# How to kILL GRASS



## jeneje (Mar 12, 2012)

Hello all, i know this has nothing to do with PM's, but i have a need to kill grass and weeds out of my work area outside. I have tried everything on the market that home depot and lowes sells and it only works on the surface leaving the root system. Does anybody have any suggestion on a good way to kill the root system? Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks
Ken


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## acpeacemaker (Mar 12, 2012)

Im not real sure chemical wise. But gardening wise we took a weed burner that was connected onto a propane tank. After the area was burned we took a black tarp and covered the circumference for a couple of weeks. The heat traps underneath killin mostly everything. I've also seen people use rolled rubber for roofing instead of a tarp.


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## kuma (Mar 12, 2012)

Hello Ken , how are tricks?
I hope your well!
I found this ;

"Your answer lies back in the days of ancient Rome. See Wikipedia's description of 'salting the earth':

http://www.answers.com/topic/salting-the-earth?hl=scorched&hl=earth&hl=policy

which tells us this refers to and I quote 'the practice of spreading salt on fields to make them incapable of being used for crop-growing. This was done in ancient times at the end of some wars as an extremely punitive scorched Earth tactic.'

Wikipedia also reminds us: 'The Red Army also salted Soviet fields as a part of the scorched earth policy against the Nazi invasion. It was reported that when the Soviets reclaimed the territory, they were equally unable to use it.'

Salt will solve your problem here, sir.

Salt (Sodium Chloride) reaches toxic levels dissolved in water.

Sodium ions displace Phosphorus and Potassium in your garden. Plant roots take up Chloride ions and ship them around to all the leaves. This interrupts the manufacture of Chlorophyll; roots wane from severe dehydration; and it's Goodbye and Good Luck."

Whether or not this can be of some use to you (I hope it can!) I don't know , either way , it made for interesting reading! 
All the best for now , and kind regards ,
Chris :mrgreen:


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## jeneje (Mar 12, 2012)

Thanks Guys for the help, sometime the simplest of things work the best. I will call greenway in the morning and order100lbs to start.
Ken


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## AztekShine (Mar 12, 2012)

So much better than my used motor oil idea! :twisted:


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## Harold_V (Mar 13, 2012)

jeneje said:


> Hello all, i know this has nothing to do with PM's, but i have a need to kill grass and weeds out of my work area outside. I have tried everything on the market that home depot and lowes sells and it only works on the surface leaving the root system. Does anybody have any suggestion on a good way to kill the root system? Any help would be appreciated.
> Thanks
> Ken


Have you used Roundup or Crossbow? Both will kill all forms of plant life, and return the soil to healthy condition in short order.

I tried using salt in the parking area in an old home I had in Utah. Ended up using a soil sterilizer instead due to the leaching of the salt, resulting in the rapid return of grasses. At that time, buying a sterilizer wasn't an issue. May not be possible today. 

Harold


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## Geo (Mar 13, 2012)

yep, roundup. kills the root. this brings to mind what my father did to a piece of land that he left to me. i vaguely remember the property being overgrown, but after his death, i went to look at it and it was barren with just a few weeds about. it seemed odd as no one was taking care of it at the time. i move a mobile home onto the property the next year and as we were setting the pillars to level the trailer, i found we couldn't dig more than a couple of inches. after a lot of cussing and hacking i found out why there was no vegetation. my father had the entire acre covered in old Dacron carpet. its still there.(i'm not digging it all up)


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## jeneje (Mar 13, 2012)

> Have you used Roundup or Crossbow? Both will kill all forms of plant life, and return the soil to healthy condition in short order.



Hello Harold, I have used roundup with no effect, have not tried crossbow. The prolbem is the man i brought the property from put 140 tons of gravel in the driveway and made an area 50 wide and 150 deep at the side for a turn around. He did not remove the grass first and it just keeps coming up through the rock. :roll: I'm at a lost here unless i remove all the gravel and start over. That is going to cost a bunch.
I will look for crossbow and try it.
Thanks Harold
Ken


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## Geo (Mar 13, 2012)

roundup is formulated to be neutralized on contact with the soil. if your just spraying the gravel, roundup will not work for this as it needs to be sprayed directly on the plant.i cant think of anything that wouldn't be considered illegal for this. i worked for a farmer many years ago that would spray all the gravel roads on the farm with diesel fuel. i'm not suggesting that you do this because i read that 1 fluid ounce can contaminate like a million gallons of ground water.


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## jeneje (Mar 13, 2012)

Geo said:


> roundup is formulated to be neutralized on contact with the soil. if your just spraying the gravel, roundup will not work for this as it needs to be sprayed directly on the plant.i cant think of anything that wouldn't be considered illegal for this. i worked for a farmer many years ago that would spray all the gravel roads on the farm with diesel fuel. i'm not suggesting that you do this because i read that 1 fluid ounce can contaminate like a million gallons of ground water.


Yeah i though about using diesel, but the enviornment is the concern geo. I am thinking about using the salt and hope for the best I guess.
If this does'nt work i will have to go with removing the gravel. That will be a challegn with all my material i have here.
Ken


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## etack (Mar 13, 2012)

If you buy a stronger solution of Glyphosate the active ingredient in round-up you might have better luck.


http://www.ruralking.com/agriculture/agricultural-sprayers-chemicals/agricultural-chemicals-fertilizers/drexel-chemical/41-2-5-gal-glyphosate.html

Eric

PS Monsanto is like the hive


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## maynman1751 (Mar 13, 2012)

Just Google 'ground sterilizer'. There's all kinds of good products out there. Round-up only kills what it touches and doesn't 'poison' the soil so the weeds and grass just come right back. Get a product that has residual effect. It should last a year or two.


