Herbicide. 24D or what?

[Ford850]

Everyone has been telling me it's best to spray 24d in the fall, when the plant is putting energy into the roots for the winter. In the spring, you may "appear" to kill the plant, but really you are just killing the foilag. And the plant will come right back because you didn't kill the root.

As to thin vs thick. Accord to label I am actually on the heavy side (least diluted.) The jug I have, iirc, says 1.5-3 pts per acre. So I use two pints. It also says in the column right next to that 20-200 gallons per acre.

So diluting 1 pt in the 15 gallon sprayer, and spraying 1/2 acre is not the middle of the road in terms of per acre, and toward the lower end of dilution.

Mixing 8 oz per gallon (12 oz per 1.5 gal)...seems strong as crap. Perhaps not a concentrated version of 24d?

I agree.

 

[Big Barn]

Curious as to whether anyone uses products like Scots weed and feed? I admit I am NOT knowledgeable about lawn/fertilizers, etc., so please just let me know what the 'collective' thinking is on bang for buck, etc.

Thanks,

CM

IMO, there is nothing exceptional about Scott lawn care products.

I do have to admire their brilliant and well executed advertising campaign though.

 

[ustmd]

Everyone has been telling me it's best to spray 24d in the fall, when the plant is putting energy into the roots for the winter. In the spring, you may "appear" to kill the plant, but really you are just killing the foilag. And the plant will come right back because you didn't kill the root.

As to thin vs thick. Accord to label I am actually on the heavy side (least diluted.) The jug I have, iirc, says 1.5-3 pts per acre. So I use two pints. It also says in the column right next to that 20-200 gallons per acre.

So diluting 1 pt in the 15 gallon sprayer, and spraying 1/2 acre is not the middle of the road in terms of per acre, and toward the lower end of dilution.

Mixing 8 oz per gallon (12 oz per 1.5 gal)...seems strong as crap. Perhaps not a concentrated version of 24d?

24d (and most other herbicides) are taken up into the plant through the stomata (the little holes in the leaf for transpiration-absorption of and CO2 and release of O2 and H2O). If the plant is under stress (drought, temperature too hot or too cold), the stomata close and the plant will not absorb the herbicide. Generally, Spring is the best time (sufficient water and mild temps) as the plant is less like to be under stress and growing new leaves drives significant transpiration.

 

[LD1]

24d (and most other herbicides) are taken up into the plant through the stomata (the little holes in the leaf for transpiration-absorption of and CO2 and release of O2 and H2O). If the plant is under stress (drought, temperature too hot or too cold), the stomata close and the plant will not absorb the herbicide. Generally, Spring is the best time (sufficient water and mild temps) as the plant is less like to be under stress and growing new leaves drives significant transpiration.

Seems to be two schools of thought.

1. Spray in spring when plant is actually growing rapidly.
2. Spray in fall to kill the root as plan is storing nutrients away for winter in the root system.

Whats right? I dont know. Possibly varies by plant too.

But who cares. I sprayed in the spring, I will spray in the fall. And if next spring I have weeds, I'll spray then too, and if next fall rolls around, and still have weeds left, I'll spray then too.

So at least 50% of the time I will be right:thumbsup:

 

[Big Barn]

Seems to be two schools of thought.

1. Spray in spring when plant is actually growing rapidly.
2. Spray in fall to kill the root as plan is storing nutrients away for winter in the root system.

Whats right? I dont know. Possibly varies by plant too.

But who cares. I sprayed in the spring, I will spray in the fall. And if next spring I have weeds, I'll spray then too, and if next fall rolls around, and still have weeds left, I'll spray then too.

So at least 50% of the time I will be right:thumbsup:

I knew you'd figure it out!

 

[TNhobbyfarmer]

Seems to be two schools of thought.

1. Spray in spring when plant is actually growing rapidly.
2. Spray in fall to kill the root as plan is storing nutrients away for winter in the root system.

