Herbicide. 24D or what?

[LD1]

LD1, I'm pretty close to you here in Ohio and have the same weeds. This is what I do, and it works well.
Trimec from Rural King. I buy it when it's on sale and have it on the shelf so it's ready when that perfect weather day arrives and I decide to spray at moment's notice.
Surfactant from Rural King - Drexel Hum-AC 820. I get a gallon and it lasts for years. It makes all the difference especially when battling the tough weeds, but I add it to every spray batch.
Crossroads from Rural King. It's the generic Crossbow, and works well on brush and poison ivy, and I occasionally use it on the tough viney weeds (and clover) in the yard.
Trimec will knock out clover when you add the surfactant. That makes all sprays work better since it's getting the leaves soaked by breaking that surface tension (especially on clover and ground ivy). I've used Trimec for years, and it didn't control my clover at all, until I started adding the surfactant.
I try to spray once a year and that controls things pretty well. Sometimes I spray 2 times but that's rare. I spray spring or fall, when the temps are not too high, and the weeds are growing actively.

So you mainly is trimec, and only the crossroads when it's some tough stuff right.

Any reason other than cost to not just use crossroads and skip the trimec?

 

[Big Barn]

Something to consider.

At our farm sales office we encourage the use of our private labelled "starter", "spring/summer" and "fall/winter fertilizers for optimum results on their new lawn purchase.

It's all about market share. We already have a potential customer in the store to "upsell". If we don't do it they'll just go to Home Depot down the road. I like to think I'm saving them money on gas.

As a side note: I NEVER fertilize the lawns around my house. The increased mowing got to be a PITA.

 

[LD1]

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As a side note: I NEVER fertilize the lawns around my house. The increased mowing got to be a PITA.

Agreed. I don't like mowing anymore than I have to. Just don't want a dead brown lawn either. As much as I hate grass, and mowing, dirt, mud, and thistles are are much less desired

 

[Ford850]

So you mainly is trimec, and only the crossroads when it's some tough stuff right.

Any reason other than cost to not just use crossroads and skip the trimec?

Trimec is labelled for lawn and turf use. Crossroads seems much more harsh and I don't like the idea of using it across my entire lawn, especially with a well. When I use Crossroads on my lawn, it is only on small problem areas, usually with a 2 gallon hand sprayer, or 4 gallon backpack at the most. Also, Crossroads will kill shrubs and trees if it drifts, while Trimec might slightly damage them but I've never had a problem. Trimec is cheaper too.
I have a tall fescue lawn and keep it mowed at approximately a 3 1/2" deck setting. I have been using the 5 fescue blend from Rural King to reseed areas etc, and that is a nice mix and reasonably priced. Fescues go dormant in the hot dry summers though, and I consider that a bonus but the lawn will be brown during droughts. It always comes back 100% after the first heavy soaking rain.

 

[Coyote machine]

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

 

[LD1]

Everything I have ever seen that has "Scott's" on the label is about 3x the price of the exact same thing in a different brand.

Kinda like Roundup vs generic 41% glyphosphate

 

[oldballs]

I've been at it for years and keep learning more about it and still trying different approaches. I have found that Trimec and Trimec 899 work real well in my 50 gallon, gasoline powered spray unit. I also note that various weeds do return after a season or two. Often times I use Ortho "Weed B Gone" for spot spraying (two gallon sprayer) over my 3 acres. But, "hey", I'm retired with not a whole lot else to do....sometimes.

Those clover patches are okay and will often return in the same place when sprayed and apparently "dead". A little clover doesn't bother me that much anymore. I do use a lawn fertilizer around the house and sometimes on the rest of the place when I'm flush with cash.

I generally seed with a broad blade fescue like K-31 or some of the more expensive varieties. Even retired I get out of sync with things when other projects come up. Unlike some of the other posters, I keep the yard looking the best right around the house. ... The open fields I'm not that picky about.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

2,4-D works best in the spring. One quart in 30 gallons is pretty thin, but I don't mix big tank. In a 1.5 gallon tank I use 12 oz. of 2,4-D or Dicamba (Banvel), or Crossbow (2,4-D and Garlon-triclopyr) for brush control and add a little Dawn dish soap for a spreader-sticker. Then I don't have to wet the dickens out of everything, I can just use a fine mist for weed control. The directions will give ounces or gallons per acre, not a percentage mix in the sprayer.

Here in the West we have a summer drought and the subterranean clover goes dormant about this time of year. The dandelions keep right on growing, so I can spray out the dandelions without hurting the clover at all. 2,4-D only works on growing vegetation. It has little effect on mature plants, and no effect on dormant plants.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

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

Congratulations on your fat bank account. Weed and Feed is a waste of money, but if you are flush, go for it. A gallon of 2,4-D and a small garden sprayer will take care of the weeds, and allow you to spot weeds instead of treating the whole lawn. Then buy 50 lbs of 21-4-6 or something similar at any farm store, which should be enough to do a huge lawn.

Success with Lawn Fertilizers: Buy & Use the Right Type at the Right Time.

 

[LD1]

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?