Roundup weed killer did almost nothing? (Tempe: 2013, Home Depot, buying)

[PhoenixSomeday]

Originally Posted by wit-nit

Folks if you buy Round-up (or any glyphosate product) in concentrated form and mix it double rate, within 72 hours the weeds will be dead roots and all.

RTU (ready to use) is always on the weak side and needs temps in the 80's+ to work effectively, sometimes multiple applications if the weeds are well established.

I'll have to give this a try. I already have a sprayer jug I use for the CyKick, so all I need is the RoundUp.

[pbenjamin]

Are people here that are having big weed problems using a pre-emergent twice a year? When we had a desert landscape that did a good job of preventing a lot of weeds from coming up.

[wit-nit]

Using a pre-emergence twice a year, one for warm weather season weeds and 2nd for cool weather season weeds will aid in keeping the weed population down to a minimum. There is no 100% weed prevention.

Many people don't realize that weed seeds travel from afar with those summer dust storms bringing them in and depositing them onto your yard. And they need only a 1/4 inch of soil to germinate so those with rock lawns that accumulate dirt will see them popping up from time to time too.

[AZ_Rookie]

Originally Posted by wit-nit

Using a pre-emergence twice a year, one for warm weather season weeds and 2nd for cool weather season weeds will aid in keeping the weed population down to a minimum. There is no 100% weed prevention.

Many people don't realize that weed seeds travel from afar with those summer dust storms bringing them in and depositing them onto your yard. And they need only a 1/4 inch of soil to germinate so those with rock lawns that accumulate dirt will see them popping up from time to time too.

Sharing the earth/land has its drawbacks... But it certainly is better than the concrete jungle I escaped from!

I am so grateful for the small inconveniences like weeds...

Thanks go to you and those in the thread for good tips

[MyNameIsBellaMia]

Originally Posted by madison999

Tempe rock lawn with whatever the usual weeds and grasses that sprout up. First time using a weedkillet out west. $10 a gallon roundup had great reviews. Sprayed everything good in the morning. Totally drenched some in the cracks of the sidewalk.

Six days later and only mild results. Some I drenched show no results. What gives?

$10/gallon Roundup would be highly diluted. Roundup isn't cheap.


It can easily take 10+ days for Roundup to do its job. You should start to see yellowing but it's very slow acting.


Patience, Grasshopper!

[ElleTea]

Originally Posted by PhoenixSomeday

Got a notice from the busy-body cartel in the place I'm renting regarding weeds. Sprayed some RoundUp. Came out 24 hours later, nothing was different. I mean, I guess they were a little withered, but that's it.

I started working at car dealership in May 2000 back home in Silicon Valley (washing cars). First day, I actually had to go through the parking lot and spray weeds. They said spray this and come out tomorrow and pick them. It was RoundUp. So I sprayed all the nice and tall, proud, green weeds. I came out at the same time the next day and they were weak, withered, little brown shadows of what they were the day before. I thought wow, RoundUp actually works just like the commercials claim; surprising.

So like I said, I bought some RoundUp in late January when I got the notice and sprayed. Nothing. I had to just pull them as best I could, making sure to pull up the root as much as possible. Fast forward to last week when it rained around here nearly nonstop, albeit lightly, for about 3 days. Now I've got a nice, fresh, and in some cases large spread of greenery in my rocks again. I'm not sure what everyone else with rock yards around here is doing different, Neither I nor anyone I live with ever sees landscapers or even any owners outside doing anything to their yards, and yet there's never any weeds, not even tiny ones. I'd love to know what they're doing differently.

My boss at work said to get a gallon of diesel fuel and mix it with some water. Then at night when no one is going to see me, spread the mixture all over the yard and neither the weeds nor anything else will grow again. I just thought are you effing kidding me. He said it'd kill the cacti too, which we really don't need or want. One of them is even a Saguaro about 3 feet high. Knowing how slow they grow, I wouldn't be surprised if it was at least 10-15 years old (this subdivision was built in 1998, so not sure if it was planted then, or at a later date).

So, I really need a solution that'll brown the weeds up in short order. I really don't want to pull again. They are so many of them, and they're so tiny, it's going to take hours, like it did before.

Considering it takes about 50 years on average for a saguaro to reach 6 feet, I'd say that one is older than 10-15 years. Killing them is greatly frowned upon.

[PhoenixSomeday]

Originally Posted by ElleTea

Considering it takes about 50 years on average for a saguaro to reach 6 feet, I'd say that one is older than 10-15 years. Killing them is greatly frowned upon.

Exactly. They don't grow from cuttings, only seeds, it takes 75 years to sprout the first arm, they are only natively found here, and are legally protected. So his flipant view of them when I mentioned this was bothersome.

[madison999]

Ok so everything is under control and I sprayed again last week with the round up.

Would this be a good time of year for the pre-emergent stuff?
Any recommendations of a brand?

Should I plan on spraying throughout the summer even with that pre emergent stuff?

[Zippyman]

Originally Posted by madison999

Ok so everything is under control and I sprayed again last week with the round up.

Would this be a good time of year for the pre-emergent stuff?
Any recommendations of a brand?

Should I plan on spraying throughout the summer even with that pre emergent stuff?

I feel your pain - roundup only kills current plants, not the ones that sprout the day after you spray, and it doesn't really kill quickly. I went through several different weed-guys & spent hundreds on different chemicals & never found any cost-effective pre-emergent that worked except for Pramitol - that works, but it will kill trees & plants you want. I did find that roundup mixed with scythe would give a same-day result for most weeds.

Eventually, I bought a propane-weed-burning torch & that's satisfying, even if it isn't that effective.. I got lucky a couple years back & one of my tenants gave me a weed guy that has an effective solution- I don't know what he uses & I don't care- it works, so I just write a check & enjoy my barren moonscape of a yard. ;-)

[john3232]

I spent a lot of money using the below company. The weed products they sell do a decent job but aren't cheap.

I found using a good landscaper three times a year to be more cost effective.

DIY Pest Control Mesa Store Remodel - Bug & Weed Mart