Fertilizer?? Weed Spray??

[Micky]

1) Back when I was young and aggressive, I actually put down powdered weed killer, fertilizer, etc. 4 times a year, like they encourage.

But then I decided that though the fertilizer made the lawn look green, it also meant I had to mow it more often.

OTOH, IF I NEVER APPLY FERTILIZER, HOW LONG WILL THE GRASS GROW? 10 YEARS? 20? 50? 100? Surely the earth will run out of nutrients eventually????

2) I switched to spray-with-garden-hose weed-killer once a year in the spring, and indeed, this year, even though I didn't spray, I had only 3 dandelions. (Though I still have patches of other weeds) BUT, DOES WEED B GONE ETC. DAMAGE TREES AND BUSHES? I know once I got some on the end of a branch of a tulip tree, and it killed 6 or 7 leaves and the 15" of branch they were on. I don't think they ever grew back but the rest of the tree has been doing well, grows a foot or more higher every year. BUT WHAT ABOUT WHEN I SPRAY THE STUFF ON THE GROUND BENEATH THE TREE?

TIA

[dpb]

On 05/27/2016 12:50 PM, Micky wrote: ...

No, not really. Has anybody fertilized the national forests? They've been going for quite some time, methinks. :)

It's a natural cycle if you don't break it by removing all the grass clippings, etc., that normally breakdown and replenish nutrients by returning their content back to the soil. A little bit of clover mixed in (or any legume, of course) will add some additional N naturally.

Of course, it depends on what the soil was to begin with; if all the topsoil was raked off to grade the lot, then "not so much" or if it's in a location that was previously all an oak-pine forest and not grass it'll be excessively acidic for grass to do well w/o at least some help, but in general it'll do just fine with no more than a _little_ help to address actual problems.

...

Read the user instructions and MSDS would go a long way to answering the questions...but, for 2,4-D (primary active ingredient in Weed-B-Gone) and glysophate (Roundup) they are _not_ taken up from the soil primarily but are topical applications adsorbed thru the leafy surfaces. Of course, there are other herbicides which are ground-sterilants (Banvel a common ag-use one) that are definitely not to be used around sensitive plantings.

[Meanie]

Weed B Gone isn't supposed to harm trees and shrubs but I can't imagine it's perfect.

The more grass you have, the less weeds can survive, which could be the reason you have few. Keeping it sprayed once per spring is good, but to prevent regrowth it's recommended to spray towards the end of the season as well.

[Frank]

Told a guy the other day that I don't fertilize a lot. Lot of fertilizer is like giving money to politicians. Both are trouble.

I do premerg in the spring and plan fertilizer in the fall.

[trader_4]

+1

And the best way to minimize the use of herbicides is to get a tank sprayer and apply them only were needed, ie to the weeds. That puts it where it's needed, not broadcast over 1/2 an acre of lawn. I never use the weed-n-feed type products.