Killing clover in lawn

[Pilot]

What's the best time of year to spray clover in grass? I have heard the fall was best; I have found that spring doesn't work, does it really work to spray clover in the fall?

What chemical do you use?

 

[rswyan]

I have been using Gordon's products for weed control in our lawn - mostly Trimec and occassionally Amine 400 - largely because they are available in quantity at TSC. They've done a good job at putting the hurt on broadleaf weeds in our lawn - however they don't kill clover (some types ?) or crabgrass.

For that Gordon's recommends Trimec Plus which has an extra ingredient, MSMA. As for time of year I can't say as I haven't tried it yet. I tried to pick some up at one of the local TSC's and they were out ..... when I asked the manager when she thought they might be getting some in she said that they "wouldn't be getting anymore in this year" !!! Guess they've never heard of fall lawn treatments ......

 

[patrick_g]

Pilot, As a general rule spraying while the plant is actively growing is best. This increases the plants uptake of the chemical. There are exceptions with pre-emergents etc but in general do it when the plant is actively growing. I have had to avoid several kinds of pasture chemicals to avoid killing arrowleaf clover.

To increase your chances of a good kill I suggest you positively identify the clover as to species (lots of clovers) and get a recommendation from your extension agent or reputable chemical manufacturer, like Dow.

Although label info may be, in general, correct it is often a chore to try to find what you need without consulting a ggod source such as the extension service or a specialty chemical mfg who makes herbicides.

If you are into NATURAL then...

A multi-year program of applying natural corn gluten meal, which will have the added benefit of killing all of your other seed-based weeds and adding nitrogen to the soil, too. Remember that corn gluten meal will suppress germination of grass seeds as well, so time your applications away from reseedings.

Pat

 

[deere755]

I have always had real good luck with 24d in the spring. I mix about 4ounces per gallon and drive pretty slow with my tow behind sprayer. Sometimes I have to go back and touch up a couple areas but I have real good luck killing clover and other broad leaf weeds in my lawn this way.

 

[ToadHill]

Why would you want to kill clover in your lawn. It fixes nitrogen and cuts down on your fertilizer needs. No weed killer will kill crabgrass. It is a grass just like the rest of the grass in your lawn, if my memory serves me right a monocot. Weeds are dicots and that's why the weed controlls work on them and not on the grass. The only way to control crabgrass is in the spring before it germinates with a product like PreM or Deminsion. Since crabgrass is an annual and comes up from last years seed, you need to put something down that will stop germination.

 

[hazmat]

I just sprayed a Dow product - I'll have to look up the name. It was $200 for a gallon of concentrate at the Local LESCO -treats 3+ acres depending on concentration. I worked like a charm - better living thru Chemistry.

 

[hazmat]

It was spotlight

Here's a pic where I didn't get close enough to the fence. The bare spot is where the clover once grew

 

[jyoutz]

Toad Hill's comments are correct, but if you want to do this, do it anytime that the plants are actively growing. The cheapest, most effective herbicide is 2-4-D. You can buy a 2.5 gallon jug of the concentrate for about $40 at a Helena Chemical Company dealer. The product is called Weedar-64 and at 4 ounces per gallon of water, a 2.5 gallon jug will make 40 gallons of finished spray. That's enough to kill alot of weeds also. The best thing about 2-4-D is that it absolutely won't harm grass or any other monocot species, just broadleaf plants (weeds). I've been using it to rehabilitate some native grass areas that were choked by weeds during last year's drought. Great results in 2 days.

 

[hazmat]

I had spot sprayed 2-4D this spring - It worked on Dandelions and a couple other weeds, but the clover made it thru unscathed. Clover is listed on the label as one of the target species - but my research on university extension websites & lawnsite indicates that if clover is your primary target, there are far more effective chemicals to use.

 

[rswyan]

Same here - like I said I've used Amine 400 (2,4D) and Trimec, which has 2,4D as one of the three active ingredients - multiple times this year - and it isn't touching the clover.

Having said that, the clover I have now appears to all have yellow blossoms. At one time I had some white and pink clover .... so the chemicals I used may have killed them .... but the yellow stuff just keeps on coming.