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Dead Grass
Soil Building and Fertility
Dead Grass
Natural non-selective herbicide alternative to assist the control of weeds
Dead Grass is an organic, fast, non-selective weed killer developed to assist the control of weeds on farms, lifestyle blocks, orchards and homes. It is not a systemic killer, rather a knock down meaning the plant could grow back again and require a respray.
With our own farm being organic it was really important to create something compatible with our ethos of healing, preserving and assisting the soil - alongside protecting the waterways and the life within the environment at large.
Gorse And Blackberry - It turns out that Dead Grass is extremely effective on gorse, blackberry, onehunga weed and prickly plants. For gorse and blackberry - by fertilising the soil you will be changing the environment to one that those plants don't like so much and we have certainly gotten rid of gorse by simply fertilising and then getting the animals to push in (because the grass is so much nicer to eat underneath). But for instant gratification spray with Dead Grass as well. Gorse will turn a ghostly grey/white colour and blackberry will turn a burnt black. But with blackberry there is no point spraying it until late summer when the leaves have lost their vibrant green colour.
A note about Kikuyu grass - it is a sod! Not much kills it - apart from changing the environment in which it is so happy to thrive in. And that means improving the fertility of the soil, rather than squirting the plant. So this is what we suggest: 1. Fertilise the ground with our Garden Blend 2. Spray with Dead Grass 3. Cover with old carpet When Kikuyu is being the bully in the pasture it is very effective to fertilise with our custom bulk blend, thus improving the fertility. The kikuyu is 'sweetened' and the animals will graze it better. As the other plants grow up the kikuyu stops being the bully and just gets eaten up with everything else in the pasture.
So you can see that changing the environment through fertilisation with our blends is a major part of a successful strategy for weed suppression and control.
20L Each
NZ$150.00 (incl. GST)
Product Details
Read more about this product
Product Overview
Dead Grass is a non selective weed killer. It is acetic acid based, and we have developed a couple of secret sauces to potentiate it so the weeds suffer while the soil biome is protected and supported. (That aspect is VERY important to us).
Dead Grass is very fast acting (instant gratification when you see results only 24 hours later).
Dead Grass is organic and totally natural and biodegradable.
Dead Grass is not systemic & contains no hormones.
Dead Grass comes as a concentrate. You dilute with water.
Dead Grass leaves no eco-toxic residues neither is aqua-toxic.
Directions for use
How To Use Dead Grass
- Mix it up 1 part Dead Grass with 4 parts of water in your sprayer (or 200ml made up to 1 litre).
- On a hot, dry day (over 20 degrees), spray the foliage.
- You will see the plant wither and curl up. The weed is tricked into sucking the Dead Grass into the leaves and stem thus drinking it in. Photosynthesis is inhibited. (Gorse is especially interesting – it goes a bleached colour and soft). Death to the weed!
- Dead Grass will eat the rubbers on your spray gear so it is really important to wash out the sprayer with warm, soapy water. Be thorough.
- Check on your efforts the next day!
How to apply Dead Grass
The best time is on a hot sunny day (20 degrees) with no rain on the horizon. Spray the foliage fully. For well established weeds a second application. A respray may be necessary for the parts of the plant that haven’t emerged at the time of the first spray.
How about Dead Grass on grass and lawns?
You can completely spray out your lawn if you wish – useful for prickles (Onehunga weed). The prickles will be hit and the grass will pop through instead. If you wish to put down grass seed this is safe as soon as you have finished spraying. Otherwise spot spray the weeds. Kikuya/twitch/couch type grasses will burn off but will come back so you may need to keep spraying it. We highly recommend the use of our Garden Blend to change up the fertility of the soil. If you have these nuisance grasses it is because your soil suits them and changing that is more effective than ‘squirting the plant’. (We have a solution for Kikuyu grass on farms and orchards – it involves fertility and grazing.)
How does Dead Grass organic weedkiller work?
Being a contact herbicide with a secret sauce or two, the plant will drink the Dead Grass in and instantly regret it. The acetic acid has been potentiated so the burn effect on the leaf is strong and cellular structure is broken down within. With no photosynthesis able to happen, the weed dies quickly. With no residue in the soil, you can go ahead and re-seed or not be concerned about plants growing nearby. But it is best to shield the plants you do want to keep and not spray on a windy day.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Dead Grass safe around animals?
Absolutely
Is Dead Grass organic?
It is. Every component is classified as organic but we haven’t put it through the certification process – so it is organic but not certified organic. We wouldn’t have developed it if it wasn’t organic.
Can I use Dead Grass around trees?
Yes – around the base is no problem but as it works by contact you won’t want to get it onto leaves.
Why use Dead Grass?
Because it is safe for the health of people, animals and soil. Our ethos at Ecofarm Aotearoa is to promote health and that is done through the environment – which is where the nutrition comes from. When current herbicidal options have an overwhelming effect on harming health that is firmly supported by studies, it is important to have a healthy option that is safer around the home and farm. The soil contains ‘good bugs’ that do a great job in the soil of creating a healthy nutritious soil and current sprays kill them. Dead Grass is proven to protect the soil biome while, at the same time destroy the weed that you have sprayed it on. Any spray drift is not dangerous for the user either. It is a bit pungent, but not dangerous. We are not trying to copy the effects of glyphosate (Roundup) – that dead dirt/scorched earth look. So if you want those awful dead circles under trees, Dead Grass will not provide that. Grass will grow back!
What is the active ingredient in Dead Grass?
Dead Grass is acetic acid based and we have developed a couple of secret sauces to potentiate it, along with supporting the soil biome too. With our farm being organic it is really important to use something compatible.
What is the dilution rate of Dead Grass?
1l Dead Grass with 4l (1:4) water to give you 100l of spray – so a 20l container will go a fair way.
Gorse and Blackberry: Dead Grass will clobber gorse. The rate of 1 part DG with 4 parts water. To be used on a fine, sunny day. 20 degrees HOT. (For blackberry, DG won’t work in the spring. You need to be late summer when the leaves are not so young and green, and remember – a hot, dry day).
Both weeds are indicating a serious lack of silica in the soil – all prickly weeds are there to bring silica to the soil. So while they are weeds, they are actually doing a job. So….. if you provide the soil with the silica, you will make them redundant and as we have found on the farm, the places where we can get the spreader are weed free. It is clear that the places that are too hard to drive over with the tractor and spreader are not as fertile and that is where the gorse has a job to do – so it goes away. (A neighbouring farm uses chemicals and herbicides on their farm every year and every year the thistles come up in glorious abundance. But they don’t come through the boundary fence. The long term answer is to correct the soil).
Silica is part of the system we blend to achieve the correction. It is fertiliser that gives long term satisfaction! (And probably more cost effective).
Having said that using the Dead Grass will give you instant gratification and where it has been used specifically over gorse plants, they just don’t come back.
Dead Grass comes in 20l, 200l and 1000l – please enquire regarding these larger sizes. For use in cropping please call us! There is a procedure to use and the rather neat thing is that it doesn’t waste time, money, product or diesel. 😊
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