Environmentally Friendly

[Jim]

Spot spraying herbicides isn't always possible. We've had a very windy, wet spring which has made it difficult & in some situations, like in the middle of a garden, it's just impossible. But some weeds are about impossible to dig up completely, too.

I wanted a way of delivering a bit of herbicide directly to a weed without touching the good plants around it & couldn't find anything I liked online or in stores, so I made my own. I call it my Round Up Stick.

I started with an old 1/4" supply line I'd cut off a toilet years ago. Why it was still kicking around in my plumbing toolbox is kind of a mystery, but there it was, a bit of 1/4" line with a CPVC cap. So, I attached it to a 4' piece of 1/2" CPVC & threaded a piece of 1/4" nylon rope into it. Pouring water into the pipe let it drip off the end of the rope. Not quite controlled enough, so I drilled out a rubber faucet washer & shoved in on to the rope & that cut down the amount of liquid that could go through it, so it keeps it wet, but not dripping. Then I added a cap to the far end to keep the liquid from spilling out.

Now I mix up 50-50 Round Up or similar herbicide & have a magic killing wand. I can touch the leaves of weeds such as mint, dandelions, dock, ash/elm trees, or other long rooted weeds & kill them in place without digging up good plants or having any overspray kill them off. It works great, too.

[Jaye]

Jim wrote: "Spot spraying herbicides isn't always possible. We've had a very windy, wet spring which has made it difficult & in some situations, like in the middle of a garden, it's just impossible. But som..."

wow, this thread was interesting to read through.
I wish I was as handy as you Jim (being able to rig that herbicide applicator.
I've got poison ivy and bittersweet coming up everywhere since I let a lot of the property go back to nature where I used to mow. I actually prefer it this way to the way it used to be. The amount of birds has increased dramatically, as have the insects. It's much more interesting around here, except for the damn poison ivy and bittersweet.

Does anyone know what type of gloves can be used when pulling the poison ivy? Ones that won't leak through, or tear. Right now I've got poison ivy winding its way through a pine type bush right next to the front steps. Having had a good dose of poison ivy I've let it go far too long and now it's really scarey.

[Jim]

Sorry, no. I don't get poison ivy so I just pull it by hand. Marg gets it horribly, so she sprays it with Round Up or 2-4-D with a squirt bottle. The overspray does kill other things, though.

[Jim]

From the Atlantic: Your AirPods Will Die Soon
The surprisingly short life of new electronic devices
https://www.theatlantic.com/technolog...

This article doesn't mention anything new to me, but I'm glad it's out there. Maybe it will finally get some people to question if electric cars really are better.

Most lithium-ion batteries contain cobalt, which is often mined in terrible conditions in the developing world.

There is no such thing as a free lunch. The problems with using oil are well documented, but there are costs for every other method of generating power too & we need to keep them in mind.

Chris rattled off a few other things he uses daily that have irreplaceable batteries—his wireless mouse, also purchased from Apple, and his Bluetooth speaker, for example. “It feels like we’re moving in this direction of having all these things, and there’s no way to fix them,” he said.

Seriously? Manufacturers jumped on this over 50 years ago. It's called conspicuous consumption, the basis of our economy. I've hated it for years. I grew up on a self-supporting farm where we fixed or recycled everything we possibly could. I still do it today, mostly because I'm cheap & like to tinker with things.

Years ago, I had a Sony ereader & I tried replacing the battery. I think it was about $40 to try with uncertain results. Opening the case could easily cut a ribbon cable (proprietary & pretty much irreplaceable) & the warnings about how to avoid this were good. I opened the case without cutting it, but while putting it back together, something didn't fit quite right & I wound up slicing the ribbon as I opened it again. Time & money down the drain. I had to buy a new ereader. I looked for one with a replaceable battery, but none that fit the other specs I wanted had one.