Homemade Selective Herbicides

Vinegar

• One homemade herbicide that works to kill weeds is vinegar. Even white vinegar, which contains mostly water and just 5 percent actual vinegar, can kill weeds such as the giant foxtail or the Canadian thistle. Simply spray the leaves of the weeds with vinegar directly so that the leaves dry up and wither. If the weeds are older and more established, pour the vinegar around the base of the plant. Because vinegar contains acetic acid, it creates a soil environment in which weeds simply cannot thrive.

Soap

• An herbicidal soap is yet another option for a homemade selective herbicide. You can create an herbicidal soap by combining a gallon of water with a couple of teaspoons of dishwashing liquid. Spray a weed, especially a seedling, with the soap, and watch the weed turn brown. The herbicidal soap works because it disintegrates the smooth, shiny coating on weed leaves, thus removing moisture from the leaves and making them shrivel. Applying soap is most effective in weather that is not cool or damp.

Salt/Other Mix

• Salt is another homemade selective herbicide you can use to destroy weeds. Simply pour salt on the soil around the weeds and water the area so that the soil absorbs the salt. The salt will kill off the roots, thus destroying the entire plant.

  Additionally, you can mix a cup of salt with a tablespoon of liquid dishwashing soap and a whole gallon of white vinegar. Combine two cups of white vinegar with the soap and salt, and pour this mixture back into the gallon of vinegar. Put this solution in a spray bottle; spray it directly onto your target weeds.

Other Option

• Another homemade selective weed killer is a mix of a tablespoon of baby shampoo and a tablespoon of a sodium fluoride and acidulated phosphate mouthwash. Also mix a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in with this, along with a quart of warm water. Pour this combination into a spray bottle, and douse your target weeds directly with the solution.