Several studies have shown that either the glyphosphate in Roundup, or the surfactant in it that allows it to penetrate and kill the plant, is highly lethal to amphibians, and and to earthworms. Other studies have shown that it interfers with hormones and damages human placental cells, and possibly the placental cells of other mammals (you wouldn't want to spray it anywhere near where farm animals graze). It can inhibit mycorrhizal fungi (a bacteria that helps plants take up vital nutrients), and there are reports it can kill beneficial insects like parasitic wasps and lacewings. I have not read anything about using it around septic beds, but given that it is implicated in harming or inhibiting many organisins, including bacteria, I'd not recommend using it there. Ditto for your well area. I would suggest you rethink your desire to get rid of the clover too. Clover has been rebranded a weed only since the developement of broad leaf weed killers. Prior to that it was a very much desired addition to lawns because of it's ability to remain green throughout the heat and drought of summer. It also fixes nitrogen, allowing a healthier grass growth, which in turn discouraged other weeds. I've never read anything about poison ivy and veggies. Even if the veggies can't take up the urushiol, it can't be good to garden in poison ivy :-) Poison ivy is a pain in the a**!!!!! Most people don't have a reaction to it the first time they come into contact with it, so your experience is normal. It takes one or two exposures to become sensitized to it first. Lots of people also report that dogs don't have problems with it, but they can get the oils on their fur which then become a problem for you when you pat the dog. You can keep it to a minimum if you are dilligent about pulling it up as soon as you see it. Since you just moved, you might have a lot right now. You can buy cheap gardening gloves at a dollar store and latex gloves at a drug store. Use both! Put your feet into a couple of trash bags (might want to use two or three layers if they're thin), and tape them shut as high as they'll go and you're fairly well (and cheaply) protected form the oil. Throw out the gloves and trash bags inside another trash bag. You can also pick up some cheap clothing at a local thrift shop - wear it while removing it and them throw it away. By removing what you can see, you'll cause a growth spurt from any remailing stuff, but if you repeat the process every week or two for this summer, you'll have gotten rid of most of it without having had to resort to Roundup. Check nearby trees and undergrowth for old vines - they're hairy. If they're too big or high to remove easily, just hack through them and remove what you can - the rest of the higher up stuff will die and be out of the way so you won't need to worry about it. It sounds like a great place though! You're so lucky to have that much room! A lot of work to bring it into shape, but that's half the fun :-) BP

I sympathize with violet troubles. I had some that were extremely persistent in a bed of pachasandra. I eventually ripped out the pachy and redid the whole area so I was able to get all the violets. Well... almost all... I still do see one or two occasionally. My only tip would be that pulling the roots is more successful when the ground is thorooughly saturated. After a good rain is when I do my best weeding. I wouldn't do Roundup in mixed groundcovers. I have read that it can translocate underground to adjacent roots, presumably touching. Ever since I read that, I am very careful to avoid it in close plantings... even with the careful paintbrush method. Having said that, maybe vinca could withstand a touch here and there. Maybe someone else will have tried this...

I'd be really reluctant to apply an herbicide to slow down the grown rate of an established planting, since its effect is not a known variable and can depend on several factors. If the client wants to maintain their ivy beds, at worse the landscape maintenance crew might end up obliged to replace it, at best it might end up looking like sin if the cuticle of the ivy has lost its integrity in some spots. Using it as a growth retardant is also not using it according to its label. We have one rather large ivy bed on our property we need to maintain, and it gets attention twice or perhaps three times a year. I still consider that ultra low maitenance.

good luck! I dug and sprayed 3x before I got all of it. Thank Heavens my was right by walk which I used as a barrier otherwise it would have been all over, To me it was one of the hardest plant to get rid of