can I "fix" a Round-Up saturation?

[celestial princess]

We're going to be moving (I always announce stuff int he weirdest places!) and the house we're moving into has a perfect little place out front for a garden. But the landlord just dowsed it in Round-Up. I was thinking if I could find some compost (do they have that at garden centers? :nails ) that would maybe help, but I honestly have no idea.

[Rabbit]

I -think- that round up is inactivated once it touches the soil, that it only kills the plants it is directly sprayed on to. It's not like salting the earth. So, while there are chemicals in that ground, and it most certainly will benefit from a huge dose of compost, plants should thrive in it once more.

[Hermana Linda]

I have no idea, but I hope that Natalie is right. :)

[allisonintx]

Round up breaks down pretty quickly and into relatively benign components compared to other herbicides.

[canadiyank]

Yep, Round-up is not the greatest to use, but it does break down and won't permanently affect the soil. There is a "season-long" kind that lasts but the regular kind should be fine. You can buy compost at a garden center or get it delivered more economically from a soil conditioners-type place.

[celestial princess]

yay!!! thanks ladies!!! Now, how deep should I spread it?

[Rabbit]

yay!!! thanks ladies!!! Now, how deep should I spread it?


When do you want to start planting? You can love on that patch of ground through the fall and winter, building it up and letting it do its soil thing, to start in the spring, or, depending on your location, you could lay some fall plantings now.

[celestial princess]

Yeah, this is what I'm debating. :think We're moving around the first of the month, then we have DS bday, our 5th! anniversary, and, uh, late October celebrating hard and fast on top of settling in and preparing for the holidays. we try to go to MI for Thanksgiving. Given my leisurely approach to life in general, I probably won't start planting until the spring, but doesn't that start in February here?

[Rabbit]

I'm not sure where here is.

It would be absolutely awesome to do soil amendments through the next few months, letting it get good and decomposed before spring. You can plant something like clover now if you want, as it helps improve soil quality, provides soil cover, and is a nice picture of green instead of bare ground.