Spraying 2,4-D - Sanity Check

[jeffreyca84]

Hi Everyone,

I'm hoping for a little bit of a sanity check on my math as this will be my first time spraying. I hope below I'm providing enough information and showing that I did my homework and am putting forward an honest attempt.

Essentially I'm looking to spray IPCO 2,4-D Ester 700 herbicide on a 2-acre pasture using a Fimco ATV-25-700-QR sprayer.

Based on the application manual for IPCO 2,4-d Ester 700 on pasture grasses it is recommending 'up to 3.4 L/ha in 100-300 litres of water per hectare'. The FIMCO manual for the sprayer does a great job in doing the math for me and telling me the pressure (psi), speed and the corresponding gallons per acre.

So I don't want to put the maximum amount of chemical down, but I wish it just gave me a value and not an 'up to 3.4L/ha'. I'm randomly thinking of using 2.5L/ha since its somewhere in the middle of the range - which I'm not sure if this is correct.

Assuming 2.5L/ha is OK I'm then converted that into quarts per acre. Based on this math 2.5L/ha is 1quart/acre.

Because my sprayer is only 25G I figured it might be easier to take the middle range of the water requirement, being 200L per hectare, and bring that down into gallons per acre. Based on this math 200L/ha is 21gallons per acre.

OK so I am at 1quart of chemicals per acre and 21gallons of water per acre.

My Fimco user manual says that in order to put down ~21gallons per acre I would need to have a spray height of 18", a pressure of 40PSI and I would need to be driving around 3MPH.

 

[RalphVa]

Be VERY CAREFUL with that stuff. The tiniest breeze can carry mist made by the sprayer for miles that could condense and kill vegetation way away from where you're spraying.

 

[workinonit]

Use the amine. The carry on ester is crazy. I've never had any issues with the amine. The rates sound feasible. I would make a dry run with water and then you will know for sure.

 

[jeffreyca84]

Use the amine. The carry on ester is crazy. I've never had any issues with the amine. The rates sound feasible. I would make a dry run with water and then you will know for sure.

what do you mean by “the carry on water is crazy”?

 

[workinonit]

Carry over. Drift. Ester drifts if there is any breeze. If there's nothing around you care about killing you will be fine.

 

[Sergei1]

I use Gordons Pasture Pro herbicide in the both my sprayers. One tank uses the 20oz tankable size behind the garden tractor that I spray the yard with and my bigger sprayer that I mounted on my box blade for the pasture for the horses.

 

[3gunr]

You might want to add a surfactant to your mix it will help to make the chemical stick to the vegetation you want to kill.

 

[jeffreyca84]

Carry over. Drift. Ester drifts if there is any breeze. If there's nothing around you care about killing you will be fine.

All that is around me is residential lawns.

 

[hosspuller]

Workinonit has a good suggestion. I just changed the tips on my sprayer... That's what I did. Filled the sprayer with water (only) and sprayed the field to work out the speed, pressure and gallons per acre. This wet run is better than spilling expensive chemical fixing clogged tips, leaks, mistakes in dose, or other unknows.

 

[Complete Turf Care]

All that is around me is residential lawns.

Not sure where you are located, but if there is a tomato plant anywhere near you, and it gets a whiff of the 2,4-D, it will be toasted. 2,4-D is one of the most volitile herbicides ever. It will even get up and move after you have sprayed it. I've heard stories of it being sprayed on rice and because of weather conditions, it got up and moved across the Mississippi river and killed a cotton crop. It is illegal to spray it here in Louisiana between April 1 and about October 30, in the cotton growing areas.

I do think your calculations are correct in your first post. But please be careful if you do decide to spray. Check with your county agent to see if there might be alternatives.

 

[mx1alex]

What are you trying to kill? That will determine what rate you should be applying. Depending on what you're driving it may be hard to keep a steady 3 mph. You can find out what speed you're comfortable maintaining and then do you calcs based off that. Lots of ways to skin a cat when it comes to determining tank mixes, calibrating the sprayer etc.

 

[jeffreyca84]

What are you trying to kill? That will determine what rate you should be applying. Depending on what you're driving it may be hard to keep a steady 3 mph. You can find out what speed you're comfortable maintaining and then do you calcs based off that. Lots of ways to skin a cat when it comes to determining tank mixes, calibrating the sprayer etc.

It’s being used in a horse pasture. I’m boxed in by residential so all that is around me are lawns.

 

[jeffreyca84]

Not sure where you are located, but if there is a tomato plant anywhere near you, and it gets a whiff of the 2,4-D, it will be toasted. 2,4-D is one of the most volitile herbicides ever. It will even get up and move after you have sprayed it. I've heard stories of it being sprayed on rice and because of weather conditions, it got up and moved across the Mississippi river and killed a cotton crop. It is illegal to spray it here in Louisiana between April 1 and about October 30, in the cotton growing areas.

I do think your calculations are correct in your first post. But please be careful if you do decide to spray. Check with your county agent to see if there might be alternatives.

Just spraying a horse pasture. I’m land locked by neighbors and their back lawns. There are no vegetable gardens or anything except for grass around me.

im trying to knock down a broadleaf infestation that’s gaining traction.

 

[RalphVa]

Lots of stories when I volunteered at the extension office about this stuff. Could kill neighbors' stuff miles away.

 

[workinonit]

2,4,D comes in 2 formulas. Ester and amine. Amine is much more stable that ester and will not carry over/drift/travel nearly as bad as ester. Farm stores stopped carrying ester here. If you want some they have to order it.

 

[5030]

I use it all the time for broadleaf and I use the 2-4-D (B) on my alfalfa. it stinks and I always wear proper PPE.

 

[jeffreyca84]

Regarding the volatility - my plan is to be spraying between 60-70F, during low wind and with a small tow behind sprayer with nozzles 18” off the ground.

 

[hosspuller]

You might look at Grazon Next HL for a pasture. It has a residual effect. Even through the manure. 2,4-D alone isn't very effective. There are several herbicides you can tank mix with it. Along with a surfactant.

 

[workinonit]

Go for it. It'll be fine. Seriously, if you have a plan then do it. Just relating personal experience. No one knows your situation better than you.

 

[ponytug]

Personally, as a horse owner, I wouldn't use it on pastures, as 2,4D bioaccumulates. Without knowing what it is that you are trying to suppress it is hard to advise.

If you are having issues with some weeds, I would think about either changing the grazing patterns with electric fence subdivisions in the pastures, or think of having something like a few goats or cows to graze what the horses don't/won't graze. We use cows, and we have a little mustard and the occasional thistle, but nothing else.

I have friends who spread the manure every fall, till it in, and reseed for their horse pastures. Their pastures look awesome, but it is a lot of work and it doesn't work for sloped pastures.

YMMV...

All the best,

Peter