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Fall time for lawn weed control, pruning trees & shrubs

Fall Lawn Weed Control

Fall is an excellent time to do lawn weed control. The weeds are preparing for winter and are most vulnerable to control with a herbicide. Plants such as weeds are moving nutrients from their leaves down to their roots to be stored until needed to start growing again in the spring. By spraying now, the herbicide is carried deep into the roots along with the plant nutrients and kills all of the roots giving excellent control. Fall is the time when almost all seedling dandelions start their growth. A fall lawn spraying will give almost complete control of dandelions for next summer.

2,4-D Amine is an excellent choice for lawn weed control. It kills slowly, but most effectively. It will not drift as a vapor to vulnerable desirable plants. It can be applied with a small hand spray bottle, with a small gallon hand sprayer or with a towed sprayer behind a mower or lawn tractor. Keep the sprayer pressure low and spray droplets large to prevent movement onto adjacent plants.

Read and follow label directions for the amount to use, mixing and application. The label will also give information on what protective clothing should be used when mixing and applying 2,4-D. Keep children and pets off of sprayed areas until the spray has completely dried.

Pruning Trees and Shrubs

Fall is a good time to prune and shape trees and shrubs. Waiting until after the leaves have fallen will give the plants time to store root reserves for growth next spring.

The question asked about pruning, is what do I cut. A simple order I use to prune is this. Prune out dead branches first. The second branches that are pruned are those that cross or rub against each other or the main trunk. The third branches to go are called “water sprouts” or “water suckers.” They are the new shoots that come out of the top of a branch. In apple and other fruit trees, these branches very seldom if ever produce blossoms and fruit. And they clutter up the interior of the tree. The next cuts are made to remove branches with poor joining to the main trunk. Ideally branches should attach at close to a 90-degree angle to the trunk forming an “L”-shaped attachment. Branches with a narrow angle forming more of a “V”-shaped attachment are candidates to be pruned as these branch unions are quite weak and prone to breaking if stressed.

For more information on pruning trees and shrubs, you can read more at this NDSU web address: https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/publications/lawns-gardens-trees/.

There is a publication there entitled “Basic Guidelines for Pruning Trees and Shrubs” which gives more detailed information as well as illustrations of pruning.

Master Gardener Core Course – 2018

A core course for people who wish to become Master Gardeners will be offered in 2018. For more information on the course, and to sign up for the course, go to this web link: https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/mastergardener/.

Ken Eraas is the Ward County Extension Horticulture Assistant. You can reach him by calling 857-6444 or emailing kendell.eraas@ndsu.edu.

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