2-4-D for Dandelion Control?

[Mrwurm]

My neighbor sprayed his whole lawn (2.75 acres) with 2-4-D today to control dandelion weeds. The bottle says broadleaf weed killer. I know this product has been around a long time. Any predictions as to what this will do to his lawn? He's never used this stuff before and a guy at the hardware store told him to do it. He diluted 1 gallon into about 30 gallons of water.
Jerry

 

[TerryinMD]

Mrwurm,

You needed to mention to your neighbor that he needs to spray everyone elses lawns also!! /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

Funny thing about Dandelions - they kinda spread their seed on their own. They have a knack for this. /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif/w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.24d.org/>2-4-D Website</A>

You may want to share this with your neighbor....

Terry

 

[cowboydoc]

2-4-D is made to spray on grass. It will leave the grass unharmed and kill the weeds.

 

[TerryinMD]

I just did a further seach and used the proper term "2,4-D" and came up with a hit that just made me cringe.... Agent Orange - yes, the stuff used in Vietnam. Agent Orange was a 50/50 mix of 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T (sounds ominous to me!!).

Not trying to sound like a tree-hugging environmentalist or an alarmist, but I try to limit the use of any pesticide or herbicide.

The wholesale use of chemicals to make a yard look "pretty" makes no sense to me.... especially if you live in a rural area. /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif Oh well - to each his own.

Terry

 

[rf33]

2,4-D is not all as bad as the Agent Orange makes it sound. Probably the majority of the beef that people eat has been on pastures sprayed with 2,4-D. It is a very common broadleaf herbicide, and has not been linked to any serious medical conditions in humans as far as I know. Probably the best site for information on this herbicide is <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.24d.org>http://www.24d.org</A>. You can find just about anything you are looking for about 2,4 on this site. I understand your concerns, and I prefer to go with a natural solution over a chemical one myself, but until we come up with a more natural way to control weeds which is cost effective, 2,4-D is likely here to stay.

 

[Phred]

Terry,

It turns out that the problem with the agent orange was dioxin, which is very toxic.

This chenical was a byproduct of the production process used to create the 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid) and 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T) mix.

Modern 2,4-D contains no dioxin and is a result is pretty harmless.

If you have ever used weed & feed or similar you have used 2,4-D.

Fred

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I use it all the time,knocks the snot out of Dandelion,Buckhorn and any Broadleaf including Cover.

But,the "drift" of 2-4-D is very tough on garden plants and flowers.A use product called Triamec around the house and shrubs.It's a bit higher in cost but does'nt have the odor of 2-4-D.

Also I put on 1-1/2 qts. with 50 gallons of water per acre.A gallon to 30 gal. sounds pretty stiff to me,but it would depend on the % rate of the chemical itself.

 

[Mrwurm]

Thanks to all that responded, some good information was dispersed.
Jerry

 

[TerryinMD]

Thanks all for the additional information.

Again, I'm no environmentalist or alarmist. However, I try to stay away from using any chemicals. Now for the caveat.... unless we MUST to control noxious weeds. In the 10 or so years that we've had our market garden, we may have used two gallons of pre-mixed Roundup. We would rather cultivate prior to the weeds setting seed. Of course, we have less than an acre to worry about so that makes it somewhat more manageable.

Now to change the subject and concentrate on a little problem I'm trying to correct. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

There is only one weed that has eluded our attempts to manage. It is Bind weed. What is the BEST way to get rid of it. The problem with this weed is that it's roots spread quickly. If you till the area and break the roots into smaller pieces you end up with many more plants.

Any ideas??

Terry

 

[rf33]

I have heard that Cashmere Goats will eat most broadleaf weeds down to a point where they cannot survive, and then the grasses (in a pasture at least) crowd them out. If this is in a garden, I suppose the goats might not work out so good though...

 

[TerryinMD]

Hmmm... goats in the market garden. /w3tcompact/icons/hmm.gif

After a couple of weeks, they would become fattened market goats!! /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif Nah... they wouldn't make it a couple of weeks. The CFO would have killed them the first day after seeing them eating away her hard work and profits!! /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

This bind weed is so bad we are going to have to remove our long standing aspargus row because the stuff is getting so bad. We've lost about a third of the row due to this stuff. The weed grows up and in between the aspargus fonds which makes the use of a herbicide a little tough. /w3tcompact/icons/mad.gif

We started two new rows this spring in a totally different area.

Bind weed =1
Gardeners = 0

We expect to change that score this summer!! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Terry

 

[Hoosier_Daddy]

I was at the local elevator a few years ago and this Lady came in and asked for another gallon of Trimec. The owner I was jawing with asked her how much ground she was spraying and she said, "just my yard".

