Selective weedkiller

[mint]

Does such a wonder product exist?

We have some small lawns that are full of violets and cowslips but also full of dandelions.  Is there something that you could put down that will kill just the dandelions?

[NormanH]

Pick them and sell them on a market stall.

The last time my son visited he nearly fell over when he saw someone doing just that on our "marché paysan"

He had spent hours the day before weeding them from his garden in the UK [:D]

[andyh4]

Sweets

selective weedkillers in the sense you mean them will kill everything except the grass (and on first application probably not kill the dandelions either[6]).

 

There is a way to selectively kill the dandelions, but you may not like it:

tools required - sharp knife, teaspoon, table salt.

Go arond the lawn and cut each dandelion just below the surface with an angled cut.  This will expose a root which will immediately begin to ooze white sap.  put around 1/2 tablespon of salt onto the weeping wound of the root.

 

Repeat as necessary and in time you will kill all of the damdelions.

[mint]

Thanks, andy, I am nothing if not patient and I can certainly do that.  The areas of lawn are not huge and the fresh air will do me good![:D]

[NickP]

If the area is not over large, just keep picking the flower heads off and then you get two benefits, first the flowers will not grow into "clocks"  and spread, and secondly you get a little exercise every day. Although  SW17 I'm sure that's not necessary in your case. 

[Jonzjob]

BUT! get rid of the flowers quickly, unless you use the petals in a salad[8-|]. Once they are picked they very quickly turn into said 'clocks' and deliver their seeds for you!!

As long as you don't have a dog watering the lawn for you, you can also use the leaves in your salad too. Better if you get the leaves from a more 'wild' part of the garden...

[mint]

Jonz, I've spent nearly an hour on them today and I never realised how everywhere they are!

I intend to spend some time on them everyday but we'll see.  The intention is there but there are always other things that are crying out for attention.

Tell you what, I got rid of Japanese knotweed in the old place because I declared war and tackled them about 3 times a day until they gave up the ghost![:D]

[Jonzjob]

This arrived by e-mail today and I thought that it made interesting reading?

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/08/05/how-did-weedkiller-wind-up-in-most-us-rain-samples.aspx?e_cid=20110805_DNL_art_1

[Patf]

In UK I used something called Feed and Weed which did the job - maybe there's an equivalent here.

I've given up on ours - it's as much as we can do to keep up with the cutting.

[andyh4]

There is Patf - in fact pleanty to choose from in liquid and solid form -  but they will kill the wild flowers that Sweets wants to keep

[mint]

Andy, the so-called lawned areas now look more like moon craters.  I am spending about half an hour a day on digging them up.  They are too numerous to cut out individually as per your suggestion but, once the satisfying sound of the crack of snapped roots takes place, I then sprinkle some salt on the patch.

Made OH a mushroom and onion omelette for lunch today and he complained that it was much too salty.  Must have been subconsciously thinking of salting dandelion roots at the time![8-)]