Organic Weed Control Spray

DY · Joined: 13 Mar 2004 Posts: 1

I have a 1/2 acre back yard that is covered in different weeds. I would like to start an organic regime to control weeds. I tried mixing the vinegar, orange oil, and liquid soap in my 2-gallon hand sprayer; however, I have so many weeds that it is too timeconsuming. I need to find a concentrated (proven) organic weed control to use in my Ortho sprayer or a container that I attached to my hose to spray for the weeds. Does anyone have any ideas? Any help would be appreciated.

Guest · Posted: Sat Mar 13, 2004 6:56 pm Post subject:

There is a commercial product called Scythe (sp.?) It is a fatty acid product that seems to work well.

Mr. Clean · Joined: 27 Mar 2003 Posts: 708 Location: Garland, Texas

DY,

You might see about having your post moved over into a more appropriate forum like Lawn Care or Weeds and see if you don't receive a better response.

ZIPPER · Joined: 08 Mar 2003 Posts: 354 Location: San Antonio,Tx

Hello DY,
I've been away from the forum a tad and I'll move your post over to Lawn Care.
Hope you'll get a bit more info there.

Regarding your weed control, the one thing that comes to mind is the application of Corn Gluten Meal as a 'pre-emergent'. It will not allow the weeds to form roots when seeds sprout. Estabilished weeds will not be affected. CGM is also a fertilizer.

Dchall_San_Antonio · Joined: 18 Mar 2003 Posts: 2011 Location: San Antonio,TEXAS

Once you go organic and start to care for the area properly (below), your weeds will go away without you seemingly doing much about it. Read the FAQ on the top of the Lawn forum and follow the following suggestions.

1. Water deeply and infrequently. Deeply means at least an hour in every zone, all at once. Infrequently means monthly during the cool months and no more than weekly during the hottest part of summer. If your grass looks dry before the month/week is up, water longer next time. Deep watering grows deep, drought resistant roots. Infrequent watering allows the top layer of soil to dry completely which kills off many shallow rooted weeds.

2. Mow at the highest setting on your mower. Most grasses are the most dense when mowed tall. Bermuda, centipede, and bent grasses are the most dense when mowed at the lowest setting on your mower. Dense grass shades out weeds and uses less water when tall. Dense grass feeds the deep roots you're developing in 1 above.

3. Fertilize regularly. I fertilize 4 times per year using organic fertilizer. Which fertilizer you use is much less important than numbers 1 and 2 above.

By concentrating on growing great grass, the weeds will go away for the most part. Just forget about them for now and concentrate on the grass.