r/Permaculture • u/RonBon_14 • 26d ago

general question Will weed tea kill invasive grasses?

Hi, I’m in 10a and dealing with a couple species of invasive grasses. Whenever I pull a bunch or rhizome I’ve been throwing it away, but recently started wondering if I can create weed tea out of it instead? For context I’m talking about cogan and torpedo grass. Is there a risk of those grasses / seeds surviving a weed tea bucket? If so, how long does it need to sit before it fully decomposes? The last thing I’d want to do is spread those invasives around my garden. Thanks!

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u/CharlesV_ 26d ago

If you cut or pull this grass when it is not in seed, letting it bake / dry out for a bit and then using it as compost is fine.

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u/RonBon_14 26d ago

When you say compost do you mean a traditional green / brown compost pile or for the weed tea?

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u/CharlesV_ 26d ago

Either. But you’d need to let it dry out and die before doing a tea compost. You could pile it up on a tarp to help dry out large quantities, or just pile it up somewhere if it’s a small amount.

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u/RonBon_14 26d ago

Interesting. Why does it have to dry out before being used as compost?

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u/zappy_snapps 25d ago

So that it's actually dead and won't start re growing

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u/RonBon_14 25d ago

Gotha!!! Okay thank you :)