I treated the lawn with Ortho Weed B Gone one week ago. How soon will
it be safe to place grass clippings in my composter, or is that a
definite no-no? Thanks.

N_A_J wrote:
I treated the lawn with Ortho Weed B Gone one week ago. How soon will
it be safe to place grass clippings in my composter, or is that a
definite no-no?

Two questions:
1. How bad of a weed problem did you have that you needed to put weed
killer on the whole lawn?
2. Why are you bagging your clippings in the first place? (That may be
partly responsible for having such a weed infested lawn that you had to
spread weed killer on it in the first place.)

Asking about composting those clippings is kind of like asking getting a
tune-up on a car with no brakes.

--
Warren H.

==========
Disclaimer: My views reflect those of myself, and not my
employer, my friends, nor (as she often tells me) my wife.
Any resemblance to the views of anybody living or dead is
coincidental. No animals were hurt in the writing of this
response -- unless you count my dog who desperately wants
to go outside now.

Warren wrote:

N_A_J wrote:
I treated the lawn with Ortho Weed B Gone one week ago. How soon will
it be safe to place grass clippings in my composter, or is that a
definite no-no?

Two questions:
1. How bad of a weed problem did you have that you needed to put weed
killer on the whole lawn?
2. Why are you bagging your clippings in the first place? (That may be
partly responsible for having such a weed infested lawn that you had to
spread weed killer on it in the first place.)

Asking about composting those clippings is kind of like asking getting a
tune-up on a car with no brakes.

I agree. Get a mulching lawn mower, it will shoot the clippings back into
the lawn and help get rid of the weeds. I wouldn't compost them at all but
if you want to I would wait at least a month before you try it again.

Dave G.

On 26 May 2003 16:11:28 -0700, (N_A_J) wrote:

I treated the lawn with Ortho Weed B Gone one week ago. How soon will
it be safe


It has been unsafe for your family and any critters or pets since the
day you opened the bottle.


"Nature, left alone, is in perfect balance.
Harmful insects and plant diseases are always present,
but do not occur in nature to an extent which requires the use of poisonous chemicals.
The sensible approach to disease and insect control is to grow sturdy crops in a healthy environment."

Masanobu Fukuoka, One Straw Revolution--1978

"Warren" wrote in message news:GhyAa.1031064$S_4.1039896@rwcrnsc53...
N_A_J wrote:
I treated the lawn with Ortho Weed B Gone one week ago. How soon will
it be safe to place grass clippings in my composter, or is that a
definite no-no?

Two questions:
1. How bad of a weed problem did you have that you needed to put weed
killer on the whole lawn?
2. Why are you bagging your clippings in the first place? (That may be
partly responsible for having such a weed infested lawn that you had to
spread weed killer on it in the first place.)

Asking about composting those clippings is kind of like asking getting a
tune-up on a car with no brakes.

--
Warren H.

The lawn in question is not my lawn, it's my brother's. The lawn is
relatively new (2 years) from seed. He didn't take care of it very
well, hence the weed problems. With the recent arrival of a baby, he
has even less time than before to take care of a lawn. It was
overgrown until I cut it last week. I applied the weed killer to see
what I would end up working with. I'm going to dethatch tomorrow, cut
the grass again, and fertilize. I'm bagging clippings until I can get
the lawn somewhat back into shape. I would prefer to mulch, but there
is just too much overgrowth to get through right now. I don't think
the lawn is "breathing" very well as it is now.

"N_A_J" wrote in message
om...
I treated the lawn with Ortho Weed B Gone one week ago. How soon will
it be safe to place grass clippings in my composter, or is that a
definite no-no? Thanks.

The weed killer will degrade in the soil. I'm not sure of composition of
Weed B gone but you could do a Google search on degradation time of the
specific components in soil. Or, call the manufacturer and ask. IMHO, by
the time compost is done cooking, there will not be enough weed killer to
worry about.
Frank

Is this okay to do if you are cutting down weeds also? We just bought
a house with grass peeking through the weed patches. The ladies we
bought it from didn't have a clue, they stapled the fence together for
goodnes sakes... I thatched, mowed, limed and fertilized a couple
days ago and am waiting for some miracle!

I was going to give it a month, then start digging weeks and
re-seeding empty spots. Would another application of fertilizer in a
couple weeks help to "drown" out any weeds?

If I mow weed tips, I just leave these on the ground along with the
grass clippings?

Thanks,
Katherine

"Warren" wrote in message news:GhyAa.1031064$S_4.1039896@rwcrnsc53...
N_A_J wrote:
I treated the lawn with Ortho Weed B Gone one week ago. How soon will
it be safe to place grass clippings in my composter, or is that a
definite no-no?

Two questions:
1. How bad of a weed problem did you have that you needed to put weed
killer on the whole lawn?
2. Why are you bagging your clippings in the first place? (That may be
partly responsible for having such a weed infested lawn that you had to
spread weed killer on it in the first place.)

Asking about composting those clippings is kind of like asking getting a
tune-up on a car with no brakes.

--
Warren H.

==========
Disclaimer: My views reflect those of myself, and not my
employer, my friends, nor (as she often tells me) my wife.
Any resemblance to the views of anybody living or dead is
coincidental. No animals were hurt in the writing of this
response -- unless you count my dog who desperately wants
to go outside now.

On 26 May 2003 22:42:06 -0700, (N_A_J) wrote:

snip

The lawn in question is not my lawn, it's my brother's. The lawn is
relatively new (2 years) from seed. He didn't take care of it very
well, hence the weed problems. With the recent arrival of a baby, he
has even less time than before to take care of a lawn. It was
overgrown until I cut it last week. I applied the weed killer to see
what I would end up working with. I'm going to dethatch tomorrow, cut
the grass again, and fertilize. I'm bagging clippings until I can get
the lawn somewhat back into shape. I would prefer to mulch, but there
is just too much overgrowth to get through right now. I don't think
the lawn is "breathing" very well as it is now.

