i have used this for three years now and find it quite effective. if you don't put it on when the forsythia is in bloom, howver, forget it. and don't put it on flower beds, or where you expect other desirable seeds to germinate, because they won't! good on grass, though. also provides a nice dose of nitrogen. ---------- >From: Ericka <[log in to unmask]> >To: [log in to unmask] >Subject: Re: Crab grass >Date: Sun, Apr 8, 2001, 12:45 PM > >> In Saturday's DM Register, there is an article about crab grass. According >> to the article, corn gluten meal, a corn milling by-product, inhibts root >> growth of crab grass, dandelion, plantain, lambsquarter and other weeds. >> Additional information can be found on the Web at www.hort.iastate.edu >> >> Has anyone heard of this or tried it? >> >> Jane Clark > > I haven't seen the DMR article & was unable to access the website this > morning, but yes, I've heard of it - it's worked for people I've spoken to > who have tried it, but only in a pre-emergence application. > > In one's garden it can remain viable for a time and kill the plants you WANT > to grow, so it's preferable for lawn treatment or mulched areas around > established shrubbery as opposed to flower, herb or vegetable beds. > > (If you harvest and eat your young dandelions &/or lamb's quarters you'd > want to do carefully targeted applications on your crab grass spots.) > > As far as I know, Certified Organic growers cannot use it unless it's > Certified Organic corn gluten (ie: grown and processed without applied or > systemic herbicide/insecticide residue, Bt genetic or other GE residue), and > whether such a thing exists is a good question... the OMRI website would be > the place to check if they have tested and listed it. > > Four years ago it was available at feed stores at a much lower price than > the brand-name packaged variety that came from the only company that > somehow controlled this particular use of corn gluten. (Ie: other companies > could sell it, but not advertised as or in packaging labeled for WEED > CONTROL.) This situation may be different now. > > Ericka > > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > To get off the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to: > [log in to unmask] - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - For SC email list T-and-C, send: GET TERMS-AND-CONDITIONS.CURRENT to [log in to unmask]