Killing weeds with a flame-thrower

Bricriu

I don't use Round-up as it has been deemed carcinogenic, so I got a flame-thrower to deal with weeds in my stone-chip yard.

It works ok, but has to be done regularly.

Has anybody who uses a flame-thrower got advice for best time of year to use it/best type of day (hot or cold day)/other treatments to use in conjunction with it, etc?

Thanks.

GrumpyMe

Expensive, in time and money, way of partially killing a weed. Attach a blade instead of a gas canister to the wand and just cut the top off the weed. Like the burner it "has to be done regularly".

elperello

Is it attached to a Calor gas cylinder or is it the type with small cylinder?

looksee

I have found burning a waste of time, it takes ages for each weed and only burns the top off.

Bricriu

Elperollo,

It's a lomg 'wand' type attached to a cylinder of Propane.

Bricriu

elperello

The type of burner used for roofing felt with a long orange hose attached to a domestic gas cylinder is the most effective and economical.
If you just burn off the top the deeply rooted weeds will grow again. If you take a bit longer with the stubborn ones you will effectively cook them in situ and they won't grow back.
Burning is a viable alternative if you are worried about herbicide use but it is of course using energy.
Other alternatives include pulling and using a selection of hoes and scrapers for different situations.
In a gravel yard if you put in an extra layer of gravel it makes the weeds easier to pull.

my3cents

One of the best units I've used is the Sheen Flame Gun expensive to buy but cheap to run on paraffin. Still think that a dose of roundup is the best solution and that the EC haven't listed glyphosate as being carcinogenic.

paddylonglegs

I guess the reason they are taking so long to burn is because there is water inside the plant.

Could you find an environmentally friendly weed killer, wait for them to die and go brown, then they would burn easily?

my3cents

OP one thing I found was that its best to do the job twice. If you give the weeds a once over one day without individually trying to vapourise each and everyone you will find they burn really quickly if you then give them another go a few days later. The first go tends to kill the top parts without wasting fuel then the second go burns off the now dried up weeds.

Shrubsandsudz

I works using other methods for me in my market garden, but I keep the ground covered with landscape fabric beforehand to let weed seed germinate, the I uncover and burn and plant my seed. Itlets them get a head start before the weeds come back....which they fecking will. You won't win - plain and simple. Roundup is just a more expensive lesson. Instead I'm gonna harvest my nettles and make tea - for the garden - for me to drink (nice btw) and put it in the soap I make.

Problem, action, solution!