Why take care of your brother's lawn? It is evident he does not care
about mowing his lawn, so a weedy lawn is even less to be concerned to
him. Maybe you should buy him a mulching lawn mower to celebrate his
fatherhood. Some time ago I lived with my brother who expected me to
wash all his clothes and cook all the meals (he never turned on a
washing machine and ate frozen prepared dinners)--he's married now and
I pity the bride.

KR wrote:
Is this okay to do if you are cutting down weeds also? We just bought
a house with grass peeking through the weed patches. The ladies we
bought it from didn't have a clue, they stapled the fence together for
goodnes sakes... I thatched, mowed, limed and fertilized a couple
days ago and am waiting for some miracle!

I was going to give it a month, then start digging weeks and
re-seeding empty spots. Would another application of fertilizer in a
couple weeks help to "drown" out any weeds?

If I mow weed tips, I just leave these on the ground along with the
grass clippings?


You didn't just fertilize the grass. You fertilized the weeds, too.

The number one thing you want to do for the summer is not let the weeds
form seeds. If it's all as bad as you're describing, I would be tempted
to cut everything as low as you can go. Then cover the lawn with
plastic. Not landscaping fabric. Not those porous weed blocks. Plastic.
Let the heat of the summer kill everything that's left after you mow it
down. Cook that baby.

Then in the fall, pull it all off around the same time the temperatures
drop and "fall" begins where you are. This would be the time to do any
grading, or any major changes you want to make. Check-out the soil. The
mowed cuttings you left under the plastic should have composted by now.
Bring in some more compost (and some nice loamy soil if needed), and
work it in.

Then put down a grass seed mix appropriate for your area, and the
sun/shade characteristics of the lawn. Check with your Extension office
for their recommendations. Seed heavy, and put on a "winterizer"
fertilizer between 1/2 and 3/4 what the package says.Cover with straw,
and if the rains haven't started, water the heck out of it until it
starts to germinate.

In the spring, over-seed (especially the bare areas), and put down some
spring fertilizer. Cover with straw again, and water it heavy until the
new grass starts to germinate. Once it's germinated, change your
watering schedule to put down 1 in to 1 1/2 inches of water at one time
once a week. (If it starts to run-off, stop watering just long enough
for it to soak in.) Do NOT be tempted to water a little every day.

Pull any weeds that you can next summer. If you have some very deeply
rooted weeds, spray some RoundUp on them, being careful not to
overspray. (Don't do this step if children or pets will be using the
lawn.)

Then the following fall, serrate, over-seed again, and fertilize. Then
the next spring, over-seed again, and fertilize. Hopefully after that
your lawn will be healthy enough that you'll only need to fertilize each
fall, but not in the spring. By the way.... Leave the clippings on the
lawn. Never mow more than 1/3 the length of the blade, and try to
maintain a height on shorter than about 2-inches.

Next year your neighbors will marvel at how much progress you've made,
and by year three, you could be in a position to win the best lawn in
the neighborhood award.

My position is that in general, you will be the most successful if you
use the least amount of chemicals. Fertilizer directions and those
"programs" you'll see are designed to sell more fertilizer. In general,
you don't need as much as they say, and if you use more, you'll run the
risk of doing more damage. As for weed killing chemicals, well, there
are always risks involved even if you use the "safe" chemicals, and
follow directions. If you use chemicals, you should be getting more
benefits than the risk they impose.

I also think you'll get more satisfaction when you have success without
massive use of chemicals, including fertilizers. You'll have that "I
helped save the Earth" buzz, along with a lot of rest because you aren't
applying chemicals all the time. Your neighbors will wonder how you make
it look so easy!

I consider chemical use on the lawn and when gardening to be similar to
the use of laxatives. Sometimes you need it, but if you become dependant
on laxatives, eventually you'll develop even more problems.

--
Warren H.

==========
Disclaimer: My views reflect those of myself, and not my
employer, my friends, nor (as she often tells me) my wife.
Any resemblance to the views of anybody living or dead is
coincidental. No animals were hurt in the writing of this
response -- unless you count my dog who desperately wants
to go outside now.

On 26 May 2003 16:11:28 -0700, (N_A_J) wrote:

I treated the lawn with Ortho Weed B Gone one week ago. How soon will
it be safe to place grass clippings in my composter, or is that a
definite no-no? Thanks.

Well, it will help to kill the entire fungal mat, any beneficial organisms in
the soil, and possibly kill the soil altogether. I hope you have a nice lawn,
now.

I wouldn't use compost which was eaten by a cow, digested through the stomachs,
chewed up cud, redigested and composted under about 150 degree heat...if it has
any herbicide in the hay they ate.

Picloram and atrazine are two powerful, persistent pesticides and it is
dangerous and should be removed from the market and people need to learn to
tolerate some weeds.

My garden is and has always been organic. We are the first owners of this
property and it was virgin soil. I've never once used a herbicide. The way I
manage weeds in turf is to keep it mowed before the weeds go to seed and mow
high so any seeds in the soil will not get much light. Many weeds are
indication plants that soil is very infertile, some are highly successional and
love the added fertilizer. Do some research BEFORE you hose your land with
pesticides, not after.

Oh, my point is, I don't have many lawn weeds any more. What I do have, I hand
pull. I've also given up the tremendous turf areas and each year I remove more
and more of the water guzzling, energy depleting grass.

So, to answer, it is never safe to use clippings which were treated with
pesticides.