Clove Oil & Vinegar for Weed Killer

Cloves have a potent smell and flavor and are effective as phytotoxins that kill plant cells.

Natural lawn care is important for the environment and our families. The combinations of chemicals found in most weed killers are toxic and potentially dangerous to ground water, animals and soils. Fortunately, there are safe solutions you can find in your own cupboard or kitchen. Pungent aromatic oils such as clove and acidic bases such as vinegar are common household items with effective weed control abilities.

Vinegar

Vinegar contains ascetic acid and is mildly caustic. It has powerful fumes and causes a slight burning sensation when taken orally or rubbed on the skin. This action makes it useful on post-emergent weeds, especially annuals. Household vinegar only contains 5 percent ascetic acid, which is enough to kill the foliage of a weed but not the root. A concentration of 20 percent ascetic acid is needed to kill the roots. Vinegar is non-selective, which means it can have negative effects on non-target plants, so care must be taken when using the acid.

Clove Oil

Clove oil is an essential oil with a strong odor and flavor. It is toxic to plants and causes cellular death. The main component of clove oil is eugenol, which has a high herbicidal character. Clove oil poses no serious toxicity in mammals but is also effective as an insecticide. In plants, a concentration of 1 to 5 percent is sufficient to cause death in most pest plants. The oil is toxic to fungi and bacteria and can effectively be used to cleanse some soils.

How it Works

Vinegar works in two ways. Topical or foliar sprays break down the waxy cuticle on the surface of leaves and leaves them open to drying out. Soil drenches lower the pH in the soil and limits the nutrients that the weed can intake. Either way, the plant's health is seriously compromised and it can make an effective herbicide. Clove oil disrupts the cellular production in a plant. The plant's ability to create new tissue is stopped and old cellular material dies off. This results in electrolyte leakage and complete plant death.

Combination and Use

Vinegar and clove oil combined herbicides are available on the natural pesticide market. The combination of the two may serve to enhance weed control by compromising the leaf cuticle with vinegar so the clove oil can enter the plant and cause cellular death. These products are sprayed on the foliage of weeds, which must be targeted due to the non-selective nature of both compounds. The spray is applied after weeds emerge and before they have formed seed heads. Neither compound is 100 percent effective on all weeds and perennial weeds will need several applications.

References

• Fine Gardening; Vinegar-Based and Citrus-Based Weed Killers; Ann Lovejoy
• Washington Toxics Coalition: Weeds in the Lawn and Garden
• Ecological Restoration Services: Non-Synthetic-Natural Weed Killers
• University of California IPM; Evaluation of Least Toxic Herbicides; Cheryl Wilen
• Marin Municipal Water District Vegetation Management Plan:Chapter 6- Clove OIl- Eugenol