# Need help Getting rid of thistles!



## nvr2many (Jan 18, 2011)

I believe it is weedmaster that will kill them but not the grass. Crossbow will kill blackberries. I think I have that right.


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## SaddleStrings (May 15, 2012)

Hmmm, I'll have to see if I can pick some up around here. We used to never have thistles, but last year and this year they (thistles) have made their way into out yard and are flourishing, grrrr! Such as pain!


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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

To kill them on the spot, mix 3 parts vinegar & 1 part salt and a few tablespoon (or less for small amounts) of dishsoap. Spray on the thistles when the weather is dry & hot, they will die within hours. I had acres of those horrible big scotch thistles, I pulled them all out in the spring before they got green, the frost just came out the ground & I could yank the whole root system. They never came back in full force, I spot treat with that mixture now, it is not poisonous to animals.


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## SaddleStrings (May 15, 2012)

Thank you waresbear! I need something non toxic to use in my goat's pen, so that will be the remedy I'll use!


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

I'm also on a gardening forum and we discuss weeds, too-of COURSE!
All solutions above work. Use them ALL. Be patient. Your end goal is eliminate as many as possible from the property. *Any that go to seed will produce more, so do this, if nothing else.* If you're strapped for time, just cut them as low as possible or just cut the flowers off with a pruner. I've even had some success take a spade and digging down about 6 inches and cutting them with the shovel, too, but you should have dirt ready to fill in the hole it creates.
Those that you don't allow to reproduce in 2012 will reduce the number in 2013. Good luck bc it's a battle.
IMO, I avoid using any herbicides. Your horse, cat, dog or chicken--we have them all at MY house--could get sick from them. Plus, I'm allergic to them ALL.


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

i may have to try the vinegar. I do know that where my water softener and nitrate remover disharge water stops weeds, but if i move the spot where it runs, the weeds are back in month or so. and that is very salty water. 
I use weed killers as there are miles of barren land near me, so the wind always blows in weed seeds. My worst are a thistle, small purple type, and mustard.


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