In article , "Buck Turgidson"
wrote:

I have some clover in my lawn here in DC that is out of control. I
understand that some clover is beneficial, but this is definitely too much
of a good thing.

Is there something safe that I can put on it? I have 2 little ones, and I
am not about to put anything toxic on the lawn.

On a side question, my neighbor, who lot is slightly higher than mine, uses
chemicals freely, like Weed-B-Gone. Should I worry about runoff from his
lawn?

Clovers prefer a low-nitrogen soil without too much organic matter. Making
soil loamier with good levels of nitrogen keeps the clover from
dominating. You can increase the loamy content under grass (which will
help microorganisms produce more nitrogen) by sprinkling a fine very
crumbly compost all over the surface of the lawn, then use the side of a
two-by-four, or perhaps just a leaf-rake, to rub the grass surface, & the
compost will vanish into the grass.

If you're getting water run-off from your neighbor's chemical-saturated
yard, then yes, you have something to worry about.

The degree of dangerousness of Weed-B-Gone & similar products is debated
mainly because manufacturers are providing a whelter of muddling
information so that customers won't see clearly what is known. What is
known is that dogs that live or play in lawns treated with these chemicals
die of cancer at twice the rate of dogs not exposed [Hayes et all in
Journal of the National Cancer Inst, Sept 1991]. Studies on farmworkers &
railroad workers (the latter spraying these herbicides along railroad
tracks) show an increased cancer risk for people [Zahm et al in
Epidemiology, Sept 1990].

Children in homes where lawn herbicides are used are three to nine times
more likely to get cancer than are children who play in areas never
exposed to such chemicals, & these lawn treatments are rightly suspected
as the chief cause for the spiraling increase in lymphoma disease &
lymphoma cancer in children fifteen to nineteen years old. Golf course
attendants exposed to these chemicals have increased incidents of brain,
intestine & prostate. The alarming increase of brain cancer in children
during the last thirty years is of unknown cause, but the two most cited
probable causes are direct exposure to weedkillers & pesticides, & an
early diet of cow's milk after cows are exposed to sundry chemicals.

The most suspected chemical in Weed-b-gone, & similar herbicides is
2,4-chlorophenoxyacetic Acid, a phenoxy herbicide which the EPA has
established beyond doubt is a cancer-causing agent. The question comes
about as to level of "safe" exposure, but these decisions are made to
promote business more than to protect the population, or at best as a
"trade-off" of how many extra cancer cases would be permissible for the
economic gains for continued use.

All phenoxy herbicides are unsafe, & are listed in herbicides under
various names (2,4-dichlorophenoxy-acetic acid,
2-methyl-4-chlorophenoxyacetic acid, Triclopyr, & Dicamba). The product
names include not only Weed-b-gone but also Weedone, Weedmaster, Crossbow,
Banvel, Garlon, Grazon, MCPA, Weed-n-Feed, Miracle, Brush Killer, Demise,
Lawn-Keep, Ded-Weed, Hormotox (wadda name, contracting Hormone Toxic),
Plantgard, Raid Weed Killer, & a great many othe trademark names. Some
other phenoxy herbicides have already been banned for use, & in the future
more will be banned, but not before new alternatives perhaps no safer can
be readied for market. Here is a short FAQ on 2,4-D:
http://www.dhfs.state.wi.us/eh/ChemFS/fs/24d.htm

The Cancer Prevention Coalition included Weed-b-gone in its "top-dozen
list" of the most dangerous chemicals most apt to harm families [Cancer
Prevention News, Fall 1995]. The most common cancer associated with
herbicides generally & especially 2,4-D is non-hodgson's lymphoma, the
most common cancer in dogs exposed to 2,4-D treated lawns, & several
studies show that humans are susceptible to the same range of cancers as
dogs, & especially non-hodgsons [Hoar et al, J. Med. Assoc, Sept 1986;
Axelson et all, Scand. J. of Work Environment & Health, Mar 1980; Cantor
et al, Cancer Research, Aug 1980; & so on].

Workers in chemic al plants that manufacture these weed-killers have a 46%
increased cancer rate, which was discovered by the first independent study
of the issue as conducted by the National Institutes of Occupational
Safety and Health. Previous studies conducted in-house by Monsanto & BASF
found no such risk, but it has repeatedly been shown that these vested
interests fake results [see for example "Monsanto Studies Under Fire," in
Science, Feb 8, 1991].

Manufacturers generate their own stkudies to prove safety, which is why of
99 human studies of the carcinogenity of commonly used herbicides, 75
indicate a significant connection between exposure to pesticides and
lymphomas, but 24 give the same products a clean bill of health. The
happier findings tend to be conducted with chimical manufacturer funding
or in-house by chemical companies, or by researchers who've been invited
to serve on chemical industry boards.

It is not a good assumption that only 2,4-D is the danger, since even some
of the "inert" ingredients in weed killers have toxic properties.
Something like 20 admitted "inert" ingredients in the products include at
least a quarter-dozen that are known independently to be carcenogenic.
Though the levels of exposure for each individual ingriendient is set at
an allegedly safe level of exposure if the products are used as directed,
no study shows what their combined toxicity or their interactions might be
for human illness. So all that is known for sure is that the weed killers
most often slathered onto lawns, farms, & railroad tracks do increase
cancer rates in humans & animals.

If your neighbor's use of these dangerous lawn treatments reaches you as
dust carried by wind, you'll be getting a strong dose. Run-off chemicals
will be diluted. Short of a very large & thick living hedge that works as
a barrier against both run-off & wind-carried chemical pollutants, you're
probably having risks imposed on your family & pets only slightly less
worrisome than what the ignorant jackass is doing to himself & his own
family.

-paghat the ratgirl

--
"Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher.
"Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature.
-from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers"
Visit the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com