Weed killer and peonies

Had some rather aggressively growing dandylions and chickweed, but too soon after a previous round of fertilizer to use Weed 'n' Feed, so I picked up some Ortho weed killer - the kind in the bottle you put on your garden hose - and began treating. The instructions say that in certain concentrations it's safe for lawns, and in heavier concentrations it starts killing just about everything it touches.

It worked as I expected it to, though some overspray hit the peonies. The ones hit by the overspray are now growing in curlycues, though other than some truly bizarre twists and turns appear to be growing normally, getting ready to bloom and everything. So, have I permanently damaged the plants, or will they be okay next season? We plan to move the beds, so if I have to discard those bulbs that'll be the time anyway.

Thanks!

- Wm

Reply to
William Morris
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Maybe. That's the price for using weed killer instead of making the lawn healthier so it can compete.

Reply to
Doug Kanter

Thanks Doug. "Maybe" what? Maybe I've killed the plants? Maybe they'll grow back? What? To be perfectly frank, it wasn't a terribly helpful answer.

For the record, I've done the best I know how at working to make the lawn healthier - considering that I started with something that looked like a topographical map of Northern Afghanistan the fact that with a few years attention and little budget I have mostly healthy grass with a few remaining trouble spots is good progress. I'm quite certain that if I'd said "I applied weed'n'feed within a month of fertilizer and crabgrass preventer" you'd have said I'm fertilizing too much. You can't have it both ways.

So, the original question, as yet constructively unanswered, remains: are the peonies permanently damaged?

Reply to
William Morris

Sorry....I'm in the midst of a battle with a neighbor who's addicted the ChemLawn, too close to the property line. So, I'm in a MOOD. Honestly, there's no way of knowing if you've killed the plant. I'd call Ortho. If it were mine, I'd flood it with water daily, hope for the best, and see what happens next year around this time.

Reply to
Doug Kanter

Thankfully, we had two straight days of rain the starting the day after the application of the weed killer. I'll give the Ortho folks a call!

- Wm

Reply to
William Morris

Peonies are tough. You have a good chance they will make it. Only time will tell. See what happens next spring.

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

Be thankful you don't have bindweed. Not fun. Evil.

in

Reply to
Doug Kanter

Most of the weed/feed combos carry a warning not to use in the root zone of non-grass plants (shrubs, flowers, trees). Some weed killers work through roots, some through foliage. If the growth is distorted but still alive, you may not have killed the peonies, but distorted growth is how some herbicides kill. I like to fertilize a week or two before using weed killer so's the weeds are sure to be actively growing when I put on the herbicide - they drink more poison. We got a nasty lawn cleaned up nicely, so all-over weed treatment isn't needed. I spot treat when there are too many to hand weed. Plucking one weed plant may keep a thousand seeds from landing on the lawn, so it is often worth the effort. Proper maintenance produces turf that protects itself - thick turf will shade weed seeds to keep them from germinating keeps the soil from drying out. If I have a weed that is too hard to pull, I've brushed on RoundUp to kill it and not hurt the surrounding grass.

Reply to
NorMinn

If it's at all possible to spot treat, in the future, try that. The sprayers aren't expensive and you'll save yourself a lot of trouble down the road. As has been mentioned, only time will tell about your peonies. Over spraying/treating is a sreious problem; much more serious than dandelions & chickweed. One other suggestion for a healthy lawn that you've probably heard is that you shouldn't mow it too short. You may have to mow more frequently to maintain the look of the grass, but your lawn will thank you for it in the long run.

Reply to
montana

I'll second that! Still spraying after almost 30 years. I think I have an example of evolution in action. That stuff now seems to

-need- 24D as a supplement. ;)

Harry K

Reply to
Harry K

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