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Old March 14, 2011   #1
Seth Williamson
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Default What to do with plant matter?

It has always seemed to me that, rather than throwing away weeds, or stems from last year's tomatoes, it makes more sense to plow them under or turn them under the soil more or less in place and plant over them.

My reasoning is that any plant -- weed or otherwise -- takes nutrients from the soil, so if you pull it up and throw it away, you're removing from the soil the nutrients used to build the plant.

I have a couple of friends who disagree vehemently and always throw away last year's stems, weeds, etc. I am not an expert gardener, of tomatoes or anything else, and I base my opinion on my understanding of the basic science involved. Then again, I'm not a scientist either.

I'm sure there are many here who can tell me if I'm right, or if I'm mistaken. Would love to get an expert opinion on this.

Seth Williamson
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Old March 14, 2011   #2
RayR
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You are right, but you are better off composting them. Burying them slows down the process of decay because they are cut off from much of the oxygen needed.
Tomatoes are iffy, If they have any diseases, throw them out in the garbage.
Many weeds and grasses if buried will just sprout new growth from the buried roots and pop back up again.
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Old March 15, 2011   #3
BigBrownDogHouse
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RayR View Post
Many weeds and grasses if buried will just sprout new growth from the buried roots and pop back up again.
You said it! I don't like the idea of digging under weeds. Their seeds will sprout right back up again next season.
For me, weeds go in the weed bucket!
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Old March 15, 2011   #4
Seth Williamson
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I understand your point, but re-sprouting weeds have never been an issue with me. I have mostly used either raised beds or Earthboxes, and any weed that dares to poke its head above dirt is immediately pulled (and pushed under again). I just hate the idea of losing the organic building blocks that went into the making of the weed.
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Old March 15, 2011   #5
creister
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Seth,

Turnig soil causes weed growth from seeds that lay on top of the soil. When you turn them under, then they have the opportunity to germinate.

As a no-till (also controversial) cover cropper, what I do is cut down the cover crop, which is basically weeds, and just smother with a layer of mulch, much like lasagna composting.
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Old March 15, 2011   #6
hill60
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If the weeds haven't produced flowers or seed head they should be OK to turn under. We pull and leave them for the sun to bake then. Weeds take over in short order if they've been left to flower.
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Old March 15, 2011   #7
travis
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I think you're ahead of the game when you identify and remove weeds and tomato debris that can overwinter tomato diseases. The rest can go into compost or direct surface mulch, in my opinion. A good layer of clean mulch should smother most weed seeds.
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