How late will you spray for weeds

[lqmustang]

Or better yet, at what point as the temperatures drop do you find control drops off and is not as effective due to less active growing cycle? I'd like to gear this more toward broadleaf weed control in cool season (bluegrass, fine fescue) turf types. Thanks in advance.

[Grandview]

I will be spraying at least the first week of November. As long as the ground is not frozen and day time temps reach 40, I find broadleaf weed control to be good.

[GreenUtah]

Frost certainly takes it's own toll on annual weeds,so you have to ask at a certain point why you would waste a chemical app on what mother nature is going to do for you anyway. I generally will stop herbicide apps when daytime temps drop into the 50s and overnights below freezing, to stay and move toward winterizing fert apps, on cool season grasses expected to take a snow load at some point.

[TURF DOCTOR]

The customer is paying for the service right how are you wasting a chemical app.

[ArizPestWeed]

It may be irrisposible to apply if it's not needed .
Luckily , in Arizona , we have weed all year round .
Lots of rocket and filaree in winter here

[GreenUtah]

The customer is paying for the service right how are you wasting a chemical app.

You are not only wasting a chem app in that situation, you are doing your customer a disservice by not advising them that will be the chain of events. I never apply just to get an app in. You do what's right for the plants in your care.

[philk17088]

You are not only wasting a chem app in that situation, you are doing your customer a disservice by not advising them that will be the chain of events. I never apply just to get an app in. You do what's right for the plants in your care.
I agree to a point but I need that revenue to live.
If it isn't in violation of the label, I'll do it.

[lawnservice]

me, i'll spray till around 2:00pm

then I'll want to beat the traffic back to the shop
:D

[Grandview]

Frost doesn't kill dandelions, clover, and other perenial broadleaf weeds. Applying a herbicide in late fall provides for a weed free lawn in spring.

[kcchiefs58]

Frost doesn't kill dandelions, clover, and other perenial broadleaf weeds. Applying a herbicide in late fall provides for a weed free lawn in spring.
Frost may not kill them, but will the weeds take in the chemical? I don't think so and then most herbicides are for 50 plus degrees according to the labels, but speed zone i believe says 40 on it. If it freezes I think it is a waste of money but it is your buck.

[FdLLawnMan]

I know I saw this last year somewhere & I saw it again on the Purdue Turf website about this very subject. They spoke of a study that Nebraska did about applying herbicides in the fall. That study found that the herbicides are actually more effective from 10 to 20 days after the first frost. They mentioned that even though the weed is not completely dead by he time everything has stopped growing it will die from winter kill. They think that it has something to do with the starch production in the plant. I have very good success following that idea. I will spray up to 10 days after the first frost & if the weather stays warm enough I will spray up to 20 days after. Next spring the lawns are very clean.

Mike Immel
Mike's total Lawn Care

[GrazerZ]

I spray after frost on occasion. I often have been seen spraying weeds in late Oct here in Maine. Come next spring, my lawns very clean. I don't see any weeds until about after july that show up. I have used quick silver in the mix, also which seems to give you a better kill if you are applying when its chilly.

[Rob Spread & Spray]

DO you have a link to that Perdue info?

[kppurn]

Here you go Rob...

I think it can be found in "Turf Tips" at the bottom.

http://www.agry.purdue.edu/turf/links.htm

[FdLLawnMan]

kppurn

Thanks for getting back to Rob before I did. I found that site by accident. It is a good source of information for cool weather grasses.

Mike
Mike's Total Lawn Care

[Grandview]

I have found my best weed control to be after the first frost until the ground freezes. That would be October to Mid November.

[LwnmwrMan22]

I'm in with Grandview. You don't notice the fast burndown, as you do in June / early July, but come next spring, there won't be a broadleaf weed around.

[trying 2b organic]

I didn't think you could spray that late. I'm going to spot treat during my final round of apps next week. We won't have frost for several weeks.

[Grandview]

There are several reasons late fall applications of herbicides work so well. First the weeds are still very actively growing just like the grass. Second all the food the plant is producing is being sent to the root system. So if a herbicide is applied at this time it goes along for the ride also. Third the cool weather and frost removes any waxy cuticle from the leaves. This makes the plant more receptive to herbicides. The first year I was in business I had a large lawn to do. It was the first week in November and the temps got down into the low 20s for several days. I waited for the first day it got back into the 40s and sprayed it. The next spring there wasn't a dandelion that bloomed.

[MIDWEST25]

Add Barage to your mix and kill broadleaf down to 30 degrees as long as you go at a 1 gallon rate.

[Garth]

Actually I'm spraying about 20 acres today for the military. Just Roundup Pro and Spike 80DF. Nothing major. Trying to get the damn supervisor to open the motor pools is a bother though. Want to get that Spike down before the rains come so it will soak into the root zone which will eliminate alot of weed growth next year.

[BigCity]

I will spray - to a degree - a week or two after a frost. I do feel late fall is better than mid spring for results.

[Runner]

I am blanket spraying all mine right now, because there is just so much that you don't even see. I was spotting in previous years, but then others (weeds) were continuously coming up and getting noticed. This just makes a huge difference in the spring. The uptake and show results (burndown) are slower, but just as effective.