Question about Round Up

ryseryse_2004

10 years ago

I put in a new hosta bed last fall and didn't do any mulching in there. The hostas haven't broken ground yet and I wonder if I can spray the ground with RU to get rid of all the grass growing in the bed?

In my other hosta beds, there aren't any weeds since they are very established and are 'self mulching' --- that is what I absolutely love about hostas!

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Comments (6)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
yes.. i do it many times per year ...

do not use the premix spray things ...

buy a sprayer ... and learn how to use it with water .. you have 3 adjustments ... the grip pressure.. the air pressure.. and the nozzle adjustment ...

learn how to make big drops.. that gravity makes fall to the earth ... instead of french perfume-like mist that wafts on the wind ... and with big drops.. you can even spray on windy days ... as you get good at it ...

once you have perfected such thru making all the adjustments ... read the RU instructions... and mix according to what you are going to kill ... 1 to 2% should be all you need ... see instructions ....

insure you are not walking thru that which you spray ... and understand that you dont need 100% coverage ...

this time of year.. the kill takes time to show.. depending on how warm it is ...

i find that i can not maintain high attention thru a large area... so i go for 80 to 90 % kill ... then wait until i can see the result.. and then take my time be more thorough ...

i have a tall 3 gallon tank.. but i only fill it to two gals [otherwise too heavy] ... i like it.. because if i set it down.. to mess with something ... when i stand back up.. i dont have to bend over to pick it up ...

once it is filled with water for practice ..... insert top.. and pump 10 times... see what the pressure is... then 10 more.. until you learn how many pumps it takes on the initial prime... then adjust the tip nozzle.. until you get course heavy droplets.. that fall to the ground... i test it all on black top.. so i can SEE what i am producing ...

try not to mix more than you need.. but it will last a few days or so.. in the tank ... store the tank with NO PRESSURE ... but reseal after it falls ... if you cant turn the top... you probably have to much pressure ...

after a few days.. the grasses will start yellowing.. looking chlorotic ... they are dead ... you really dont even have to remove it.. as it is now compost ... but now you will start to see what you missed because it will still be green... so respray ...

things the grow on runners.. like many grasses.. keep in mind.. the kill will spread thru said runners to some extent ... so you usually dont have to get real close to good plants ..

RU MUST TOUCH GREEN TISSUE ...so it becomes inert on touching soil ...

if after you have done all that.. and you still have some very tricky grass ... in hard places ... you can use a foam brush or a cotton glove with a rubber glove under.. to hit them ...

i want to go outside.. so go buy the tank.. and the concentrate ... and i will think up more tips ...

ken
bkay2000
10 years ago
Make sure it is the original Round Up (glyphosate). They have added all kinds of herbicides to the Round Up "family" of products. Not all are as forgiving as glyphosate.

bk
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Mary4b
10 years ago
Wonderful instructions from Ken on getting the "drip"...I'm going to try that. Great idea to start with water, too.

Hey RyseRyse...if you are only trying to kill grass, you might try the Ortho product called Grass-B-Gon . It can be tricky to find locally. Last year, I just ordered from Amazon. Walmart usually has it early in the season, but not always at every store.

What I love about this is that you can spray in your perennial garden and it will only kill grasses. You don't have to worry about it killing everything in sight like with Roundup. It won't harm most broadleaf plants in any way shape or form, but it will kill any grass.

This product literally saved me from throwing in the towel on gardening. I had persistent quackgrass in every bed until I found this product. Now, I never plant ornamental grasses in my beds...that's so that I can keep my other plants free of the quack grass with this spray. It's really just a small maintenance issue for me at this point.

Sometimes, it takes two applications and there are a few perennials you do have to be careful around. I believe iris is the main one, but as always, read the label.

Info from the bottle:

Kills weedy garden grasses without injuring ornamental plants
Use in and around ground covers, plant beds, landscapes, shrubs and trees
Rain-proof in 1 hour
Ready-to-Use. No Mixing.
24 oz spray

Here is a link that might be useful: a place to purchse
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
actually ... i dont use RU anymore ... i get the generic version at tractor supply ... i buy it in 2.5 gallon farm sized containers .. which last about 1.5 years ... unless it is cheaper ....

i look for 41% concentration .. and i DO WANT it with the sticker/spreader.. surfactant ... that is usually what PLUS means ...

i will not allow anything else ...

when you read the instructions ... you dilute the 41 to 1 .. 2.. or 3 percent .... i use 2% which means.. if i recall after a long winter.. that i put 2 and 5/8 ounces per gal of water FOR THE CONCENTRATION I BOUGHT.. READ YOUR OWN INSTRUCTIONS ... or just under 6 oz for my 2 gal tank ... 1 is for annual weeds ... 2 perennial.. and three.. the hard to kill vines/bramble etc ...

it is also a stump killer at full strength ... applied to the edge of a stump with the very expensive applicator at the link ... so on a pencil sized tree .. snip it at the ground.. and put one drip on it ... it has to be applied to the cambian layer.. just under the bark ... it has no effect on the dead wood in the middle of a larger tree ... and that would be wasting product and money ...

i have never been brave enough to use something like weedBgone ... actually applid to the hosta ... that is when i will find out.. it has some grass gene that no one knew about.. lol ...

again ,... if you buy a different concentration... then you mix rates will differ.. READ THE FREAKIN LABEL ...

i am surprised we havent been lectured by the haters yet ....

KEN

Here is a link that might be useful: link
in ny zone5
10 years ago
I would be very careful with Roundup, had bad experiences such as losing azaleas, probably due to contact of Roundup with surface roots. I noticed that after spraying grass in cracks where driveway meets road there is now no grass any longer for years, also no blown-in seeds germinate. I think that there is some remnant effect and some leaching into the ground.
In my yard I would think that Roundup would travel through the surface during rain to the still dormant pips and crowns. Good luck!
Bernd
Mary4b
10 years ago
Just to be sure and clarify...I was referring specifically to GRASS-B-Gon.....and not the more commonly known product called Weed-B-Gon. I would not use Weed-B-Gone in or near my gardens. However, this Grass-b-gone is a miracle product for anyone with severe grass invasions. I have recommended it to my friends, as well, and everyone I know loves it for its ease. If you have a severe grass problem, you know what a pain it is and many people even have resorted to re-dig their beds. Leave one tiny node of that grass in the soil and it comes back. This Grass-B-Gone takes care of that issue.
Just read the label for those very few perennials that you might want to avoid..,I know Iris is one.

If you want some more info on this, I saw this thread that discusses the same thing: kill the grass, spare the irises?

Here is a link that might be useful: kill the grass, spare the irises?

Question about Round Up

Comments (6)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

bkay2000

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Mary4b

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

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