[Green4Me]

this may be a dumb question, but can I use casoron with blue rug junipers, and do them no harm?

thanks

[Dale Wiley]

Check the label, but since juniper is a woody shrub, you should be able to use it as long as they plants are established.

Make sure it gets watered in, or it's no good.

[justgardens]

What is it and what are you using it for? Curious only.

[Green4Me]

I have a site with blue rug junipers, a very low juniper ground cover plant. My concern about using casoron, the pre emergent weed control, is that the leaves of the junipers are right on the ground and I would thing be subject to the effect of casoron. So I was hoping for someone elses experience with this type of applicaton for casoron.

[VoodooChile]

Is this the best time to apply a pre-emergent? We don't do chemical weed control-- corn gluten is our pre-emergent-- but the optimal time to apply such weed control is when weed seeds are germinating: Spring or immediately following soil disturbance.

During mid to late summer fewer weed seeds are germinating due to lack of water and established plants shading the soil.

Green4me, have you cultivated this bed, or recently inter-planted among the junipers?

[Green4Me]

thanks for your post. In Oregon the weeds know no bounds, it seems. I recently took over this doctors office which was in dire need of a major cleanup. After hand weeding this place, I want to have some protection and Casoron seems to be the chemical of choice. There are two areas infested with horsetail rush, and I am hoping to be able to control that especially.

I can water in the casoron once applied, so I am optimistic about effectiveness.

[VoodooChile]

A recent weeding of a gone-to-seed bed would qualify as soil disturbance, and would justify use of a pre-emergent.

Don't expect any pre-emergent to take out Horsetail Rush though; this plant spreads by rhizomes and pre-emergents will have no effect on established rootstocks, of which many got left behind when you pulled the rush and the stems snapped off from the roots. This plant is a monster to control...

[Mark Oomkes]

We've had some luck with 'controlling' horsetail with casoron. Notice I said controlling not eradicating. It seems to knock it back for quite awhile.

Like Dale said, as long as they are established, you should be fine. Also, be careful if it is on a slope because it will kill grass. Stay about 2' in from the edges and it shouldn't be a problem--this is even on flat ground in case of heavy rains.

[MarkH]

We use alot of Snapshot 2.5TG around here and I looked on the label and it says it can be used for both container and field grown blue rug junipers. I've used on most of our beds and the results have been great. We've had prime weed growing weather and it seems to have held them in check.

[VoodooChile]

Mark O.
Here's what CASORON'S website says about application techniques:

For control of annual weeds apply CASORON only to prepared weed-free soil either in early spring or late fall before seeds of annual weeds germinate or after cultivation has removed weeds.

Is the Horsetail Rush still present when you apply the CASORON?

If so, the effect you are describing is "burn down", the elimination of emergent foliage through the use of herbicides. While this might set a weed back, it in no way eliminates an established weed with an extensive root mass, i.e. Horsetail Rush, Canadian Thistle, or Dandelions.

I suspect use of CASORON to control Horsetail Rush would be more than an annual event, which makes me wonder about the fiscal and environmental impact on the client.

After all, the website also says:

KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN

READ THE LABEL BEFORE USING

PRECAUTIONS: KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN. Harmful if swallowed. Avoid breathing dust. Avoid skin, nose or eye contact. Avoid contamination of feed and foodstuffs.


ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS: Toxic to fish and other aquatic life. Do not use on or around edible plants. Do not use on woody ornamentals or fruit crops other than those listed on the label. Do not use in seed beds, transplant or cutting beds. Do not use in or around greenhouses. Application in spring should be well made before bud burst. Do not plant vegetables or other sensitive crops the year following soil treatment. Do not use on light sandy soil.

FIRST AID:
Call a doctor or poison control centre in case of accidental poisoning.
IF SWALLOWED, induce vomiting, repeat until vomit fluid is clear. Rush patient to nearest hospital taking this labelled container with you.
IF IN EYES, flush with plenty of clean water for 15 minutes and go to nearest hospital at once.
IF ON SKIN, remove contaminated clothing and wash with soap and water.
Take container, label or product name and Pest Control Product Registration Number with you when seeking medical attention.

[Mark Oomkes]

It's been quite awhile since we used it to try to control horsetail. At the timeit was in a bed of junipers, Blue Rug or Bar Harbors, I can't remember. We did some pre- and post- control on it. I would imagine that if one kept using Casoron year after year, that it probably would start to damage even junipers.

At the time, it was all we could find that would even touch the stuff. We were using Roundup at that time and it seemed like by the time the Roundup started working the horsetail was 'growing out of it'. For this reason as soon as Finale came out, we started using that and have continued since. Even in cooler temps, you can see the wee starting to die in a couple days. In wamer temps, you will see it wilting within 24 hrs. But their is no mixing of chemicals like Roundup and Scythe or even back to the old days of Roundup and Paraquat.

Currently we are using Ornamec for controlling horsetail. If it's hit early enough, we have had almost season long control. Not so good once it's been growing for a month.

Still looking for something that we can use in beds that will control Canadian thistle.

[Green4Me]

thanks for all the info, you all have been a great help and a great source of info.

thanks

[johnkeegan]

...has there been any recent updates in the battle against the wicked "horsetail." I did a search and found a few references, including this one. It's definately my nightmare weed. Comments from any successful combatants of this prehistoric beast welcome.

[Mark Oomkes]

Flame throwers, Napalm, dynamite, C4

Any of the above will work wonders.

Seriously, Casoron\Dyclomec 4G works well if you have woody plants like the junipers.

Like Voodoo stated, it controls, not eradicates. Not sure what actually eradicates it. While I agree with what he is saying, in my business (95% commercial), we can't be pulling weeds every week trying to control this weed that way. I would think that annual apps would eventually kill off horsetail. The environmental\fiscal effect would have to be determined on a case by case basis.

Brushmaster maybe? Can't really use that in a shrub\perennial bed though.