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## publius (Mar 13, 2012)

Just to be clear, diesel fuel is biodegradable. Use the roundup, two applications three days apart then a light coating of diesel from a Hudson type sprayer every so often will keep the O2 away from the roots, preventing germination and rhizome from sprouting. Also it is effective dust control. The diesel fuel will be gone after 5-7 days so may need to be reapplied, just don't apply if rain is expected.


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## milkandpie (Mar 23, 2012)

What kind of grass are you trying to kill? You may need to use a pre-emergence herbicide also to prevent the regrowth. 

Note: Glyphosate is bound (deactivated) by hard water, so try to use soft water in the spray solution, also the addition of Karo Syrup at 2% volume per volume will help with the kill.

Sidenote: I was employed as agriculture research tech a few years ago, when the human resource manager who lived near the farm wanted to use the company small sprayer to kill the weeds in his lawn, we arranged that I would fill the sprayer with the correct mix, he would use the sprayer on Friday evening on his lawn. I arrived on Saturday morning to find a empty sprayer, I proceed to use the sprayer on some my plots locations with a super hot death mix, a combination of Paraquat & Glyphosate w/ MSO surfactant over the weekend, leaving an amount in the tank for Monday's work. 

Monday morning in the Human resource office I ask how the spraying went on Friday evening, the human resource manager informs me he sprayed his lawn on Sunday evening. :shock: 

I found out the owner used the sprayer early Saturday morning for his lawn and the human resources manager used my super hot death mix on Sunday evening on his 1 1/2 acre lawn. 

No, I did not get fired, but is a good lesson on do what you say to are going to do, if not let someone know.


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## jeneje (Mar 23, 2012)

milkandpie, Thanks for the information, would you post your mixing instruction for this please and also can you suggest where to buy the products needed.
Thanks
Ken


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## Smack (Mar 23, 2012)

You can get Pramatol from TSC (Tractor Supply Co.) Mix it 3 to 1. Or if you can get Hyvar from the elevator, but it is pricy at just under $100.00 per gallon, though nothing will grow for 5 to 7 years, but it's bad stuff and you don't want to apply any around water because it is a suspended particle and will migrate rapidly. I use Pramatol at my shop once to twice a year depending on how much rain we get, also it is what the Rail Road Co. uses to treat the tracks here.


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## philddreamer (Mar 23, 2012)

Hi Jeneje!

Have you considered a couple of goats!? :shock: 
They'll get rid of the weeds, roots... & everything! 
One problem, though... :roll: they migrate rapidly, too!!! To your neighbours yards that is! :lol: :lol: :lol: 

Sorry, but the post reminded me of when & was a young lad, & the troubles that my greatgrandma had with some neighbours goats, eating here grape vines.

Take care!

Phil


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## Barren Realms 007 (Mar 23, 2012)

Smack said:


> You can get Pramatol from TSC (Tractor Supply Co.) Mix it 3 to 1. Or if you can get Hyvar from the elevator, but it is pricy at just under $100.00 per gallon, though nothing will grow for 5 to 7 years, but it's bad stuff and you don't want to apply any around water because it is a suspended particle and will migrate rapidly. I use Pramatol at my shop once to twice a year depending on how much rain we get, also it is what the Rail Road Co. uses to treat the tracks here.



Is it hyvar or havar? I didn't think it was still available, if you can find it that will do the job maybe not 5-7 years but for 2-3 at least. We use to use it along our electric fences.


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## AztekShine (Mar 23, 2012)

I was half serious about the used motor oil I rember my dad used to just dump it in the field behind the house. He got me to dump it when I was very young and I dumped it not quite in the field. That area of the yard didn't grow grass for at least 5yrs.

Also we had goats clearing about 10 acres at one time. They ended up eating popcorn at the highschool football stadium, 6 miles away. Not 24 hrs after we had last watered them, lol. Silly goats.


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## jeneje (Mar 24, 2012)

I though about goats, :lol: but wife said no. Thanks guys for the help, i got some pool salt and tested it - so far it has killed it. The main prolbem is it's in my rock and what i think has happened is the seeds has blowned in and taken root. I will go taday to TSC and see what they have.
Thanks
Ken


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## Shaul (Apr 14, 2012)

Try using household vinegar. I've heard it used as a weed and grass killer.

Shaul


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## jimmydolittle (Apr 16, 2012)

You have to mix it with salt for it to kill grass, I think the recipe was: 1 cup salt with 1 gallon of vinegar, but my experience is that it doesn't do all that much. I had to reapply a few times for any results. Could probably just use the salt. Keep the vinegar for making pickles.


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## Smack (Apr 16, 2012)

Thought of another that I have used in the past. This is a granular and it's called Diuron 80 DF, comes in small bags like 2lbs. maybe. Had to order it from the elevator every time so I quit using it. Worked pretty good but you have to put it on heavy and so it takes many bags to do a large area. Can't remember how much it was.


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## DONNZ (Apr 16, 2012)

Vinegar.


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## DONNZ (Apr 17, 2012)

Not related to killing grass but:

Hannibal drenched huge boulders in hot vinegar which cracked them into small pieces, enabling his army to continue its journey across the Alps.


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## glondor (Apr 18, 2012)

MY neighbors dog is a wizz at killing grass. He is doing a great job on my front lawn. I could dog nap it and fedex it to you. . Pun intended.


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## jeneje (Apr 18, 2012)

glondor said:


> MY neighbors dog is a wizz at killing grass. He is doing a great job on my front lawn. I could dog nap it and fedex it to you. . Pun intended.


Hey glondor, can you bottle up 55 gallons and ship it. :lol: 
ken :mrgreen:


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