Unless something has changed in the past couple of years, Round-up taken up through roots has no effect on anything.
I've heard it is an endocrine disruptor, and I don't know how it got into the test subjects' systems. Don't consume it directly - in unreasonable volumes it is poisonous, but it's not poisoning the earth.
I sprayed canadian thistles when the flower buds were still tight. Roundup will kill the thistles if sprayed at that time. Sad to say I also sprayed a few wild blackberries in the fall. How long will Crossbow contaminate the spot? I want to grow potatoes and raspberries in this spot (40by75 ft) Pat
The research on Round-Up is mixed. The research from Monsanto says it's perfectly safe! Imagine that!
Research from independent studies has shown other negative factors that I've read about, but it sounded like the amount of research is limited and we don't really know the effects yet. The problem with the large number of new chemicals introduced by industry is that we won't really know the effects of them for years, after which they will have introduced numerous other chemicals, which we know even less about. Buyer beware.
John S
PDX OR
Be aware that our rivers, lakes and the oceans are accumulating all the various chemicals of our society -- ag chemicals, industrial chemicals (from run-off, permitted dumping, or condensed air pollutants), all the chemicals in all the items of our households, gasoline/transportation chemicals, our medicines that are flushed down the toilet, etc., etc. What we will never be able to predict are the chemical by-products that are occurring when these myriad compounds react/interact with each other and all the naturally occurring animal, vegetable and minerals substances.
To put it into perspective look at where the BP's Deep Water Horizon well was in relation to the mouth of the Mississippi River (and thus the entire Mississippi River system watershed). Add some solar energy and cook !!!
Good, if volatile questions, Pat. I battle Canadian thistles yearly… but instead of spraying them with Roundup I either mow, ‘weed eat’ or dig them from the garden with a shovel (though never getting the roots). I’d hack them before they set seed, then have a talk with whichever neighbor’s letting them do just that…
I don’t personally fear Roundup but hesitate to use it directly on my vegetable garden plots, though I battled some Morning glory with it last summer ... spot-spraying with a hand-held spray bottle.
Roundup appears to be a waste of time on Himalayan Blackberries as that’s a job for Crossbow. But my method was/is to remove the bulk of the living berry canes by hand (or bull dozer), then ‘spot spray’ Crossbow using a back-pack sprayer as new growth emerges. It may take several years to finally kill the fist-size root balls of those Himalayans, or, you can hand dig them. But I never spray Crossbow near ground being used for food production … just my take on the stuff. I feel its toxic residue is too long lasting to chance its uptake into eatable produce.
I’ve removed acres of Blackberries; had it been a ‘large lot,’ I’d have dug them by hand to avoid any contamination to potential food producing soil.
both roundup and crossbow are systemic agents. The plant has to take the liquid into the leaves and then it travels down to the roots. Both of these herbicides inter the foliage so removing foliage IMHO before application reduces the up take of the herbicide.
Canadian Thistles and Himalayan Blackberries, store their energy in the soil and have enough reserve to withstand a single application of most herbicides. The Rhizomes (lateral runners) underground tend to survive digging, mowing, pulling, burning, spraying and the like. Persistence will prevail as I keep telling myself. LOL
How long will herbicides last before I can re plant? reading the label is the #1 place to look for that information. another place is npic.orst.edu/
Randy
As others have said, I don't think we'll know about the actual consequences (or not) of using Round-up for some years. In the past I have gotten rid of both Himalayan blackberries and English ivy using Round-up. I first cut them down & dug out what roots I could find. Then when they re-emerged (as of course they will) I sprayed the new growth with Round-up in a hand-held spray bottle. Blackberries required 2-3 applications. Ivy maybe 5 or 6. Very carefully controlled applications on the smallest new growth, so as not to spread it all over the place. I'd prefer never to use the stuff--blackberries and ivy are so far my only exceptions.
Idyllwild
simplepress
jafar
Marsha H
Viron
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