All around for miles farmers use rye as a cover crop. Two weeks ago these fields were a lush green but are brown after massive applications of round up to clear the fields for soybeans. My small attempts to be as organic as practical seem futile.


My property isn't large enough to support a drift buffer. The soil is sandy so leaching is cause for concern. Wind born drift has seriously damaged fruit trees, flowers and vegetables suffer worse.


In this environment imagine my frustration when I futilely scoured the local big boxes for a BT based insecticide to treat leaf rollers. Sure there were organic pesticides but not what I needed. There seemed to be chemical options for everything. Why isn't this staple garden item not available?!


I can order it on line but shipping charges are sometimes twice as much as the actual product and I have to wait. A garden center about an hour away carries it but they can be pricey.

I'm befuddled.

I stopped driving all over to look for products. Now I do my research, look online to see who has the best deal (and hopefully free shipping), push a few buttons and the products arrive at my door. Much less frustration.

As for farmers and drift - if I bought a property next to a pig farm I would know enough not to complain about the stench of pig manure. Likewise, if I own a property next to farmers who spray things like Roundup, I would have factored that in before agreeing to purchase the land.

BT isn't cheep anymore.
HD has it. They have shortened the name to : Thuricide, Thurgicide, get the drift ? Sorry, I can't spell. 😟

When they did that, I had a heck of a time finding it. Untell a knowledgeable sales lady pointed it out to me. Then, I went !
Thank you. Miss HD garden gal. 👍👍😀
😎😎😎

Thanks, I'll have to give HD a try.

I didn't choose this place, it chose me. It's been my family's home for over 200 years, our family cemetery is visible from my front door. Just trying to work with what I'm fortunate enough to have been given.

Usually if they use Roundup, it is a contact only herbicide. If you are getting as much drift as you say you are, they shouldn't be treating if it's that windy. If you do notice drift coming over, you can water after the app and there should be less effects from roundup. It doesn't stay in the soil.
How close is your garden to the pasture they treat? If you know when they are planning to treat, you can call the TDA and get advice from them on the conditions allowed to do the application.you can also look up the product and read the label. There is a lot of good information and if they are using it, they are required to follow the label.
Hope this helps a little.

From what I read they are having issues with other herbicides besides Roundup in NC. But (relationship with neighbours notwithstanding) one can complain about pesticide drift (see link below), as Patiodaddyo said - they shouldn't be spraying when it is windy. I live next to a field that is sprayed with Roundup annually and have ornamental plants along the fence line. They've never been damaged by the spray.

"In recent years this Department has investigated several drift related complaints in North Carolina specifically involving 2,4-D or triclopyr/clopyralid herbicides."

From (select "drift investigations")

http://www.ncagr.gov/spcap/pes...

I do find the new idea of Dicamba-ready crops rather concerning.....

Will : The thing to do, emmediatly after they spray, is to spray your plants off with water. This watering down of chemical, will greatly reduce, or eliminate the affects of the Round-up or whatever chemical there spraying.

There's no need to water the ground.

Ta ta 👍👍😀
😎😎😎

Thanks for all the great advice everyone!

Philipwonel said:

There's no need to water the ground.

😎😎😎

In fact don't water the ground if you think it may be a soil-active herbicide, because that may activate it and move it down into the rootzone.

Philipwonel said:They have shortened the name to : Thuricide...

Do a search using the full name Bacillus thuringiensis and you will find the product offered by several retailers and online sellers. I find the best prices at the farm/feed store.

I think Farmer Joes over drift warrants him having to pay for you a solid type fencing such as 'privacy fencing', if it is that big of an issue to you, you ask him about that, and if he disagrees, find yourself an attorney for advice. You may be able to take him to small claims court and have him fork over the dough to pay for to protect your yard. He should be held responsible for the damage his overdrift does to other's properties/belongings.


I have found products at Home Depot that the other stores in the area didn't carry. And they were cheaper than the on-line versions I found. Depending on what you are getting pricewise, HD may ship it to your house for free so you don't even have to go get it if you don't have time.

greene said:I stopped driving all over to look for products. Now I do my research, look online to see who has the best deal (and hopefully free shipping), push a few buttons and the products arrive at my door. Much less frustration.

As for farmers and drift - if I bought a property next to a pig farm I would know enough not to complain about the stench of pig manure. Likewise, if I own a property next to farmers who spray things like Roundup, I would have factored that in before agreeing to purchase the land.

True to an extent, but the practices of farming change over time, a few years back farmers did not spray w roundup like they do now. So someone who has owned property for years may have not have those problems before now. Also, sometimes you buy a property only to find out later that someone is putting in a pig farm or such. I feel that if a farmer wants to spray roundup, he needs to find a way to reasonably contain it to only his own property and he should be held responsible for damages to other's property.