Whats right? I dont know. Possibly varies by plant too.

But who cares. I sprayed in the spring, I will spray in the fall. And if next spring I have weeds, I'll spray then too, and if next fall rolls around, and still have weeds left, I'll spray then too.

So at least 50% of the time I will be right:thumbsup:

Sounds like a solid plan to me.

 

[Wakey]

Does anyone have some thoughts on spraying fertilizer? I wondered if it might be cheaper, it would definitely be easier.

Also a bit more on topic, crabgrass. I found this looking around on the net, my local feed and seed had nothing. Amazon.com : Drive XLR8 Herbicide 1/2 Gallon 64 OZ. KILLS CRABGRASS : Patio, Lawn & Garden

It appears to kill centipede which is OK, i'll replace with Bermuda.

 

[fishheadbob]

My father once owned a golf course. Some of the best advice he ever gave was "Don't fertilize grass unless you really like to mow."

Regarding Scotts' and other brand name fertilizers: if you really must fertilize save yourself some money, read the label to see what's in it, then go buy the same stuff generically. A 20-5-10 with a big name label will cost many times the amount of the generic version.
If you do not understand that, you probably shouldn't be applying fertilizer for a lot of different reasons.

 

[TheMan419]

Does anyone have some thoughts on spraying fertilizer? I wondered if it might be cheaper, it would definitely be easier.

Also a bit more on topic, crabgrass. I found this looking around on the net, my local feed and seed had nothing. Amazon.com : Drive XLR8 Herbicide 1/2 Gallon 64 OZ. KILLS CRABGRASS : Patio, Lawn & Garden

It appears to kill centipede which is OK, i'll replace with Bermuda.

I have looked at it a little bit since I bought a sprayer. It looks cheaper. Also Scott's is all marketing. You can find generic with the same stuff in it for half the price. Much like with weed killer.

My concern with spraying is that I will have to use the NH Boomer 25 on the lawn. I suppose if is dry and I use 2wd it should be ok. Lots of areas I will have to shuck and jive to get into tight spaces. So we will see.

Regarding clover it thrives in soil that is nitrogen depleted. So if you kill it you need to add nitrogen to the soil or it will come back hard.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Everyone has been telling me it's best to spray 24d in the fall, when the plant is putting energy into the roots for the winter. In the spring, you may "appear" to kill the plant, but really you are just killing the foilag. And the plant will come right back because you didn't kill the root.

As to thin vs thick. Accord to label I am actually on the heavy side (least diluted.) The jug I have, iirc, says 1.5-3 pts per acre. So I use two pints. It also says in the column right next to that 20-200 gallons per acre.

So diluting 1 pt in the 15 gallon sprayer, and spraying 1/2 acre is not the middle of the road in terms of per acre, and toward the lower end of dilution.

Mixing 8 oz per gallon (12 oz per 1.5 gal)...seems strong as crap. Perhaps not a concentrated version of 24d?

Roundup in the fall, 2,4-D in the spring. Auxin based herbicides interfere with rapidly growing plant tissue. It is often used for late season application in field corn, but that is to control weed seed production in late maturing weeds. Here are the directions from a generic 2,4-D label:

Generally the lower dosages given will be satisfactory for young, succulent growth of
sensitive weed species. For less sensitive species and under conditions where control is
more difficult, the higher dosages will be needed. Apply this product during warm weather
when weeds are young and growing actively.

The concentration in the sprayer depends on application technique. You notice I added dish detergent as a spreader-sticker. Surfactants are only allowed with 2,4-D on non-crop applications. There will be none in the bottle, so for field spraying the only way to get coverage is to soak the plant. The field mix is a suspension, not a solution, and requires agitation. Lawns are not crop land, and using a detergent surfactant turns the sprayer mix into a solution, so much lower quantities of water can be used. I have about a half acre of lawn, and can do the whole thing with one 1.5 gallon sprayer full, while the label mix requires 2.5-10 gallons of mix for the same area.