faster way to spread weed killer

wengang1

Hi all.
I have a 300-foot gravel road going through my property that I have to spray regularly with Round-Up to keep it from getting overgrown. I used to do it with a one-gallon hand pump pressure sprayer (with the tiny nozzle), and that was too slow, so I bought a 4-gallon backpack sprayer with a crank arm to add pressure. That saves all the stopping and mixing time, but it still takes hours to do it that way. Is there some way to get this done faster (like less than one hour)? I have to do this several times in spring and summer and it just takes too long.
BTW, I have grass lawn on either side of this road so the method has to be relatively controllable in terms of precision.
Thanks.

jamiedolan

Rent or buy a unit like this and pull it behind a mower or ATV.

__________________
Jamie Dolan - Neenah, WI

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

Need Help Uploading Photos?
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
.

wengang1

oh yeah!
I knew there had to be sth like that out there, I just couldn't think of the right words to find it.
Looks like plenty of models to choose from too.
Thanks a lot.

Gary

moondawg

If you get one with a boom it will go really fast. and you can still use the wand for spot spraying.

wengang1

Hey thanks for the advice.
I have to admit, I can't figure out what the boom is though.
Here is an excerpt from a model I looked at:
"This broadcast sprayer with a large capacity 26-gallon tank is great for applying chemicals to large and small areas. 40in. boom with left/right nozzle control. Flexible Lexan® boom arms will not bend, kink or break."
So what is the boom, and what is the difference from a model that does not have one?
I see the wand in the picture, and I assume the boom is this framework on the back with tubes on it, but what is the difference?
Thanks.

nap

the boom would be the bar that allows the spray heads to be mounted. You can get equipemtne with a variety of boom widths

downunder

Nap,
Love you but that guy in the photo is asking for chemical poisoning. Walking through wet pesticides with tennis shoes is NO-NO!

Wengang,
You need to treat your drive with a soil sterilant or at the very least a pre-emergent. Glyphosate only kills actively growing weeds, it does nothing to prevent them from returning.

__________________
If it's worth doing, it's worth doing right. If you wouldn't put your name on it, it ain't done right!

nap

very good observation. Wasn't considering that when I nabbed the pic. Just trying to explain a boom.



so, did you catch that wengang?

do not walk, drive, run, or play in the mist or wetted ground immediately following pesticide application. Use proper personal protective equipment for the job.

PAbugman

I was going to suggest soil sterilant also, but the lawn on either side of the driveway might preclude that time and labor and $$$ saving idea. Run-off to the sides could be an issue. How important are the lawn edges on either side?

Doesn't seem like it should take hours with a backpack. Are you spraying the entire driveway or just the actively growing weeds? No point in spraying anything other than active weeds with roundup. 4 gallons should go a long way.

Mr Chips

Maybe the guy in photo is putting down an organic fertilizer!

__________________
Those who can, do...
Those who can't criticize on the internet

downunder

Could be, but this thread is about applying pesticides and whatever the applicator in the advertisement may or may not be applying, most reasonably intelligent people would presume that the OP would be using the equipment for potentially hazardous chemicals. Tennis shoes are not appropriate PPE clothing!

__________________
If it's worth doing, it's worth doing right. If you wouldn't put your name on it, it ain't done right!

Mr Chips

So i guess you are saying I am not reasonably intelligent!! I get what the threads about, you didn't say the op shouldn't wear tennies, you said the guy in the picture shouldn't. no need to be passive agressive and defensive, it was a joke

__________________
Those who can, do...
Those who can't criticize on the internet

wengang1

hey thanks for all the replies.
i didn't get another email, so I didn't know anybody else had posted


So what is a known sterilant (like I could find it at Lowes or Home Depot)?
I have been spraying the entire road, and the last couple of years it has virtually overgrown. In fact this year, it looks more like lawn than gravel.
The irritating thing about the backpack is that the roundup comes out so slowly, I have to stand there and do the road in little strips. I kept imagining there must be something out there (I was even thinking like a pressure washer) that would shoot the stuff out faster/farther/wider so I could move faster and get the work done.

So if the road were a leveled road cut into a gentle slope, then applying the sterilant would risk killing all the grass on the downhill side?
Also, is it a liquid or something that mixes in water, so that I can use it in this kind of sprayer?

Thanks all.

Mr Chips

a pound of salt mixed with a gallon of vinegar will work as a soil steriliant. Mix more to fill your applicator. it will kill grass, so keep it from running into lawns, shrubs, etc

__________________
Those who can, do...
Those who can't criticize on the internet

downunder

wengang1
Yes, you can get a sterilant at any major retailer. That is exactly what it is called. The container will advertise that it will keep the treated area clear of vegetation for six months to a year. You should not get runoff if applied correctly but keep in mind that roots of nearby plants can be affected. So it depends somewhat on what is next to the driveway.
I would prefer to use a glyphosate type product (non-selective herbicide) to kill everything in a directed application then follow up with a pre-emergent. Pre-m will not hurt you lawn or nearby plants, it will simply prevent anything else from germinating and coming up. So the only "side effect" will be no weeds in the lawn, etc.


Please re-read. I DID NOT say whom should not wear tennis shoes. NO ONE should apply pesticides walking directly behind a spray wearing tennis shoes.

What was? The crack about organic fertilizers? I think it is in poor taste to make "a joke" about someone else's safety.

__________________
If it's worth doing, it's worth doing right. If you wouldn't put your name on it, it ain't done right!