If the weeds in your lawn are driving you mad, and if you cannot/do-not wish to dig them out, then help is at hand. I have found 'Verdone' to be an excellent lawn weedkiller.
'Verdone' can be applied by either sprayer or watering can. Spraying is best because it does not use as much. So not only is it more economical, there is less risk of weedkiller getting into the flower beds (it can be washed off the surface in heavy rain), or even into the water supply. Just carefully follow the instructions. If you do this, success is virtually guaranteed, with a few provisos:
Because 'Verdone' is a systemic weedkiller, it works as the weeds grow. This will take a few weeks and means that if weeds such as dandelions are close to releasing seeds, you will have to remove the seed heads (or even the flowers) by hand.
You need to watch out for rain. Systemic weedkillers need to be on the weed leaves for a certain length of time to ensure they have entered the plants. The instructions will tell you how long.
The weeds must be growing - actively growing.
You must not spray in wind, or the weedkiller might drift onto your favourite plants.
You need to keep your pets indoors until the weeds are dry, and watch your fish.
Most people feed, weed and mosskill their lawn by applying granular fertilizers. Nothing wrong with this. But they are much more difficult to use, and quite often cause scorching at this time of year, resulting in permanent damage to the lawn. A sprinkler is a good thing to have if you intend to use this type of weedkiller.
FOLLOW-UPS
Once the weeds have been killed, you might get the odd one germinating here and there. Instead of treating the whole lawn again, I use a spot weedkiller to zap them one by one. You can buy spot lawn weedkillers from garden centres, but it is cheaper to make up your own. I use an old kitchen spray, but you can buy small hand-hold sprayers.
A word of WARNING here. Make sure you are using a LAWN spot weeder, not a general purpose garden one. Lawn weedkillers are SELECTIVE - they kill the weeds but not the grass; general weedkillers (e.g. glyphosate) are not - they kill most growing green things.
Wear gloves and avoid inhaling the spray. Wash out everything thoroughly after use, especially the watering can. You need to be especially careful. Wash it out 3 or 4 times. Even better: buy one in a different colour just for weedkillers.
MOSS
Moss should not be a problem now, as it will die off in the dry summer weather. If you can buy it, 'GreenUp' (55.5% ferrous sulphate) is extremely good. 'GreenUp' (made by Vitax) contains no lawn feed, so can be given at any time. All you do is dilute it in water and apply with a watering can or sprayer. It will turn the moss black before your eyes. If your garden centre doesn't sell it, it is worth asking them to get it in stock. It is especially useful over winter when you can nip moss in the bud without applying feed. If you wait till spring (the traditional method), it is too late: much of the grass will have been killed.
A cheaper way of killing moss than using 'GreenUp' is to use ferrous sulphate crystals. These can be bought from fertizer suppliers.
No comments:
Post a Comment