Herbicide for Spraying Around Spruces

[Spiider]

What kind of herbicide is anyone using to keep the area around your spruces (White and Norway) clean? I thought I had a recommendation from Dbltree, but I can't seem to find it now...

If memory serves me right, it was safe to spray around them, BEFORE new buds form, maybe by mid-April?

 

[scott44]

Here's a couple of Paul's recipes, got to do some digging but they are good reads.

http://www.outreachoutdoors.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=382
http://iowawhitetail.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13711

 

[Buckly]

I've used Paul's recommended mix over my Norways and it keeps them pretty clean. Simazine, Prowl h2O and Clethodim with crop oil in the spring or right over new planted trees, then in the fall spray the Oust.

 

[Rally1148]

I use gly, but I just use an old trashcan or 5 gallon pail and stick it over top of them.

 

[Spiider]

I had a piece of vent duct with a dowel for a handle that I had used that 1st year or 2 but they are too big for that now. I like the trashcan method. Though, if the mix Buckly mentioned won't harm them, then that would be even easier. Thanks guys.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

If your trees need a trash can to cover them for your spraying operations, they should be big enough to hold their own against weeds. It would be interesting for you to spray around some and leave the weeds alone on other trees and see if there is any survival or growth difference.

It seems like seedlings do pretty well if they can get through their first summer. Having tall weeds around evergreens can be a good thing in the winter if the weeds catch the snow and prevent winter drying injury.

 

[Spiider]

Having tall weeds around evergreens can be a good thing in the winter if the weeds catch the snow and prevent winter drying injury.

That's a good point that I need to consider. They are big enough to hold their own. I tend to lean on the side of caution because I'm only working with 20 acres, with limited numbers of trees/shrubs. Maybe I'll just give them a fertilizer tablet and call it good...

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

Your trees are looking good - they can hold their own. I mowed around some of my evergreens to try to limit weed competition their first year and the ones I mowed around actually did worse than the ones with the weeds around them. I think the summer sun scorched the open soil and the lack of tall weeds didn't catch the snow which helps prevent winter injury. At least that's my theory, all I know for sure is that the trees with tall weeds around them had a better survival rate than those I mowed around.

Tall weeds also help hide the trees a little longer once the trees get big enough for the bucks to rub. it seems like the trees out in the open just get pounded by the bucks.

 

[bueller]

Spiider that young evergreen looks great!

 

[Rally1148]

I'd agree with what everyone else says. I think they are good at this point. I mainly used the garbage can (which was an old school one that was maybe a food taller than a 5 gal bucket) because I had a lot of tall lanky trees that I transplanted from another area on the property. Spruce don't seem to need much fertilizer on my place, even in the worst sand.

 

[Buckly]

How old is the tree in the picture?

 

[Spiider]

How old is the tree in the picture?

Those were planted in the Spring of 2013 as S77's from Itasca.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

I use gly with a shield to keep it off the spruce. Then when I put down some 10-10-10 it gets to the spruce and doesn't cause monster grass growth.

 

[1yellowdog]

I put in 50 Blue Spruce plugs from Itasca this spring. My history shows, if I don't spray or mow around my young spruce or pine they are getting choked out by the grass 70-80% of the time. I made a "Conifer Spraying Tool"; bought a 5" piece of HVAC round piping, a end cover, and a metal handle. I used sheet metal screws to fasten the cover and handle to the cover. It was tall enough that I didn't have to bend over with my backpack sprayer. It worked slick. It left a small enough circumference around the trees to eliminate the grass choking the trees out. I used Clethodim 2EC and crop oil.
My concern with 5 gallon pail or the trash can is that the amount of grass/weeds still around the tree if they are shorter than grass height..

 

[rocksnstumps]

I covered and sprayed around some trees for 2 years, just once every late spring. Within 5 yrs those trees are almost double in size vs nontreated.

The key difference i think is whether you have heavy grass or sod vs broadleaf weeds to deal with. Taking out grass competition seemed more critical. The broadleaf weeds actually shot up pretty good next to the little trees but not much impact compared to the grass. I did the gly small trash can method as mentioned above

 

[meyerske]

Can you just shield the trees with a tree tube and spray gly?

 

[Buckly]

I put in 50 Blue Spruce plugs from Itasca this spring. My history shows, if I don't spray or mow around my young spruce or pine they are getting choked out by the grass 70-80% of the time. I made a "Conifer Spraying Tool"; bought a 5" piece of HVAC round piping, a end cover, and a metal handle. I used sheet metal screws to fasten the cover and handle to the cover. It was tall enough that I didn't have to bend over with my backpack sprayer. It worked slick. It left a small enough circumference around the trees to eliminate the grass choking the trees out. I used Clethodim 2EC and crop oil.
My concern with 5 gallon pail or the trash can is that the amount of grass/weeds still around the tree if they are shorter than grass height..

I spray right over my spruce with Cleth and crop oil. I've never shielded them.