Then he asked her what kind of sprayer she was using and she says "Oh, just a plain old pump sprayer and that last gallon didn't quite fill it."

-Pause- Then the owner says " Holly crap lady, you should read the label". "You could have sprayed a city block of yards with that last gallon if you mixed it properly".

Turns out it didn't hurt her lawn but I heard later that it stunted it.

I have used trimec myself and never had a problem with it... I knocks out the clover a other broadleaf just fine.

Also, I have respect for a name used earlier "Agent Orange". I have seen the results of it's spraying first hand. Been there, done that! 1969-1970....... Tom

 

[TerryinMD]

Why would you want to kill off the clover?

That's some good stuff to have in your yard. Reduces the amount of fertizer you may need. Clover fixes nitrogen in the soil plus it has a nice color - green. Green = good to me.

When I planted my yard a few years back, I purposely spread some white clover seed to so that I didn't have to fertilize as much. It worked until last year. The drough took the poor clover right out.

Terry

 

[mrolson]

My neighbors tried 2-4-d, not much success. I finally sprayed two back acres to kill the dandelion. They were just taking over. But I used MECAMINE-D, I watched em drop as I passed over /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif. Now I need to overseed /w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif

 

[CGranat]

Trimec lists Bindweed as one of the broadleaf weeds that it kills. Trimec is a mixture of 2,4-D, MCPP, and Dicamba. I'm not sure which of those chemicals work on the Bindweed. Trimec Plus adds to those chemicals MSMA which will kill (post-emergent) crabgrass. I've used the Trimec to help establish a lawn. Hopefully, once it is established, I'll not need to use it or at least not very often. As for the application rate of any of these, you really need to read the label. I know of four different Trimec products that are primarily different in their concentration. I applied the type I got at four pints per acre in 35 gallons of water. This worked well for me.

 

[MODEERE]

The Dicamba / Banvel is the most active in killing bindweed with Tri-mec. The best time to kill bindweed is in the fall when the plant is getting ready for winter.

 

[TerryinMD]

Hmmmm... you guys just confirmed what I thought about bindweed. A pain to control. /w3tcompact/icons/mad.gif

Looks like late summer and fall will be the time to act.

Terry

 

[SGBotsford]

Bindweed requires disturbed soil to propagate, and can be crowded out if you have something that puts cover on the land quickly in spring.

The organic farms often go a high tillage route, which can be damaging, if you don't compensate with green manure. The kind of system they use to get rid of heavy weed infestations:

* Plant an annual crop that gets started FAST in spring. Buckwheat, flax have been suggested. Till it in just after it finishes blooming, before it sets seed. Replant with an annual legume. Peas, lentils, vetch. Till in when just past the bloom stage. Replant with annual rye. It won't have time (in our climate) to set seed before fall. In a warmer climate you may want a 4th crop in the mix.

You have to tune this to your weeds. Often just after tilling it, you have exposed a new set of seeds from the soil. So you don't replant right away, but wait 10 days or so and let the seeds germinate. Then harrow or disk lightly to knock out the seedlings, and plant your next crop.

In terms of your timing, try to avoid having your land open when the airborne seeds are flying. For me that's a couple weeks in June when the air is thick with dandelion, and another time in fall with thistle.

If you use your equipment on 'dirty' fields, it's worth spraying it down before working on the field you are trying to clean.

For market garden work, having a dauber is a great tool. Cleanout port, Chunk of ABSpipe, 3/4" threaded reducer, nipple, valve, nipple, reducer, short chunk of pipe, cement on cap. Drill a hole in the lower cap, about 1/16" in diameter. Fold a washcloth sized hunk of towel until it's about 4" square. Use another scrape about 10" square. Put the folded chunk over the hole, cover with the large scrap, pull tight, and bind to the pipe above the lower reducer using wire or nylon cable ties.

Fill with roundup, mixed at about double strength. It's tempting to use it full strength, but if it's too strong it kills the leaves before it's absorbed.

In use, the bottom valve is just cracked open, and the top cleanout port is also just cracked open so air can get in the pipe. Use it like a walking staff, and plonk down on a weed. Note that it will drip some, so watch where you wave it. Control the rate using the lower valve.

Tips: Fill procedure:
Close valve, remove cleanout plug. Fill. Replace plug. Shake (unless you pre-mixed)

Go to where you need to work.

OVER DIRT hold it upright, crack the plug open, open the valve full for a few seconds until the pad starts to drip. Close valve completely, then crack open.

Use. Roundup (glyphosate) is one of the safest ones to use. If you are working organically, you can try high strength vinegar.



In use the bottom valve is just barely