I would like to zap weeds growing in the lawn and garden without harming the grass and plants growing around the weeds. What is the best way to do it? I saw something called a Weed Stick online, where you supposedly walk around injecting any kind of concentrated weed killer directly on the weed. Anyone try it? Would WD40 or gasoline work using a direct applicator? It sounds like a lot of folks use Roundup, but I find that it works too slow. It seems to take a couple of days for the leaves to begin turning brown. Thanks for any suggestions.
Roundup, WD40 or gasoline will kill anything it touches, including the grass and plants growing around the weeds. For spot killing I've always had good luck with Killex. Comes in a handy squirt bottle and is easy to use. Found at most garden centres. But it really doesn't hurt to get on your hands and knees, use a little elbow grease, and dig them out by hand.
Roundup becomes inert when it enters the soil. Thus, it is much better for the environment than gas or WD-40 as well as your grass.
The weed stick looks interesting. It looks like you can put any thing in it. That would minimize the collateral damage from spraying. I might have to check that out.
Not sure about your location, but the best time to treat for weeds is in the spring, when weeds are young and vigorously growing. For broadleaf weeds I like to use Weed-B-Gone and Spectricide, alternating between these two. I mix it up in a garden sprayer, usually a little stronger than recommended, then hit each weed. The best time to spray is on a windless sunny day with no rain predicted in the next 48 hours. Even with the "Rain-proof" formulas, it is better to use with no rain in the forecast. Do not mow a day before nor a day after treatment. If you are in the US, overseeding now will result in fewer weeds next spring. I found that the fall overseeding has greatly reduced the need for herbicides and almost wiped out the crabgrass. Do not use a petroleum product. Unlike Weed-B-Gone, RoundUp will kill both weeds and grass.
I see nothing wrong with RoundUp taking a few days to work. I use it along curbs, cracks in the driveway, and mulched areas.
But, keep in mind that herbicides and flamers do not actually remove weeds. Even if they successfully kill the weeds, the weeds are still there. This means that they take space in lawns, for example, where you need good grass to grow.
That's why it's better to use a tool that actually removes weeds, like the "Herbicide Helper" Weed Twister. This tool will twist out crabgrass dead or alive. The sooner the crabgrass is gone, the sooner your good grass can take its place.
For more info on the Herbicide Helper check out weedtwister.com.
Twist, clean up on weeds after Roundup, and save on herbicide costs!
Nonsense. When the weed is dead it is gone, not producing any more seeds nor sending out any runners. The weed biomass will be there until it decays and becomes part of the soil structure (a good use for a dead weed).
More nonsense. Removing part of a weed does not get rid of it as part of its root structure is still in the soil and will promptly develop into a new weed plant.
Dead crabgrass has already produced seeds which will sprout into new crabgrass unless treated with a pre-emergent herbicide, organic or other. The "twister" removes only the old crabgrass plant which I can do easily with my bare hands if so inclined.
I agree that they are usually dead and harmless, IF DEAD. The glyphosate is active IN THE PLANT for several days, even though the chemicals decompose IN THE SOIL. The chemicals don't decompose in the plant, because if they did, they wouldn't be effective. Most people don't kill a weed just to stop it from growing. They really want it GONE!. Once they think it's dead, they remove it! This is double effort and cost. IF you're going to remove it anyway, in most cases, it's quicker and easier to remove it right away with a mechanical approach, either by hand or by using a tool. If you're not going to remove it but you're content to let it stay in your lawn or garden, even though it causes a toxic hazard for at least a few days, then, you may have at least solved the problem of stopping the weed from further growth.
The "twister", in this case the twister with the coiled tines, effectively removes more parts of a grass like crabgrass than any other tool known to man. It pulls out large chuncks of networked stems, roots and rhizomes by the twisting motion. Although some parts of the stems may remain, the twister allows you to "fish" for remaining strands and stems fairly efficiently. If you use your hands, you will work much harder and accomplish much less in the same amount of time. If you use a hoe, for example, you will chop up pieces of stems, and make the job of finding them even harder!
Spraying postemergent herbicides on crabgrass or bermudagrass can only be done in spots where the good grass or plants are safely separated from the bad plants. When you reach the margins where they intermingle, you cannot use the herbicide without also killing your preferred grasses or plants. Here you must use your fingers or a tool of your choice.
In my opinion, we have seen a siginificant increase in crabgrass pressure in recent years, partly because we all want to do things in a simple way, and spraying stuff seems simple. Over the years, I have cleared large areas of my garden from bermudagrass, crabgrass and Saint Augustin, simply by repeatedly tugging away at these pesty grass sprouts with my handy twister. A combination of appropriate herbicides, when and if necessary, and appropriate tools and a little sweat is the ticket. Everything takes time...
Weed-Be-Gone is safe for grass, according to the Ortho instructions, except for certain grasses like St. Augustine, for example. Ortho has a different product for St. Augustine grass weeds. Quoting from Ortho: "Do not use on Floratam, a variety of St. Augustinegrass common in Florida. Do not spray on Carpetgrass, Dichondra or desirable clovers."
I've seen one complaint on the web of a tree that was half-killed by something coincidentally shortly after spraying the stuff on weeds around the tree. This may be merely a coincidence.
In all cases, it's important to read the label. Of course, the instructions are usually in very fine print and sometimes we're hasty in not reading the instructions very carefully. There's a large image of the instructions on a Roundup container published on the weedtwister website, so that people can read the details and take their time. No need to rush into buying this or any product or tool. Our timing is rather irrelevant as far as the world of weeds is concerned.
I mostly give away a lot of information for free, based on extensive research.
My work is compensated somewhat by sales of products mostly related to weeds. Although it's not a lot of money, I may make a small commission from the sale of Roundup, for example, if it's purchased from one of my affiliated websites. Even though I may benefit from Roundup sales and other competing herbicides and tools, I'm more concerned about consumers making good decisions especially when toxic chemicals are concerned.
I look at it this way, a weed is a nuisance to horticulture but by itself is not toxic or harmful to your health. In agriculture, weeds can reduce productivity, but there is no productivity in ornamental gardens and lawns, unless you sell your grass clippings. We want things to look nice at home, but when we use toxic chemicals we are trading a visual nuisance for a health risk.
I use Roundup on special situations where my tools won't work, such as Tree of Heaven trees greater than 5 feet tall, for example. When I spray these plants, I label them with a red HERBICIDE HAZARD label with a date and the type of herbicide marked on the label. This reminds me and others not to touch the toxic leaves.
Whatever I, and others, may say to caution customers about herbicides, our words are just a drop in the bucket compared with the millions of dollars of TV advertising spent to promote these products.
I'm curious to know if people are willing to spend, say, an hour a week on mowing their lawns, how much time are they willing to devote to pulling weeds?
On Sat, 14 Oct 2006 12:39:31 -0500 in , Treedweller graced the world with this thought:
A master gardener at the nursery told me that a broadleaf killer is the way to get rid of suckers popping up in the lawn, and won't hurt the tree. Of course, this is an established tree, but my guess ist that a cup of broadleaf sprayed on the lawn isn't going to have an affect on a thirty foot tall, 20 year old tree.
No need for a cup full. I use a hand sprayer, the kind that you hold in one hand and pull a lever to eject a small stream. Squirt it on the broadleaf, usually dandelions in my area and it is gone in couple of days. I use Weed- B-Gone. No danger to trees or non-target species.
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