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Post by daylilydude on Nov 13, 2017 4:44:08 GMT -5
Here is another great question from meandtk... What to do to combat nut-sedge aka nut-grass?
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aqua
Pro Member
Posts: 295
Zone:: 8b9a
Favorite Vegetable:: all of them
Joined: March 2012
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Post by aqua on Nov 13, 2017 6:43:59 GMT -5
I got rid of nutsedge by selling my house.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Nov 13, 2017 9:41:12 GMT -5
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Post by paulf on Nov 13, 2017 10:28:18 GMT -5
Here in Nebraska, nutsedge sprouts in late May or early June. The chemical herbicide SedgeHammer is the preferred herbicide which sprayed on the foliage will translocate to the roots and tubers. Then every three weeks until it is all gone...this can take years to eradicate and then if your neighbor has nutsedge you can start over again. Another product called Certainty (spelling?) will kill the foliage of the young plant and repeated applications is necessary...again maybe years?
Considered one of the worst weeds in the world, chemical control is the only method. Digging only spreads the tubers and creates more nutsedge. Some will use a propane weed-burner. Someone even recommended digging all the soil at the depth of about a foot or two, screening the dirt to remove the tubers, sealing all the tubers in a concrete vault, taking the vaults to the middle of the ocean and dumping it all there.
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Post by ladymarmalade on Nov 13, 2017 11:02:46 GMT -5
Huh, I didn't even know what nutsedge was until just now. I don't know that I've seen it here.
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Post by spike on Nov 13, 2017 11:38:29 GMT -5
A flamethrower! Not sure I have ever seen it before? Like ladymarmalade, I had to google it to see what it was.
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Post by september on Nov 13, 2017 18:21:49 GMT -5
Doesn't grow up here in the north, but I am told there is some in the very southern part of Minnesota, and known there as nut-grass.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Nov 14, 2017 9:13:18 GMT -5
In a very small area (like a raised bed or flower bed) you *can* kill nutsedge by hand-weeding, but it takes a lot of diligence. You have to get out there every single week and hand-pull every tiny nutsedge plant. Pulling it repeatedly when very young means that the plant expends more energy putting up new shoots than it can recoup via photosynthesis. After a year or two of weekly pulling, you can eventually exhaust the stuff. But if you miss a couple of weeks in a row, you effectively have to start over. I've removed nutsedge from a flower bed this way.
Obviously that's completely impractical to do in a farm field level. Your options seem to be some sort of chemical control, or digging out and removing at least 6" of soil. Screening the soil as mentioned above gets rid of the bigger tubers, but doesn't work completely because even tiny, near-invisible tubers are enough to sprout new plants. Even removing the soil doesn't always work, because a few of the tubers can be 18" deep or more.
In addition to the nutsedge-specific chemicals mentioned above, RoundUp does work. Depending on the size of the plants it may take anywhere from 1-4 applications to fully kill the stuff. Bigger plants take more applications. It's important to not mow/cut/pull the plants for at least 2-3 days after applying RoundUp, because it takes a couple of days for the RoundUp to travel down from the plants' leaves to their tubers.
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Post by meandtk on Nov 14, 2017 10:17:28 GMT -5
Laura_in_FL, Yes, this is a huge patch. Maybe 20X40 feet
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Post by paquebot on Nov 14, 2017 16:39:32 GMT -5
Another product not mentioned is Sedge Ender, made by Bonide. I watched sedge expand from one corner plot of a community garden to over 1½ acres in just a couple years. I even managed to bring it home and it quickly spread over about 125' of street terrace. Sedge Ender totally wiped it out totally after one season.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Nov 15, 2017 10:51:18 GMT -5
Sedge Ender sounds like good stuff, however it is only labeled for use in lawns. You're supposed to wait 12 months after using it to plant vegetables in any area treated with it. I think meandtk's problem is in his vegetable garden, IIRC.
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Post by meandtk on Nov 15, 2017 12:28:42 GMT -5
Yes In fact, my estimation was way off. It covers 4 rows 90 feet long!
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Post by meandtk on Nov 15, 2017 12:30:14 GMT -5
I think I'll plant turnips between those rows and hoe rabidly between the onions and garlic that it is invading. Come spring, I'll treat it.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Nov 15, 2017 15:05:50 GMT -5
Good luck!
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Post by Gianna on Dec 12, 2017 12:10:13 GMT -5
When we moved from the last house to here, I accidentally brought it along. I suppose some could have already been here. At the time I don't think I realized how horrible it is. I tried several things, including round-up a number of years ago when it really spread in the back .. which did work mostly, but not totally. I did not wage a persistent battle against it, so little bits did keep coming back, especially on one side of the house. I think what really did the most harm to it there were the gophers. In the drought, there just wasn't very much to eat.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Dec 12, 2017 12:58:54 GMT -5
So...gophers have a purpose after all??
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Post by meandtk on Dec 12, 2017 14:52:56 GMT -5
I've heard that,mif left long enough, hogs will root up every tuber and clear it out. Hmmm...then bacon...
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