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-----Original
Message----- I sheet mulched it with
cardboard and newspaper in the spring. By the time it emerges mid summer, most
of the oomph is taken out of it and it becomes a nice green ground cover and
doesn't have enough energy to twine up the plants. Other places it has been
shaded out. I have never seen it grow vigorously under plants like comfrey and
rhubarb. It also prefers compacted
soil (according to an article I read about it). Once the soil is cushy and
soft, it is easy to pull. Digging & cultivating also propagates it. We
don’t' dig we only fork which lifts the roots out better Good luck! The above fits what I’ve noticed farming. Don’t plow
it! Always clean off machinery of bindweed before moving to another field. It likes compacted ground, too. I
recall Bill cardboard sheet mulching with straw in the Texas panhandle years
ago at our once Panhandle permaculture group at Mary Ememy’s Maybe
Scott was there?? Shading it out, not letting it get sun has got to be bad for it, but Bushland, Tx USDA
advises one to plow, even on certain times of the moon. But, anyone could figure that’s bad for tilth. So, in an effort to always think of uses for bales,
Arina, what about spreading the mini-bales on the ground solid, possibly laying cardboard, then poking holes thru the
cardboard into the bales and planting a viney crop. Better yet, I could place viney seeds (or grass, etc), into
the bales, then they could be watered
like a Chia pet? Unfortunately, I can’t make bales with string, only wire, so it would be best to
remove the wires, first. But viney plants usually only take one to four seeds per six foot hill, but I’m
thinkin’! Austrian Winter Peas could be placed in the bales, in conjunction, as well. I might use the Chia bale idea
with grass for when land around pipelines or highways is replanted, grinding and blowing the straw mulch and seeds thru
the special mulching machine. Same for strawberries. Sorry for getting off topic a little and beating my on drum….. Mike |