Lawn Care Forum banner

What Kind of Sprayer

1K views 3 replies 3 participants last post by  Ric 
#1 ·
I have a 3.5 acre yard at my residence and am wanting to purchase a sprayer for fertilizer and herbicides. Any suggestions on how big of a sprayer I need and what kind. Pull behind 12V or one that attaches to a tractor. Also, any good brands that I should use and how big of tank and boom do you suggest.

Chad
 
#4 ·
scagman11

If you are a homeowner and not in the commercial business then you might want to stay away from sprayers. A good tow behind spreader might be a better way to go. Weed & Feed applied at the proper time frame can get great results on most weeds. Granular products generally take longer to work, but last longer. Granular fertilizer feeds the soil, the environment your plants(grass) lives in. Spray fertilizer feeds the leafs and not the soil. Sprays work faster, but generally not as long. A good slow release can more than pay for itself by giving even consistent green growth that is not hard to cut. Fast releases can cause a boom that is green but very hard to cut. Fast growth is generally a weaker growth. Stay away from fertilizers that have a high Nitrogen and low other numbers. Ex sample would be Scott's 29-2-3. You would be better off with a 24-5-11 or a 4-1-2 ratio and slow release. However your county extension service can tell you more about the soil in your area.

The big advantage in spray is post emerge weed control. Sprays work faster. That is not to say Granules don't work. However sprays can get certain weeds that granules won't. Unless your whole yard is made up of those kind of weeds a small pump up sprayer can spot treat those weeds. Fungus is an other issue where sprays work better. Because they work faster to cure the disease, sprays are better. However this requires the knowledge of proper diagnoses.

There are 44 thousand Sq feet in an acre (43,560). Most herbicides etc are applied at a rate of 1 gallon per Thousand Sq Ft.

The reason most big companies use spray is two fold. 1st is general cheaper for them from a labor and production cost factor. They can custom blend in the tank if need be. 2nd as a marketing ploy because most homeowner will not buy a sprayer to do their lawn. They will try and sell the concept that spray is better when in fact it is not.

Now the above is written by a guy who makes his living from spraying lawns. However I also use a lot of slow release granular fertilizer. I also use granular insecticides for subterranean insects.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top