Expert: Ronald B Persaud - 7/1/2009

Question
Any suggestions on dealing with weeds on a Flortram lawn?  I put down an application of Scotts Bonus-S about three weeks ago an have seen no improvement.  I then tried spot treatment using their Weed-B-Gone granules.  The weeds are still there in all their glorious profusion.  Since applying the weed treatment we have had a great deal of rain and I am wondering if it could have washed away the chemical application.  I may have tackled the problem too late in the growing season and wonder if I should just wait until the spring and put down a heavy application of some kind of pre-emergent weed killer.  Do you have any other suggestions?  Thanks in advance for your anticipated response.

Answer
I have had very good results by spraying atrazine in the spring. The product I use has a specific cut off date in April. I have had better results with liquid applications of weedkiller rather than granular applications of either weedkiller alone or W&F combinations. I am sure that the reason is that I can apply a liquid more accurately. I use a back-pack sprayer with a fan tip and I always add a tracker dye to show me where I've been. I have matched the delivery rate of the sprayer and my rate of walking to obtain a coverage rate of 1.0 gallon per 1000 sq.ft.  I try to make this application as early as I can after Feb. 14th. The lawn should be raked beforehand - the one lawn-care task which I try to get someone else to do.