Looking to get a head start on my lawn this year. Was thinking about putting down some pre-emergent in the next couple of weeks. Does anyone use liquid pre-emergent? If so, what do you use? I have about a 2 acre lot, and liquid would be much easier to put out, and probably cheaper too.

Where do you live? Application timing will depend on your location. Specticle is about te best preemergent you can buy right now. It's pricey, but well worth it if you have a well established lawn and don't plan on doing any sodding this year. Very low rates of product as well. This would have to be sprayed. I was given the granular product to test, but I don't know if they have made it available for purchase yet. I sprayed at 6oz/acre(the low rate) with very good results. You can go higher and get longer control. Just read and follow the label before you use anything. I also think spraying is better than applying a granular. Coverage is more uniform and precise.

[This message has been edited by TSUAggie (edited 1/12/2014 10:43a).]

what's the recommended time line for pre emergent in Houston??

Time for PE in Bell Milam Falls???

I live in Central Texas. Waco area. Have you used Surflan? Its much cheaper, but wondering if anyone has had any success with it.

Anytime in the next few weeks would probably be a good time for central Texas. I haven't used surflan myself, but for the most part it should work well. If you have used it a lot in consecutive seasons, switch to something else to keep weeds from becoming resistant to it. Most pre emerge products work well in home lawns when applied properly. Maintaining a healthy, aggressive lawn with proper fertilization and irrigation is your best defense against weeds. So don't forget to fertilize and water deeply only when needed.

Thanks. I was going to apply come cornerstone plus this week, if the wind will die down, to kill all of the current weeds. And then follow up with the pre-emergent next week or week after. You think these chemicals back to back will do more harm than good?

Thanks again.

**Im assuming you have bermuda, I would be extremely cautious spraying st. Augustine with glyphosate(cornerstone).
As long as your turf is completely dormant, there will be no injury from applying the cornerstone. To save time and labor, you could mix and apply the two products at the same time. The glyphosate would need to be left on the leaf blade 48-72 hours, then be sure and water the surflan in if no rain is expected soon after. Water just enough to wash the spray down into the soil. Do NOT water to the point of run off.

Randy Lemmon says February-March.

http://www.randylemmon.com/lawns/fertilize.html

March is pushing it in my opinion. If the weather is just right, March could be too late for pre-emerge control. You also won't have many ideal days to spray with the windy weather we have in March.

Hope I'm not hijacking this thread but my yard was just put in the 1st of november (DFW area.) Would it harm the lawn to put pre-emergent down this year?

I'm no agronomist, but when I resodded a portion of my back yard last year, I was told to not put pre-emergent on for 6 months. Well, 2 months later, I have weeds all in my new sod (and none in my established lawn where I put some down previously. I said the heck with it. Put down some post-emergent herbicide and followed it up with pre-emergent on the new sod (after only 2 months of it being down). And it's fine to this day.

DFW, Bermuda Tif-419.

Zaab,
Most would probably tell you not to apply a pre-emergent, but if your sod had enough warm days to root a bit and you kept it watered throughout the winter to keep it from drying out, you should be fine with a preemergent at the lowest rate. Check to see if the sod rooted down by try to pull up a few random squares of the sod. Bermuda is damn near impossible to kill, so I think you could get away with a preemergent. Just make sure it's applied correctly, and the turf is fertilized and watered properly and you should be fine.

Ask the Agronomist(TM) says.....
Put it out now - especially if you are south of I-10. Read the label and hit it again at the shortest interval. I-20 south to I-10 can wait a few weeks. Our weather is so inpredictable that a week of warm weather can make the soil warm enough to sprout warm season weeds. Once they emerge, it is too late.

B-1 83

So what if we're just north of DFW, in Denton?

I was planning on putting it out in the middle part of February.

Mid February would be good

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Our weather is so inpredictable that a week of warm weather can make the soil warm enough to sprout warm season weeds. Once they emerge, it is too late.

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This already happened to me

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Our weather is so inpredictable that a week of warm weather can make the soil warm enough to sprout warm season weeds. Once they emerge, it is too late.

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This already happened to me

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Where do you live that it is warm enough in the beginning of January after this polar vortex we just had?

We had 70+ deg weather in Houston last week. I have clover and some new weeds in my back yard.

You still need to apply a preemergent for spring and summer annuals. Clover is a perennial plant that establishes from seed in the fall. Spray a broadleaf weed killer(2,4-d, dicamba, among others) mixed with a preemergent for summer annual weeds and you will be good to go.

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We had 70+ deg weather in Houston last week. I have clover and some new weeds in my back yard.

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same here

Fall/winter weeds =\= spring weeds. For clover and ryegrass it needed to be out in September, and again in November.

I did that, and still have clover.

me too! I am very angry at my lawn.

I just stopped at Lowes and Houston Garden Center. neither of them had a liquid pre emergent, only granular. anyone have a lead on some stuff on the west side?

No idea where about Houston area, but google John Deere Landscapes and see if there is one close to you. Also, Metro Irrigation in Ft Worth carries fertilizers and chemicals now, there may be one in Houston.

What are you using to apply the liquid pre?

[This message has been edited by TSUAggie (edited 1/17/2014 8:18p).]

Are you sure it is clover, or is it Oxalis? They look the same to the untrained eye. Oxalis is a perennial.

This week in Austin, I started to have weeds pop up in front and back. The rest of the yard is still dormat but I know it will start turning in a few weeks. I hate my lawn.

Is this the right time to apply per emergent in San Antonio? Any advice would be appreciated.

Yes, apply as soon as you can.

Goodness - just googled specticle and it's $240 for 18oz.

Is there a recommended product for a lawn novice that isn't quite so steep? I have a sprayer that I've used to put down some stuff for broadleaf weeds before.

I use barricade but can't say it's been overly effective

That 18 oz will cover 3 acres.

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That 18 oz will cover 3 acres.

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Yeah, I figured it was worth it, but I have a small lot in our neighborhood. Do they sell smaller quantities (I'm doubting since they probably mostly supply folks that do this often and on more land)?

What have you used in the past? Dimension, Prodiamine and Pendimethalin all work fairly well. The main thing with preemergents is timing and watering in to the soil after it has been applied. Make sure your lawn is free of leaves and debris before you spray.