LPG Weed Burning

The use of Calor LPG burners for weed control, desiccation and as a soil hygiene tool has become a popular alternative to using chemicals.

Increased legislation and consumer pressure is forcing growers to look for alternative methods to chemicals, many of which are now banned or their use increasingly restricted.

In highly intensive cropping systems, such as glasshouse production, high levels of heat not only destroy post harvest debris but kill weeds and any fungal or disease spores on or near the surface. A process which can help create a sterile seed bed and minimise the disease pressure on the following crop.

The desiccation or ‘burning-off’ of potato haulms can also be done by LPG burners, providing an environmentally viable alternative to chemical methods such as Sulphuric Acid.

Powered by Calor LPG, the burners leave no residues in the crop and the operating costs are comparable to using chemicals.

LPG Weed burners are available in a range in sizes, from 6m burners aimed at covering maximum ground in minimum time, to hand-held versions just a few inches wide.

Hand-held burners run on single cylinders of Calor propane and offer a greater degree of manoeuvrability than their larger counterparts. Where 6m burners are built with speed in mind, hand-held versions are made for mobility - and are ideal for weeding those troublesome areas that more sizeable burners can't access.

The cylinder-powered burners range from around 15cm to upwards of 70cm, and dependent of size are either pushed along (pictured, right) or carried - with the optional help of a trolley to take the weight of the cylinder. Both types of model are more than capable of tackling weeds on any terrain, utilising the same principle as 6m burners to first colour, then kill off, the weeds.

Their efficiency and ease-of-use means that the weed burners are becoming very popular not only with organic farmers, but anyone seeking a cost-effective way of controlling weeds. Find out more about LPG weed burner options.

In addition to the rise of LPG weed burners, more and more horticultural businesses are also turning to gas to heat glasshouses and polytunnels. As well as being efficient and flexible, gas powered systems have the added advantage of providing C02 as a by-product. And as any tomato grower will tell you, having the correct CO2 balance can increase crop yields by up to 15%.