Best Crop of Thistles

Agrivator

Member
I think the OP has an infestation of burr thistle (sometimes known as Scotch thistle). They are biennials and only spread by seeding. I suspect that seeds mixtures often contain them, even though seeds-men will dispute that.

They are completely different from creeping thistles which are perennials, Creeping thistles spread by underground roots and hardly ever spread by seeds. Most of the seeds are sterile, which is good job because otherwise the whole country would be covered in them.

Burr thistles are easy to kill. Wack them off at ground level with a no. 6 golf club, or spray with a clover safe herbicide. But do it when they are in the vegetative stage and before they are coming into flower, because even dying or wilted burr thistles with flower heads will produce viable seeds. In fact, they seem to have an ability to accelerate the formation of seed heads and thistle down if they a prematurely killed.

Is it still advised to wait until evening before spraying where you want to preserve clover - when the clover leaves have turned inwards and catch less spray. Or have I spent too much time in the sun?
 
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neilo

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Montgomeryshire
Is it still advised to wait until evening before spraying where you want to preserve clover - when the clove leaves have turned inwards and catch less spray. Or have I spent too much time in the sun?

My agronomist suggested that a couple of years ago, and it seems almost sensible. In reality though, the herbicide still wiped out the clover. :(
 
I can't win with you people. 'Reseeded this field for the first time in 30 years'.... goes and puts clover in...

I can't make this any more simple. Avoid grass to grass reseeding and if you do put in a new ley, spray the newly emerged grass with polo and hurler when it is young.

But no, you'd rather go topping and burn diesel at £1 a litre or whack em with golf clubs.

Anyway, with an infestation like that, I'd be topping them all down, waiting for them to all hit the correct stage of growth and probably going with forefront. Hopefully the expensive arsh-slapping cost would remind me of my folly should I ever ben tempted to try it a second time.

Clover safe sprays on thistles like that would be as much use as a bucket of day old pish on a bonfire.
 

puppet

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
sw scotland
90% reseeding round here is grass to grass. That field was actually sprayed off 2020, rape, sprayed off again last summer and sown with grass. Another 20 acres field at least as old but regularly cut we did straight to grass and it has only 3 thistles per acre and plenty clover.
Anyway, fuel was only £5 an acre so will hold off the sprays just yet
 
I can't win with you people. 'Reseeded this field for the first time in 30 years'.... goes and puts clover in...

I can't make this any more simple. Avoid grass to grass reseeding and if you do put in a new ley, spray the newly emerged grass with polo and hurler when it is young.

But no, you'd rather go topping and burn diesel at £1 a litre or whack em with golf clubs.

Anyway, with an infestation like that, I'd be topping them all down, waiting for them to all hit the correct stage of growth and probably going with forefront. Hopefully the expensive arsh-slapping cost would remind me of my folly should I ever ben tempted to try it a second time.

Clover safe sprays on thistles like that would be as much use as a bucket of day old pish on a bonfire.
ahem,
day old pish works fine in large enough quantities...... Portaloo, bucket, huzza!
 

Kevtherev

Member
Location
Welshpool Powys
Spot spraying with red diesel suddenly looks an attractive (although probably a frowned on ) alternative 😱
Fire up the sheen gun wonder how much paraffin is now?
(Also very good for cyclists apparently)
309261A5-5E0D-4F18-93EA-1D8B760BC3CF.jpeg
 

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