"MC" wrote in message
news
On Mon, 01 Mar 2004 13:00:03 +0000, Pam - gardengal wrote:


"MC" wrote in message
news
On Sun, 29 Feb 2004 15:06:50 -0800, JeffLaw wrote:

We started having weed problems (mostly dandelion) in our lawn last
summer I & was hoping to get some tips for better control this year.
I've seen several posts from people saying manually removing weeds is
the best bet, but each time I've tried that I either don't get the
roots or leave huge pot holes in my lawn. I've tried several weed
removal tools (i.e. "as seen on tv" weed pullers) that also leave the
big holes. I will start using Scott's spring fertilizer with weed
control soon, but it didn't seem to help much last year. Has anyone
had luck with any brand of lawn friendly herbicides? Any weed
removal
gardening tool suggestions? Any tips for this lawn care newbie would
be appreciated .

Mechanical weed removal works fine. I have used a combination of that
and
Weed-B-Gon. This method works great on dandelions, creeping charlie
and
other broadleaf pests. I usually make 2-3 applications over the entire
lawn at 2-3 week intervals. Eradicating creeping charlie works best if
you can hit the plant when it is blooming, a period in its life when
all
the plant's energy goes into bloom production thereby weakening it a
bit.

There's nothing wrong with chemicals as long as one uses common sense
and
can read/follow instructions to the letter.

At the risk of starting a huge flame war (and hasn't it been quiet in
that
regard lately?), not all chemical weed controls are exactly benign. I
would
encourage the OP to consider something other than a combo weed'n feed
type
product. This is probably the most inefficient and problematic use of
chemical herbicides. Run off with this type of material is flagrant -
there
is more pollution of streams and ground water from residential use of
weed
and feed products than from any other form of pesticide. Much better to
use
manual control whenever possible or spot treat persistant perennial type
weeds rather than a broadcast granular product.

http://www.huronview.on.ca/gardening_04.html

pam - gardengal


I always felt that runoff is problematic with regard to lawn treatment.
After hearing several lectures by turfgrass experts from the university's
turfgrass facility, I am now of a different opinion. Fertilizers and
chemicals do not wash off lawns and into streams and lakes. They go into
the soil which acts as a giant filter. Chemicals in use now have a short
life of just a few weeks. The only way to get chemicals to our waterways
is to physcially dump them in storm sewers.

I lived in a farming area much of my life. After seeing the tons and tons of
chemicals farmers used on their crops every year, I fail to understand the
fuss about home owners using a few pounds of fertilizers and weed killers on
their lawns two or three times a year.

Hound Dog