Experimental Weed Control

[ga. prime]

This morning I got up at daylight and sprayed 1 pint/ac 41% glyphosate on 17 acres of otherwise excellent coastal bermuda to see if it would kill the sandspur infestation without harming the bermuda. Got the idea from a really out there website populated by some very opinionated but oddly persuasive gardening gurus. I'll know something in a week or two.

 

[grannysoo]

Keep us posted!

 

[MikeC]

1 pint won't kill the bermuda dead but it will slow the growth down for sure. What stage is the bermuda in?

Take a pic today and another in about 3 weeks.

Try some "Plateau" or "Impose" if this doesn't work. It will get the crabgrass & johnsongrass too.

Label: http://www.cdms.net/LDat/ld86B002.pdf

 

[ga. prime]

Good link Mike. That "Impose" looks promising if the glyphos doesn't work like I hope it does. I had bought 10 gallons of MSMA for the sandspurs. It used to be labeled for pastures or hayfields but is no longer. I think it's labeled for peanuts and cotton now. Labeled for turfgrass for sure. But when it came down to it I chickened out about the MSMA. That stuff is 22% elemental arsenic. I took a picture yesterday morning. Will do so at a later date. I don't know what stage you'd call the bermuda in- full growth stage I would guess. I shut a bunch of cows in there for a few days and got it grazed down pretty low before I sprayed it. It's real thick though in most places. We used to deep harrow and sow rye in the fall on the 17acres and that is what got the sandspurs started. Bermuda would come back strong after the harrowing but so would the sandspurs. An adjacent 40acres has no sandspurs except a couple places in the fire break I harrow around it. Started no till drilling 3 years ago and the bermuda has gotten real thick and I thought last year it would choke out the sandspurs but that didn't happen.

 

[alabama]

Round up at a pint should work fine but it will cost you a cutting.

 

[novatech]

I have the same problem. The problem I forsee is that the seeds will last forever from what I understand.
I sprayed one area and killed everything. After the next rain they came back up just as thick. :cry2:
I have herd that you can spray after the bremuda goes dormant. Is grassburr evergreen?

 

[BC]

You may yellow the bermuda and slow it's growth, but that is about it. It should do a good job on the sandburs.

Takes 5 qts/acre to kll bermuda.

 

[ga. prime]

nova, no the sandspurs aren't evergreen, they're summer annuals. Start back from new seed every year. You're right about continuous germination. It'll likely take more than one spraying to get 'em. Probably a month or two apart. I think if you keep them from reseeding for a growing season, you'll have 99+% of the problem licked. Then just watch for stray plants the following year and pull them up.

 

[Jogeephus]

GP, 16 ounces shouldn't touch your grass. 32 will begin to brown it and stunt it some but you aren't going to kill it at these rates. I spray 14 ounces to kill vassey grass and I don't miss a beat. I'd prefer 16 ounces of roundup over plateau any day. Plateau can fry your grass and cost you a cutting or more. Have you tried Atrazine? This is what folks use on their lawns here and it cleans them really well. A little late now but might be something worth considering next spring.

 

[ga. prime]

Have not tried Atrazine. Isn't it a bermuda killer?

 

[Jogeephus]

Have not tried Atrazine. Isn't it a bermuda killer?

It will kill it if it is sprayed during the growing season but not when its dormant. The dormant spray will work in the soil and keep the sand spurs from ever sprouting. But check with your extension guy to make to be doubly sure its OK in your situation.

 

[ga. prime]

Roger that. Something to think about for next year if I don't get the desired results this year.

 

[BC]

Better check and see if atrazine is labeled for use in pastures. Here in Texas it has been nearly 20 years since it was legal to use in pastures or hay meadows. I believe it is still legal to use in corn and grain sorghum. T.D.A. checks farm supply dealers records on purchases of this product, it sends up a red flag in areas that do not have a lot of row crop production.

 

[MikeC]

Instead of Atrazine, Simazine may be the pre-emergent of choice. It's labeled for use in orchards, etc.

 

[BC]

Read a simazine label. In the fine print it says to "avoid illegal residues, do not graze treated areas".

 

[MrBilly]

Why not just get a weed specialist to give you an opinion rather than just playing around with toxic chemicals? Doesn' t make much sense to me to try this and that without someone knowledgeble in weed science telling you what to do. Try Dr. Tim Murphy at UGA, Griffin Campus. He is the weed specialist for UGA and I use him a lot and have had great results. He is a nice guy too. Here is his email: [email protected]


Billy

 

[ga. prime]

I have gotten the opinions of several weed specialists, Mr. Billy. I'm not playing around with anything. Thanks for the link to Dr. Murphy.

 

[MikeC]

Read a simazine label. In the fine print it says to "avoid illegal residues, do not graze treated areas".

Grazing is different from hay production. The Simazine 90DF label does not say that it can't be cut for hay.

 

[BC]

Read a simazine label. In the fine print it says to "avoid illegal residues, do not graze treated areas".

Grazing is different from hay production. The Simazine 90DF label does not say that it can't be cut for hay.

What is the difference between letting an animal graze the forage or cutting it for hay and feeding to cattle? If it does not specifically say on the label of how to use a product, then it is not legal to use it. That is the way the Texas Department of Agriculture interprets the label.

 

[MikeC]

Read a simazine label. In the fine print it says to "avoid illegal residues, do not graze treated areas".

Grazing is different from hay production. The Simazine 90DF label does not say that it can't be cut for hay.

What is the difference between letting an animal graze the forage or cutting it for hay and feeding to cattle? If it does not specifically say on the label of how to use a product, then it is not legal to use it. That is the way the Texas Department of Agriculture interprets the label.

Here's a Simazine product that's labeled for hay and grazing:

http://pr-rp.pmra-arla.gc.ca/PR_SOL/pr_ ... _ukid=6908