Vinegar: The effective weedkiller
By Rita T. Dela Cruz
BAR today – April –June 2002
Vinegar is part of every household’s kitchen but did you know that this sour-tasting liquid is an effective herbicide for organic farming?
This is the major finding of a study conducted by Jay Radhakrishnan, John Teasdale and Ben Coffman, researchers from the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) the principal scientific research agency of the US Department of Ariculture (USDA). Although, a few farmers have already been using natural agents like baking soda, garlic and vinegar as herbicide, there were really no scientific studies to back-up that these agents are effective. Thus, scientists from ARS conducted greenhouse and field researches to determine the effectiveness of vinegar as herbicide.
To conform to organic farming standards, the scientist used vinegar derived from fruits (grapes and apples) or grains (malt). Naturally processed vinegar is produced by rotting the fruits or the grains under an anaerobic or “no-oxygen condition”. Through fermentation, the sugars from these plant sources are converted to alcohol and carbon dioxide. Through oxidation, the alcohol reacts with air to form vinegar.
Vinegar that is prepared from plants sources contains 5% acetic acid, a pungent, colorless acid, which is basically the main component of vinegar. Continue reading “Organic Weed Killer”