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Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - Amelia Gabriel (7th Jul 2025 - 22:12:47) The Problem: Hampshire County Council uses glyphosate weedkiller on our pavements – a chemical that’s harmful to people, pets, and pollinators. But we can stop it before it starts! Liphook will be sprayed between 14th - 18th July, see map for roads that will be sprayed. The Solution: During the week of 7th - 13th July, spend just 30 minutes pulling up weeds on the pavement or roadside outside your house. The chemicals are only sprayed on the weeds directly so no weeds = no spray! Tell your friends and neighbours and see if you can clear your whole road before the sprayers! 💪 All it takes is a few minutes to pull up weeds outside your home. 🐝 Save the bees, butterflies and other pollinators. 👣 It keeps pavements safer for children and pets. 💚 It shows our community cares. 🐾 Every weed pulled is one less reason to spray harmful herbicides. Join the PULL POWER movement Share a selfie #pullpower

Re: Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - D (8th Jul 2025 - 11:48:50) Never mind the weeds cut the grass.

Re: Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - Alan (8th Jul 2025 - 12:25:54) Erles road has started the project 👍 This is a simple recipe for a homemade weedkiller which is amazingly effective. 1 litre of white vinegar (Amazon - 10L vinegar) 3 large tablespoons of salt 3 teaspoons of washing-up liquid. My wife only use one of salt and one of washing up and it seems to work. It produces a very cheap, effective and eco-friendly weed killer. Give it a try I'm sure you will be amazed.

Re: Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - Pete (8th Jul 2025 - 15:06:37) D - Could I suggest you take a look at the verge outside Radford park that has not been cut and the parched patches of grass on the opposite side of the road that have been and then give your honest opinion of which looks better.

Re: Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - Bush (8th Jul 2025 - 16:29:21) Quite a bit of nonsense further up this thread. A few correction facts worth baring in mind: 1) Glyphosate is safe on all animals, which includes pets, pollinators and humans. Additives to glyphosate vary from one commercial product to another, some are potentially hazardous. Enquire with the Council what additives we pay for. 2) Glyphosate is the best studied weed killer and those professional who use it are most familiar with it and its potential issues. Huge legal prosecutions repeatedly failing to show the harm in glyphosate. The topic has become political, emotional and ideological, no longer factual. New alternative weed killers involve unknown hazards. 3) Homemade weed killer would have components harmful to all living things and the environment. Salt and washing up liquid will kill earthworms and soil organisms which glyphosate will not! Any salt (including anti frost grit) will end up in the natural water table, harming life and degrading drinking water. Keep pulling weeds and keep calm

Re: Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - Sam (8th Jul 2025 - 17:39:06) Grass doesn’t need cut unless it’s a safety issue, need to get away from this idea someone has to burn petrol to trim nature so that we like how nicely ordered it is… Nature very good at sorting itself out, let it grow and let the insects etc enjoy it, we are all in for poisons here, the difference in what gets splatted on your window in Europe v in the uk is worrying, here there is barely an insect left, over in Europe you stop every few hundred miles to scrape them off. Not to mention this country is broke, easing back on pointless stuff like cutting grass for looks alone is a cost am sure the councils could do without

Re: Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - D (8th Jul 2025 - 19:23:30) Pete, never mind how pretty it looks, where I am the uncut verges are a definite motoring hazard when pulling out of a side road. Still, if there's an accident tonight we all know they will be cut first thing tomorrow morning.

Re: Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - Bush (8th Jul 2025 - 19:30:26) This topic that could (should) be a matter of fact is bound to turn ideological, political and emotional. Environmentalism is not the same as ecology. Environmentalism is an ideological movement that is fuelled by negative emotions, and is not necessarily scientific. Environmentalists claim they are on the good side of ecology, whilst their arguments are often overly simplistic and baseless. See Sam's comment above. He's already managed to turn this into a socioeconomic Brexit issue... Keep pulling out weeds, stay calm

Re: Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - Question 9 (9th Jul 2025 - 09:58:47) Dam you have pulled me in yet again editor..... Have worked in the horticulture industry for three decades and have advised DEFRA informally on several areas in our sector. Forgive me if I bore you into submission, but below are the current facts on the subject. As always a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. Amella: I congratulate you on promoting of weed removal in any location. But would remind you a weed is a plant and your definition of a weed may be someone else's plant. Gylyphastate is a systemic weedkiller which means on contact with living plant it will be absorbed and taken to the root, so the weed is killed completely. If it rains within six hour of application, ie before the plant has absorbed it is useless. Glyphasate becomes inert virtually on contact with soil.It is only with repeated use over a short period of time will effect the soil. Several councils have used natural fatty acids as an alternative, but is not cost effective and simply remove the green and the plant/ weed grows back. (Notably Brighton & Hove, who are a Green lead council and research on the subject in Bristol). It is not harmful to people, pets or pollinators, if used responsibly.. Monsanto and now Bayer, who purchsed the AI have been taken to court in the USA. The only successful cases are as a result of prolonged exposure.in California ie the people who are applying the active on a day to day basis, week in week out. Alan: Useful tips but Bush is correct, the use of salt and particularly vinegar works (later only use at 5% for moss removal), but will destroy the microbes in the soil which are key to nutrient transition to the plant. The bigger issue is the use of synthetic fertilisers, this is why regenerative farming is gaining momentum. The difficulty we have is the vested interests, political lobbying and length of time it takes to see increased yields in the farm. But after the volatility of of Fert prices over recent years, farmers are wising up to the corporate mutli-nationals. But it is their income and will take time. If your interested watch 'Kiss the Soil' on netflix. Sorry to bore you all with the facts and current thinking and not clip bate from an NGO or vested interest.

Re: Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - Pete (9th Jul 2025 - 15:50:45) D - Whilst I appreciate what you are saying reference traffic junctions I find that in common with most things in the world today everything is so black and white, either it all gets cut or nothing does. A coherent plan whereby grass that obstructs vision at a junction is cut but where possible it is left to its natural cycle would be ideal, sadly I dont see this happening in a world where everything is left or right, black or white, fast or slow with nothing inbetween. Its not about being pretty, although I personally think the uncut verges can look great, but more about trying to do just a little good for the natural world that we have systematically devestated.

Re: Reducing the need for weedkiller in Liphook - AR (9th Jul 2025 - 18:22:42) Pete is so right. Just cut grass at the junctions, no need to spend money else where. A few years ago in the Station Rd car park I watched a council worker spend about an hour just blowing leaves randomly around only for the wind to take them off again. We really only have ourselves to blame. The system is broken.

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