Hoytvectrix
5 year old buck +
Glyphosate nor 2,4-D are very effective on clover. If that is all you have and are willing to try and control the clover, it will likely take multiple sequential applications, spread 10-14 days apart depending on temps.
Cave in Rock ?'s
- Thread starter mtholton
- Start date
Glyphosate nor 2,4-D are very effective on clover. If that is all you have and are willing to try and control the clover, it will likely take multiple sequential applications, spread 10-14 days apart depending on temps.
Rit
5 year old buck +
I think hi yield 2,4-d is labeled to kill certain clovers. I have had some success killing white clover with it. I also tend to mix my cocktails a little on the hot side.
Hoytvectrix
5 year old buck +
titan23_87
5 year old buck +
What is most effective on clover then?
Hoytvectrix
5 year old buck +
triclopyr and quinclorac are the two best active ingredients for clover species. Fluroxypyr is also pretty decent.
Rit
5 year old buck +
I might be off here but if I recall correctly you cannot put quinclorac on new switch or germinating seedlings. But you can put it on 2nd year switch.
Hoytvectrix
5 year old buck +
That may very well be true. I should have specified that those active ingredients were listed because of their efficacy on clover, not in the context of clover within an emerging switchgrass stand. I would still make sure that as you are applying triclopyr or quinclorac, that it is applied in cooler (<80F) conditions if there is any threat to the preferred grass species.
titan23_87
5 year old buck +
Bill- I had picked up some triclopyr per this thread on clover, however after reading more about it, it shows I should NOT use that in a new switch field. Will 2-4D and Gly mix do the trick? At least enough to set it back to give the switch the edge ?
Bill
Administrator
If you use gly it will smoke any switch that has germinated. If you’re spraying “pre” switch germination I don’t see anything wrong with that combo unless the 2-4D remains active in the soil. Then it (might) harm the new switch seeding. I’ve never tried it so I don’t know.
as Rit reminded me above, switch should be at the 3-4 leaf stage before using 2-4D. To be safe I guess you could hit the field with Gly pre switch germination and then come back later with the 2-4D. I would think that would be a 1,2 punch to the clover. First the gly will set it back then if it re-emerges the 2-4D would put a second hurting on it.
But if this switch is not for a rank stand as a screen, I would suggest some clover in a switchgrass field is a positive thing. Food and cover in the same place. I try for it in my switch grass.
Rit
5 year old buck +
From reading 2-4d seems to stay in the soil 10-14 days but can be longer if it’s too cold or dry. I have yet to spray mine because of weather. New switch isn’t going to germinate anytime soon. I am hoping to get it down in the next few weeks. I don’t think my switch will germinate until almost June. My 3rd year switch will probably start to break dormancy the first 10 days of May.
Rit
5 year old buck +
Surprised to see my established switch has broken dormancy already. It has been cold and wet. Early here for sure. Finally had a decent weather day so I sprayed 1.5 ounces of 2-4d to the gallon on the clover I seeded into. I’ll follow up with glyphosate at the next good weather day.
titan23_87
5 year old buck +
Rit
5 year old buck +
Soil type makes a difference and what I am dealing with is clay. That seems to slow things down a bit. My experience in Northern Ohio says you have a few weeks yet. I have read switchgrass can germinate at 50 degrees. My experience here says maybe a little bit but it’s really slow to germinate at that temp. 58-60 degrees night time soil temps seems to really get it going. My seed has germinated closer to June. Although my established switch is up early this year. Northern Ohio is showing 48 degree soil temp with a slightly higher 5 day average. Now I am as far North in Ohio as you can get and the further South you go the warmer the soil will be. There are quite a few 60-65 days on the way for me so keep that in mind.
What are you planing to spray? Simazine is cheap and doesn’t bother switch at all. Me personally I have not had great luck with it. Depending on your location it might be risky to try 2-4d this late. I did it yesterday I think I mentioned I never tried it but it was on a small 6-8’ wide screen that runs 700’. I’m not out much I’d it doesn’t work.
You could get Simazine out ASAP and hit it with Glyphosate. I will follow up with a glyphosate spray on the next nice day. Two weeks from now if there is no evidence of germination and I have anything alive it may get a 2nd round.
Check this link for your zip and see what soil temps say. Another piece of advice is not to obsess about what it looks like this year. By July the switch that does germinate will have seed heads and you can easily identify it. You can then attack the weeds and your switch will take off.
http://www.greencastonline.com/tools/soil-temperature
titan23_87
5 year old buck +
Thanks Rit for the helpful info. I’m actually in Northwest OH as well. I ended up using today’s good late morning weather to hit mine with a Gly/2 4-D mix. I figured with the rain coming next week that I didn’t want to wait any longer so I don’t push the issue with the 2 4-D being too late.
Thanks for also posting your land tour. Awesome to get to see you chronicle your property in my same region. With the hunting pressure, and other challenges this area brings, it’s nice to see your successes.
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Rit
5 year old buck +
Day after spraying clover with 2 4-d. It looks like it’s well on its way to dying. Chance of rain the next two days but Friday and Saturday look good. I’ll hit it with gly then to clean up anything I missed. If I actually seeded good in between the flags I should see switch germinating sometime next month. Hoping to get 3-5’ switch this first year to screen the bedding on the left from the food on the right. If this works maybe be the way I plant any switch going forward.
