[sizer247]

ive been on my allotment for 3 years now an ive just seen mares tail croping up from next doors lotty, im gutted cos ive heard its a nightmare to get rid of any ideas guys cheers

[Trillium]

Very regular hacking back of the tops and regular glyphosphate. Nothing else works.

[jay001]

i have one small bed in my comunial rear paved area that isn,t filled with the usual large shrubs that these sheltered accomadation places use for low maintenence gardening for there contracters and so last winter when there where hardly any weeds to be seen in any of them i went around them all with hoe & rake ( not able to use a spade or fork cos minute i lift leg up i topple over  ) this area being the biggest clear spot  approx 4 mtrs x 1mtr, in my infinate wisdom decided that this was going to be my " play at being an allotment holder plot  " in went several rows of garlic,onion sets,carrotts,parsnips,french beans and assorted salad crops,well unbeknown to me the whole of the bed was riddled with mares tail,i have a carpet covering every square cm which choked everything in it and garden contracters when they turn up only cut the hedge & grass at the front of the building and dont go near any of the beds,i was out for a short while yesterday with my friend jane but was a little week &wobbly but i managed to clear a seperate bed were i have my runner beans, area cleared was 2 mtrs square so was quite happy with what i acheived,all the time looking at my " mares tail bed " -- pitty this site didnt run a comp for that cos would be outright winner  cos of balance probs i dont lean over very well but have attempted grabbing a hand full but all that happens is the dam things snap and leave there root behind,i cannott dig it over and therefore remove the roots cos of aformentioned balance probs and if i dont remove it i will only have my containers which i split now 50/50 flower,s & veg and the one and only semi decent size bed i have is redundent, i also noticed it is a haven for slug,s the size of shetland ponies anyone think of a solution i,m sure there are many more disabled gardeners out there that cannot dig --- has anyone got a solution to help me " comence battle with the mares tail " 

[Dopey113]

I have read that the main roots are over 1 meter deep, so just pulling them wont work, you will have to bruise them to somehow get through the waxy coating and then sprat them with some weed killer

[simonwatson]

Just keep pulling it out as it appears. The roots are impossible to dig out as they go too deep. Glyphosate works when used multiple times. Scrunch the fern up in your hand and then spot treat it.

There used to be a product that works, Ammonium Sulfamate, but it has been withdrawn as a weedkiller and is now only available as a compost accelerant.

[savbo]

while I agree horsetail is hard to get rid of (I'm still working on it 3 years into the this plot, mostly by hoeing/pulling/digging), I am not getting wound up about it any more as I don't think it has much effect on crops - it takes its food from much deeper than the crops and doesn't really compete for light...

one line of attack not mentioned is to make sure your soil is on the limey side - horsetail allegedly prefers acid soils...

sav

[plot103]

I have horsetail all over my plot but I'm not actually finding it to be a big problem. I hoe it off every time I see it and it seems to be reducing slowly and it doesn't really appear to be affecting what I'm growing. I'm sure if I let it get out of hand, it would be more of a problem, though.

[Loftuz]

Hi peeps. New to this forum. I've got mates tail in my allotment quiet bad. As mentioned its a nightmare to get rid off. If left for a small period it soon gets out of hand. I've tried farmer grade round up, galup360 I think it's called with little effect. I've invested in a something called kibosh this year, give it a little go at the end of last season with promising results. Ill keep you updated with how I get on with it.

[DD.]

Thank you, Loftuz.

These have been mentioned before on the on the forums. These are licensed for professionals and we are but amateurs and do not have the licence to use them.

I need say no more, I hope.

[gavinjconway]

How about this DD... http://www.chemigro.co.uk/Professional-Use/Amenity/Pure-Reap.aspx

[DD.]

Have you read the "Important Notice" in red at the bottom of the page?

[Hamani]

There is currently nothing avaliable for home growers. And even the commercial ones need using every year, as they don't kill the seeds (which spready freely, and remail viable for upto 30 years).

Mares tale has been around for a long time, since the dinosuars. So its pretty tough. But it doesn't really out compete stuff. It seems happy to just pup up here and their. As long as you keep up with your weeding its not really any different from all the other annual weeds that come up year after year.

Also, as mentioned. The roots are much further down that you would ever dig, so by drying the tops out in the sun (to kill them) you can add these minerals to your compost. Its just about working with what you have, rather than trying to steralise everything.

- Gary.

[gavinjconway]

Have you read the "Important Notice" in red at the bottom of the page?

Just seen it...    

[DD.]

Have you read the "Important Notice" in red at the bottom of the page?

Just seen it...    

Always as well to read the whole page! 

[DD.]

There is currently nothing avaliable for home growers. And even the commercial ones need using every year, as they don't kill the seeds (which spready freely, and remail viable for upto 30 years).

Mares tale has been around for a long time, since the dinosuars. So its pretty tough. But it doesn't really out compete stuff. It seems happy to just pup up here and their. As long as you keep up with your weeding its not really any different from all the other annual weeds that come up year after year.

Also, as mentioned. The roots are much further down that you would ever dig, so by drying the tops out in the sun (to kill them) you can add these minerals to your compost. Its just about working with what you have, rather than trying to steralise everything.

- Gary.

Have a dig around the forums, Gary. We've said this since they've been going, it's nothing new, I'm sorry to say.

You're backing up Aunty's "Never let it see a Sunday", hoe, hoe, hoe.