# **** Gorden's Pasture Pro and Rabbit Brush ****



## Bags (Nov 17, 2013)

I have rabbit brush spreading into the edges of one of my brome/wheatgrass hay fields (5 ac) and I'm thinking on spot spraying it with gordens pasture pro herbicide. I've never used this product before and I know rabbit brush is a tuff critter. The labeling on the herbicide says Active Ingredient: 2, 4-D, and controls weeds such as, thistle, mequite, multiflora and other weeds.

I'd use Glyphosate but the field is sloped towards a pond and small step across waterway, so I'm concerned about any runoff.

It takes years to beat this brush to death with a mower. I mowed it again last spring before the hay started growing, but by harvest time the rabbit brush sprouts were grown back up as tall as the hay.

Any thoughts on the pasture pro against rabbit brush.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

2-4-D mostly just kills top growth,it doesn't go down into the roots much.

2-4-D ,dicamba mix may work better to kill the roots.But you have to worry about drift to suseptibal plants,gardens,etc.

Tordon kills brush better and has a residuel but the residule can be a issue for yrs for legumes.


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## slowzuki (Mar 8, 2011)

We some type of stuff you have to use brush killer on, but the triclopyr variety, this has carry over. Re run off, I'm not an expert but round up binds into most types of soils better and is less toxic than most broadleaf herbicides.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

What zuki says is true.....glyphosate 1/2 life is extremely short for a herb.

Regards, Mike


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

Remedy (triclopyr) is a good brush killer and will not kill the grass. It only has 21 days before you can plant back a broadleaf crop like alfalfa or soybeans. I have first hand experience with this.....sprayed a field that was infested with blackberry briars last spring with remedy and waited a month and planted soybeans.....soybeans showed no adverse effects.


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## slowzuki (Mar 8, 2011)

Just be careful if you cut and bale anything sprayed with triclopyr, even after the grazing limits there is enough carry over in the hay that the manure from those animals will kill sensitive broad leaf plants like tomatoes and grapes etc. If you sell to horse folks they sometimes use the manure in their veggie gardens.


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## Bags (Nov 17, 2013)

Thanks for the replies fellas. Getting information from folks who "know" what their talk'in about and use different herbicides is worth its weight.

The local opinions I've gotten up here in this small community on these products have mostly been he said she said, and the NRCS agent seems to be no help at all--- maybe he should look for another line of work.

I'm going to develop 3-4 new acres that has a fair amount of rabbit brush on it this year (if it ever quits snow'in.lol) and get some OG/Timothy growing. I'll run the set of gang rippers (12" deep) through the new ground to up root the taller RB and the disc should take care of the smaller stuff. As long as I have the rippers hooked up, I guess I'll do the edges of the brome/wheatgrass field.

Guess I'm just worried about getting any chemicals in the waterway. Better safe than sorry.


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## vhaby (Dec 30, 2009)

What Slowzuki mentioned about Roundup (Glyphosate) binding with the soil and no longer detectable is mostly true. In addition, there are Glyphosate products labeled for control of aquatic weeds in ponds. See:

http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/plants/management/aqua028.html

This suggests to me that Roundup might be suitable for control of your rabbit brush with little concern about runoff Glyphosate getting into waterways.


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## endrow (Dec 15, 2011)

slowzuki said:


> We some type of stuff you have to use brush killer on, but the triclopyr variety, this has carry over. Re run off, I'm not an expert but round up binds into most types of soils better and is less toxic than most broadleaf herbicides.


I agree if I were going to worry about run off from a herbicide Round up would be last on my list


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## Bags (Nov 17, 2013)

Interesting article on aquatic weeds vhaby.

I think I'll do a few tests spots with Roundup on some RB above the new field I open up.

Its still too cold up here for spraying I think as the night temps are in the mid 20's, but the daytime temps are up in the 50's and 60's. I should be seeing some green in a week or two.

A sure sign of spring though--- the elk moved back up from their wintering grounds about a week or so ago. I took a picture from the front porch yesterday morning of the tail end of around 120 of them heading up into the timber as they were leaving the north pasture.


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