On Jul 7, 10:22*pm, "songbird" wrote:
hr(bob) wrote:
OK. *Pat K has identified my lawn invasion as Nimblewill:
http://www.msuturfweeds.net/details/_/nimblewill_44/

I can pull a lot of it out by hand, given we get a few cooler days
here in the Chicago suburbs, but I cannot get all of it out. *I was
thinking of spraying Roundup on the areas where it is 100% invasive to
see if that kills it off.

* will help a great deal, let it grow as long as possible
before spraying to maximize leaf/stem surface area,
trim on highest setting just before spraying (really
helps a lot). *that is as long as it doesn't go to seed. *

*If that works, I was then thinking of
moistening a rag dripping wet with Roundup, me wearing waterproof
gloves, and rubbing the rag on the weedgrass while avoiding the real
grass as much as possible.

* or a sponge paintbrush in the appropriate size.
think of it as therapy on a nice day, to go out
and sit in the lawn and listen to the birds chirp,
the neighbors argue, if you hear a loud noise like
a divebomber it is probably a hummingbird
thinking your ear is a flower. *do not paint your
ears red, they tickle like you wouldn't believe
and can be a menace to your ear drums. *ok,
that was a bit of a joke as they are rather
feisty this time of year jousting in the bee balm...

*I know spraying will hit everything, weed
and grass alike, so that is not an option where there is still regular
grass mixed in.

* yea, you can also trim off as much as possible
and track down runners through the grass and
pull them too. *but much easier to apply roundup
with the sponge brush and let the chemical find
all the runners for you and take them out without
disturbing the rest of your soil.

* you might have to go back a few times, but
this is the most economical way to use roundup
since you are using only a small amount and only
hitting the weeds you want to take out. *residual
damage to other plants and soil is minimal and
the therapy is good. *

* you might have to hit an area a few times to
get everything, but that can also be from residual
seeds sprouting when conditions are right.

*If I just get the Roundup on the weedgrass, will it
transfer via the roots to the lawngrass?

* no, you're safe there as long as you keep it
on the weed. *might take a *while to notice
what you've missed as this time of year some
things are going dormant.

* songbird

Thanx for the reply, I will make a low stool to sit on, with a hole
for a beverage container, and make sure not to paint it to avoid
attracting wildlife, both flying and on the groundG.

Painting on herbicide sounds like just as much work as digging it
up. At least with digging up, you also loosen the soil, which is
good for the grass left behind. And you can drink a cold beer or
a hot coffee while you do it. Beverages and herbicides don't mix.

The best time to dig up weeds is a few hours after a good soaking
rain.

Una

hr(bob) wrote:
....
Thanx for the reply, I will make a low stool to sit on, with a hole
for a beverage container, and make sure not to paint it to avoid
attracting wildlife, both flying and on the groundG.

i sit as close to ground level as possible on
a chair bottom that has plenty of padding
and then i often find myself stretching out
and shifting positions as my back and butt
desire. it's amazing what you can observe
at a few inches elevation, but that does
put a damper on productivity.

yes, you can dig them up and track
down the stolons/runners/roots, but that
stirring of the soil also moves seeds around
and up from below. nature does enough
of that via worms, ants and other critters
so it doesn't need any help from me. the
less i disturb the soil in any planting the
fewer weeds come up there as they don't
get stirred up and it doesn't leave as many
places for the weed seeds blowing by to
get going too. the dead stuff standing
offers some protection to new seedlings
if you plant it again immediately, but
alas, there will probably be remaining
plants to deal with for a bit before you'll
have it completely under control.

yeah, it's a lot of work to paint, but for
the situation mentioned where he's talking
about taking out the middle with a full spray
then he's just having to deal with the stragglers
around the edges and isolated spots that are
too small to spray.

here, spray is always the last resort, i
weed as much by hand as possible and
plant cover crops to provide shade and
nursury plants for whatever else i want to
plant to follow on for the subsequent years.
many of these efforts are later sidetracked
and remodeled (because of wanting to
improve drainage or a new garden or a
new burying spot for deadheading or the
last raccoon found in the road upwind, etc.)

good luck,


songbird