Best Crop of Thistles

steveR

Member
Mixed Farmer
Definitely weed wipe

Only effective way if you want to keep clover, and with fertiliser prices where they are, who doesn't?

Spent many an hour running over thistles with the topper. I've a field that took 3 years to be rid of them, and while the diesel was (then) far cheaper than spraying and over sowing clover, it's tedious!

Bought a lovely used weed wiper, and revolutionised the job 👍
Yep, graze really hard, then weed wipe the nice long, proud thistle stems.
 

Stw88

Member
Location
Northumberland
These creepers wernt a fan of thistlex. They seam to be everywhere this year.
80C88A07-F6F0-4AAB-939B-E65B740A42F8.jpeg
 
wait until mid july before cutting....the plant will be at maximum effort by then.......cut it to exhaust it,,,, then repeat early october before frost tells the plant to send nutrition back to roots.....any spray that kills thistles will kill your clover
Top in may,back in the hay
Top in June is a month too soon
Top in July they lay down and die
I've been saying this for years but no-one listens!
My father used to cut them too early and they went vegetative. Nothing more satisfying than a good cloud of thistle down. knowing you will do them serious damage.
 

toquark

Member
I've always had a few corners with creeping thistles which I've sprayed or topped depending on what was handy at the time, but this year seems to be particularly bad. I actually just spot sprayed the worst of them the other day with glypho. The worst is an old PP field which is going to be reseeded next year, I'll probably end up with the same as the OP.
 

spin cycle

Member
Location
north norfolk
I've been saying this for years but no-one listens!
My father used to cut them too early and they went vegetative. Nothing more satisfying than a good cloud of thistle down. knowing you will do them serious damage.

well at least there's two of us 😁 ...it does take a lotta balls to wait for the 'down' but it's the point at which the plant is most exhausted and vulnerable
 

farmerm

Member
Location
Shropshire
Same here...


View attachment 1041534

...had a pipeline through here and after we reseeded it got these :banghead:
Topped them. Nearly needed the chainsaw for the biggest of them :facepalm:
How many acres? Those spear thistles don't come back if you slice them off at ground level with a spade but they can try throw up another seed head if only topped. Slice easy in May but by June you can be getting tough. 10 minutes would do that patch but then again you might have 40ac behind the camera...
 

Forkdriver

Member
Livestock Farmer
After 25 years organic I have less thistles than when I was conventional.
I have more issue pulling ragwort coming from the roadsides and horse paddocks than my neighbours get from my thistle seed ;)
Pulling ragwort doesn't work, as all the roots spring back. You need to get the roots out with a fork. Then follow up with glyphosate spot treatments when it comes back again. I have several t shirts for this at our old place. The stw next door was a constant reservoir of reseeding.
 

Jonp

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Gwent
How many acres? Those spear thistles don't come back if you slice them off at ground level with a spade but they can try throw up another seed head if only topped. Slice easy in May but by June you can be getting tough. 10 minutes would do that patch but then again you might have 40ac behind the camera...
When I walk the fields and see spear thistles I kick them off at ground level with the toe of my boot. They don't tend to come back in the same spot. It's good therapy👺 and saves humping a spade around.
 

farmerm

Member
Location
Shropshire
When I walk the fields and see spear thistles I kick them off at ground level with the toe of my boot. They don't tend to come back in the same spot. It's good therapy👺 and saves humping a spade around.
I do with odd ones but my boots would fall apart with that number in the photo plus they are getting to the size that they can inflict spikes before ones boot strikes
 

farmerm

Member
Location
Shropshire
Pulling ragwort doesn't work, as all the roots spring back. You need to get the roots out with a fork. Then follow up with glyphosate spot treatments when it comes back again. I have several t shirts for this at our old place. The stw next door was a constant reservoir of reseeding.
I am not convinced all that many roots shoot back if pulled well.
 

yellowbelly

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
N.Lincs
How many acres? Those spear thistles don't come back if you slice them off at ground level with a spade but they can try throw up another seed head if only topped. Slice easy in May but by June you can be getting tough. 10 minutes would do that patch but then again you might have 40ac behind the camera...
About 5 acres :facepalm:

Mowed 'em as close to the ground as I could - not walked it since but just driving past, it looks to have done a good job 🤞

The other side of the pipeline fence, there's hardly a thistle. Disturbing the soil has obviously triggered off seeds that have been dormant for years.

 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

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Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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