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Flame Weeder

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€129.00

A weed burner is a very good tool for killing weeds on (gravel) paths and pavements, and very useful to clean soil of small weeds before emergence of vegetable crops (Pre-emergence weed burning) and in between rows of crops. Approved for use in organic farming. More details below.

Propane Gas Flame/Thermal Weed Burner

Our flame weeder has a special valve that protects against hose twist. For safety reasons we supply this unit with a regulator with built-in safety valve. If the gas hose should get damaged, the safety valve shuts off the gas flow  immediately and no further gas can flow out.

Flame weeder features:


 

Compared to the application of herbicides or mechanical weed control, flame weeding has several important advantages:

  • It is environment-friendly, there is no air pollution, and no chemical residues remain in the soil.
  • Its use is independent from wind and rain.
  • There is no preparation of poisonous chemicals, no decontamination of man nor machine, and no need for record-keeping of used chemicals.
  • It is easy to operate and much faster and cheaper than weeding by hand.

How does thermal weed control work?

The word 'flame weeding' for the method of thermal weed control is not a good choice, many users equate flame weeding with burning the plant. It is sufficient to heat parts of the plant - especially the leaves up to 70°C,  to damage the protein. If a plant is heated up to 100°C, all the cellular structures is destroyed also. In both cases vesicular breathing ceases and the plant dies. To check whether a leaf has been heated up enough, and in order to find optimum working speed, a finger pressure test can be applied. If you lightly squeeze a leaf that has been exposed to heat between your thumb and index finger, a dark green mark should become visible.

The time required for the flame weeding to be effective depends on several factors. The leaves of a young shoot can be heated up to 70°C in a fraction of a second.  Fleshy and hairy leaves need a longer exposure because of the larger mass of the leaves or the insulating effect of the hairs. The same applies to creeping weeds, that need more heat than free standing plants, because of the cooling effect of the soil. Plants that have undergone heat treatment have a darker colour and appear limp. If flame-weeding is carried out in the morning of a hot summer's day the heated plants should be wilting by midday.

When is flame weeding most effective?

The optimal time for thermal weed control is in early spring. Weeds in their early stage of growth (2-4 leaves) are still small and don't have any reserves stored in their root system. The bulk of the foliage is still small and allows fast economic and effective treatment.

It is advantageous for the next season if there is one last flame treatment in autumn. This will destroy or severely damage weed seeds that have been carried in by wind, birds or insects. They won't germinate and therefore reduce the amount of weeds in the next growing season.

The special regulator which is supplied with flameweeders requires a PROPANE gas bottle (usually red bottles) with a SCREW TYPE connection. Most gas dealers will be able to order those if they do not stock them.

Always exercise caution when using a flame weeder. Keep pets and children well away from the working area.

 

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