"Permanent" herbicide

[S854]

…Weed blocks rely on rain to carry them into the surface soil, probably even more so when applied to a gravel drive….

Looking at the RM43 website they suggest mixing 7.4oz in up to 10 gallons of water (1 to 10 is their recommend)… this will treat 1000 sq ft.

Plan is to start with 10 gal. and spray the contained area in front of the garage… hopefully this dilution will get it far enough into the soil to be effective.

 

[ultrarunner]

Im fighting a 9,000 blacktop commercial parking lot that looks like H*ll when weeds come up through tiny cracks...

Use the string trimmer several times a year to clean up as the city regularly checks.

When it was a busy parking lot not really a problem but the company that leases it for overflow has it mostly empty giving the weeds license...

 

[WinterDeere]

Looking at the RM43 website they suggest mixing 7.4oz in up to 10 gallons of water (1 to 10 is their recommend)… this will treat 1000 sq ft.

Plan is to start with 10 gal. and spray the contained area in front of the garage… hopefully this dilution will get it far enough into the soil to be effective.

May depend on coverage rate. If sprayed, it might just dry in the gravel layer. If poured, probably better luck, but horrendously low coverage per gallon mixed.

If going liquid, I’d probably pour at very high dilution, to work coverage against dilution. Maybe just put it thru a boom sprayer with the largest available nozzles, or even nozzles removed, for a proper soak-thru the gravel bed.

Remember, all that matters in the end is active ingredient vs square feet, and some mechanism to get it thru the gravel. The water is just the mechanical means of moving the product, nothing else.

 

[3Ts]

Following...
I've planted wildflowers in an area that was tilled then very aged/composted horse manure worked in. Wild flowers grew great year 1, year 2, whatever seed was in manure took over. For those in the know, am I chasing a pipe dream thinking wildflowers will grow unopposed by weeds? In another area, no manure worked in, and by year 3, hay (which was originally there) took over.
Being July, I'm willing to cut my losses for the year, if I can effectively treat the areas, killing everything off, to plant wildflowers later in year (if possible) to have flowers next year.
End goal is to reduce grassy areas, add color to area that will benefit pollinators etc.

Horse manure has lots of weed seeds in it. I used it one year and it was worse than doing nothing. Your compost has to get really hot to kill the weed seeds. Cow manure is much better because their digestive system kills the seeds. Be careful with hay, it has probably been sprayed with Garzon (sp?) which will affect anything you try to grow there. I use mushroom compost because it is sterile and there's a plant nearby.

 

[Mtsoxfan]

Horse manure has lots of weed seeds in it. I used it one year and it was worse than doing nothing. Your compost has to get really hot to kill the weed seeds. Cow manure is much better because their digestive system kills the seeds. Be careful with hay, it has probably been sprayed with Garzon (sp?) which will affect anything you try to grow there. I use mushroom compost because it is sterile and there's a plant nearby.

Thanks. I've had the manure, 4'ish deep, covered in a dark tarp, thinking that might help get temps up. Been at least 2 years. nope...
The property hasn't been hayed for at least 7 years. Is Garzon still an issue?

 

[paulsharvey]

Im fighting a 9,000 blacktop commercial parking lot that looks like H*ll when weeds come up through tiny cracks...

Use the string trimmer several times a year to clean up as the city regularly checks.

When it was a busy parking lot not really a problem but the company that leases it for overflow has it mostly empty giving the weeds license...

Torch, and then rubberized crack seal?

 

[YanmarFever]

I spray the weeds at the fence rows 3/4 mile long with liberty and a little 45% vinegar in a 50 gal sprayer.
Just 2 cups of vinegar makes a big difference with roundup or liberty, it strips the oil from the leaves so that the roundup works better

 

[Yander]

Glyphosate (Roundup) and 2,4-d are contact herbicides. In other words, they have no residual (pre-emerge) activity.

Imazaypyr (Arsenal) and pramitol are more of a soil sterilant type herbicide.

RM43 is a pre mix of glyphosate and imazapyr. So, it will have contact and residual activity. I have mixed these two active ingredients and had good results.

The thing to keep in mind with soil sterilants is that they have a much greater potential to move in the soil with heavy rainfall. I have seen really bad results when these products are not used properly.

One of the benefits of glyphosate is that it is 100% neutralized the instant it touches soil. That's also why it does not work well when mixed in hard water, or dirty water, such as from a ditch, or when sprayed on plants that may be covered with dust, such as along a gravel road.

Imazapyr, pramitol and RM43 should be good products to use on a road to keep vegetation down for a longer time than glyphosate alone will.

Always read and follow the label of any pesticide, for best results.

Wow, did not know any of this, dirty water or dirt on weeds, about Glyphosate.

 

[jyoutz]

This is the best pic I have when we moved into our home 7 years back... there is some growth in the drive but it was manageable...


View attachment 877938

I picture was taken today, after I mowed as close to the ground as I dare (don't wanna screw up Julie's zero turn)


View attachment 877937


There are other areas around our property which are also being taken over by the native vegetation, seldom used roads, turnarounds, front of the barn etc...

I've been using a mixture of 2-4d and Milestone to spot treat some invasive weeds... it works well on knapweed, houndstongue, thistle etc... but has little to no effect on the grasses/weed in our drive..

I purchased some Ortho Groundclear from Costco... sprayed the two gallons on the drive over the course of several weeks... you can see the results... $40 bucks wasted...

I tried the vinegar/salt/dishsoap concoction from YouTube... basically, the same results-- grasses turn brown for about a week then come back...

So I'm looking for suggestions for large area coverage which might make the ground sterile for more than a few weeks... wild guess is roughly 1/3 mile of road needs to be treated... there is no plant life along the road that I'm worried about if overspray is a concern...

One more thing: burning isn't an option due to dry grasses, wind and lack of available water

2-4-D is specifically formulated to kill broadleaf plants and not affect grasses. Roundup will kill green growing plants of all species but doesn’t stay in the soil. After you have cleared the area of weeds, you need to apply a pre-emergent herbicide. This type of product will not kill existing plants but will prevent seeds from germinating for several months.

 

[steve tym]

I just tried 45% vinegar. Used it straight. Weeds were dead in 6 hours. Maybe I should dilute it. I'm also hoping it will make the soil too acidic for anything else to grow.