It took me 3 seasons to kill my creeping charlie. It's a tough weed to completely kill. I found the advice given by my state extension dept to work the best. Apply the herbicide in the FALL Use a herbicide with TRICLOPYR (Bayer and Weed-b-gone make it) In early Sept spray the CC with a liquid fertilizer. (MiracleGro) The plant will be naturally storing carbs for winter. This fertilizer will make the intake of the herbicide easier as the plant will intake both to it's roots 1 week later spray the herbicide 1 week to 2 weeks later reapply the herbicide. The CC will not turn brown before it goes dormant ... but ... you will have clobbered it and you will have LESS charlie next Spring. Reseed the treated areas in the Fall Plan on a long war with "charlie"

I was just at my local nursery today and picked up some flyers on various gardening topics, this being one of them (for my neighbor). My neighbor's lawn is almost fully covered with it. She just recently treated it with some commercial product, not sure what she used, but on my side of the fence are my newly planted clematis vines, and she's spraying just on the opposite side. I'll cry if she kills my plants, but her creeping charlie problem still presides, hence the reason for the flyer. Before discussing the flyer, here's what I've done to resolve my creeping charlie problem: When we purchased our home back in 2004 my whole yard was covered with weeds, creeping charlie one of them though not as bad as my neighbors yard now. We tried the annual application of weedkiller treatments (weed & feed commercial products), but that never seemed to help, and I'm impatient to begin with so I finally started pulling them by hand (with a weeding tool). In my opinion and based on much research along with my own experience, most commercial weed treatments (chemicals) end up killing or weakening your grass in the long run, making it more susceptible to weeds. As an example, we put in a planting bed the first year, and pulled out the grass by hand -- no problem, the grass was really weak. Probably a combination of the chemicals we were applying in addition to lack of nutrients in the soil as the previous owners left this place in a shambles. We switched to organic products, stopped using the commercial chemical products on our lawn, and later decided to extend the existing planting bed - by that time, the grass was so strong we had to rent a tiller. Basically we use organic chicken poop and apply it with a garden spreader in 60 day intervals starting early spring. I read about it on a lawn care website/forum, but I don't remember the site. The product we use most is Cockadoodle Doo, but there's also Chickity Doo Doo. I found the Chickity Doo Doo to have more of an odor to it than the Cockadoodle Doo, but not overpowering by any stretch of the imagination and I'd recommend either of these (Chickity Doo Doo was less expensive). Cockadoodle Doo has a website where you can search for local vendors in your area, and when I do find it I jump on it because most places sell out fast. Both brands have the fertilizer and the weed control products, and you alternate these throughout the season - weed control early spring, 60 days later fertilizer, 60 days later weed control again, and then fertilize again in the fall. Essentially the way the product works is that it feeds your lawn making it strong and healthy, enabling the grass to fight and erradicate weeds on its own. It's safe for pets, plants, etc. My lawn is beautiful now, lush, green and we always get compliments - it took a couple of years, but looks nice and plush now and rarely do I find weeds. Google Cockadoodle Doo and review the FAQ page for more info. I'm not claiming that this product erradicated creeping charlie on its own, but the combination of my persistence in weeding by hand an using the organic products has been successful in my own yard. Thankfully my neighbors lawn is on the OTHER side of my driveway where I have only a narrow strip of planting space that I've mulched over, so hopefully my C.C. days are over. Yes, I've told my neighbor about Cockadoodle Doo, but no, she hasn't gone out to get any. Perhaps this may be a future "gift" from the neighbors. LOL. As for the flyer: It states that the plant (Creeping Charlie aka Ground Ivy, Glechoma Hederacea - an aggressive perennial weed of the mint family introduced by Europeans as a groundcover) often becomes dominant in lawns that are partially shaded, cut too short or compacted (i.e. the grass grows weaker). It suggests to mow high, 2.5-3" to help grass compete better. Taller grasses shade out weeds and has deeper roots than shorter grass. Have your lawn core aerated once a year to reduce compaction, increase drainage and invigorate old turf. Re- seed thin areas with fresh grass seed. Most common active ingredients in weedkillers have little effect on creeping charlie....'Dicamba' is known to control it with repeat applications, but should not be used more than once a year or under trees and shrubs to avoid risk of injury to those plants. Another active ingredient listed to control is 'triclopyr', but again with repeat applications. Use weedkiller during active growth stage, when plant is flowering in May-June, and in fall after a few frosts, usually Oct. Don't mow just before or for a few days after using weedkiller. Don't apply in summer b/c the lawn can be killed by weedkiller. Liquid weedkillers are often more effective b/c they cover more leaf surface. Suggested products: 1. Ortho Weed-b-Gon Chickweek, Clover and Oxalis Killer; active ingredient triclopyr. 2. Fertilome Weedout, active ingredient dicamba. Good luck!

