the root area as its fresh and will stop all future regrowth. Your path was obviously the recepient of many thistle seeds and this might take a while but soon you'll be rid of them.