Gardeners Using Manure Tainted by Herbicide

A recent spate of gardening disasters across the U.K. has been blamed on people being unaware that they are using manure containing aminopyralid, a weed killer used by farmers to combat docks, nettles and thistles.

Grass, silage and hay that has been treated with the herbicide is then eaten by cattle and passes through them onto bedding hay that is then made into manure to be used on Britain’s gardens. The company responsible for producing the weed killer, Dow AgroSciences, warned that any manure that was produced by animals having eaten treated grass should not then be used on sensitive crops. The problem is that those who spray the crops may not be responsible for collecting the manure and so it is very difficult to trace manure that might be affected.

The herbicide is now no longer used but old stocks of manure may still contain traces.