Has anyone tried doing a load with Dr. Bronner's? DESCRIPTION: Sal Suds is a balanced formulation of naturally derived surfactants with pure fir and spruce essential oils: it cleans and rinses with exceptional power yet is mild and gentle on the skin. Sal Suds is not soap-based and is formulated especially for all-purpose hard-surface cleaning. Available in 32 oz. bottle. Perfect for general household cleaning: dishes floors laundry etc. Equally effective in hard or soft water rinsing freely hot or cold. Concentrated and self-preserving: no hidden preservatives or ingredients. No synthetic dyes or fragrances: all ingredients fully disclosed and described. Biodegrades rapidly after doing its job. Pure high-quality fir and spruce essential oils: no cheap harsh pine stump oil. No animal testing: Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics certified. INGREDIENTS: Water, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Coco-Betaine, Lauryl Glucoside, Fir Needle Oil, Spruce Oil Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS): This surfactant cuts grease and dirt, generates copious suds, and biodegrades quickly and completely. SLS is made by combining a sulfate group with lauryl alcohol from coconut oil, then attaching sodium. If improperly formulated, SLS can irritate skin, but our superb formula uses coco-betaine and lauryl glucoside to counter this. Coco-Betaine: Mild and easily biodegradable, coco-betaine is formed by combining coconut fatty acids with betaine (a nature-identical synthetic so-named because it was first discovered in sugar beets). This foam-boosting cleansing agent buffers irritation caused by SLS. Lauryl Glucoside: This powerful grease-cutting surfactant is especially mild and quickly biodegradable, and is made by combining glucose from corn with fatty alcohols from coconut and palm kernel oils. Lauryl glucoside not only works with SLS to cut dirt and oily soils with exceptional ease, but also combines with coco-betaine to give Sal Suds smooth mildness. Fir Needle Oil & Spruce Oil: Pure essential oils from fir and spruce give Sal Suds its wonderful aroma. Most other cleansers use synthetic fragrances or cheap harsh pine stump oil. Here is a link that might be useful: Dr. Bronner's Sal Suds Liquid Cleaner

@newtolawncare It is not just cut height, but frequency. If you do it once the impact is likely to be negligible. Here's a very interesting experiment that was done on fescue to show the impact of proper grazing management. Both boxes started with 3 foot roots (!!!), one was cu to 4" every 30 days, the other to 2" every 5-7 days. The impact on the roots is dramatic. http://www.gaininggroundvirginia.org/resources-index/demonstrations/ With lawns, it would have to be tested but I expect we are closer to to the 2" every 5-7 days , though the frequency and cut height is a little different - 3.5" every 4-7 days depending on season. This may effectively put an upper limit on how deep the roots can go in your average fescue lawn. If we could live with waiting 2 weeks in between cuts that would probably double to root depth of the average lawn. Something to think about, especially in areas with water availability issues - letting the grass grow tall may greatly reduce the amount of water needed to keep the lawn alive due to it tapping into deeper water.