Weeds everywhere, this is the time of year early spring and again in the fall. Weed seeds are pushed around by the wind and deposit on lawns everywhere. I’m amazed at the amount of weeds that pop up on my lawn. The trick is to have it sprayed twice a year spring and fall. We use a post emergent (kills the actual plants) and a pre emergent (kills the seeds as they begin to grow). Now its really is important to water the preemergent into or pass the stones. The herbicide needs to get to the soil where the seeds are their transformation into a plant.
I think we all think of Dandelions as a weed, but you can eat some part of the plants and make wine out of the flowers.
Spurge is an obnoxious weeds, similar to puncturevine.
Russian Thistle is a weird type of plant, it has stickers and if you see old west shows its the tumbleweed. The City of Chandler puts up a tumbleweed Christmas tree each year downtown.
There are numerous types and yearly cycles of weed activity. Knowing when they germinate and how they reproduce is helpful of getting rid of them. For example Russian Thistle seeds fall of as they tumble, that is their main way to replicate. So its really important.
OK so Weeds galore can be a real problem especially with HOA communities. Grasses can be an extra challenge as they will grow anywhere and are persistent in growth. There are two basic types of weeds grasses and broadleaf plants.
Now killing them or preventing them, which do you choose? Depends on how much work you want to put into it. Just a few weeds and you can use a hoe, shovel or you can just pull them. If you have a lot then you need some extra help, give ProBest Pest Management a call at 602-249-7378. The cure to lots of weeds is to have a Professional licensed company. Make sure they use a Post Emergent = kills the weeds present and a Pre-emergent = kills the seeds before they germinate. Now the only issue is large rocks – the pre-emergent needs to get to the soil. So you must water it in, it helps a lot.
Remember if you do it yourself. Always read and follow label directions exactly! Wear Personal Protective Equipment, better to Be Prepared than not!
Not a tumbleweed but a cactus
Do you remember watching those wild west cowboy movies and watching those tumbleweeds aka Russian Thistle? Not everything is a cactus in Arizona.
They aren’t native to Arizona and probably were brought in from Asia with the pioneers.
The picture above is that tumbleweed but in its green and growing stage. When they die, they turn brown and wither but there is a secret you may not know about. That tumble thing they do, its really about spreading their seeds about 100,000 per plant. The old dead tumbleweed blows around with the help of the wind, spreading their kind to the four corners of Arizona – OK every corner of Arizona not just Four Corners (if you understand this reference post a comment) lets see how quick you folks are? On a serious note after the weeds life comes to an end, it becomes extremely brittle and become a target for any brush fires.
When you plant bushes, trees or plants next to your home, are you creating an environment for pests and termites? Probably so. My rule of thumb is not to plant anything within 2 feet of your structure. Normally this is what I call the dripline of your home, that is the area of the roof over hang. Sometimes we really don’t have a chance, the picture below is an example of this. Because of the sidewalk there isn’t any room and when and if a termite job is required on this home, all those plants will probably be destoyed or hopefully they can be moved. The other issue is when the plants attract pests, could they then move into your structure? So think before you plant and things should be OK on the bug side…
Weeds are everywhere…
Weeds got you down, they are plentiful here in Arizona right now. The plant above is London Rocket – flowering takes place from January to May. Flowers are pale yellow, rarely white, narrowed at the base, and roughly 1/10 to 1/6 inch (3–4 mm) long. Small clusters of flowers grow at the stem tip. London rocket reproduces by seed and we recommend a pre-emergent to prevent the seeds from growing. This plant weed is a winter annual broadleaf plant and if you remember a favorite of False Chinch bugs.
Russian Thistle
I’ll bet you didn’t know this is also called Tumbleweed, the stuff we occasionally see blowing by your car when its windy. Did you know that the reason it tumbles is to disperse its seeds? It also probably came to the U.S. in flax seed imported by Ukrainian farmers. Its almost iconic of the Southwest and often seen in movies blowing across the desert scenes like the beginning of the “Wizard of Oz”, if I remember correctly.
So if you are able to destroy it before it seeds, the better your landscape or that of your neighbors will be.
CDC reported cases of Lyme disease by state or locality, 2003-2012†
Lyme disease is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi and is transmitted to humans through the bite of infected blacklegged ticks. Typical symptoms include fever, headache, fatigue, and a characteristic skin rash called erythema migrans. If left untreated, infection can spread to joints, the heart, and the nervous system. Lyme disease is diagnosed based on symptoms, physical findings (e.g., rash), and the possibility of exposure to infected ticks; laboratory testing is helpful if used correctly and performed with validated methods. Most cases of Lyme disease can be treated successfully with a few weeks of antibiotics. Steps to prevent Lyme disease include using insect repellent, removing ticks promptly, applying pesticides, and reducing tick habitat. The ticks that transmit Lyme disease can occasionally transmit other tickborne diseases as well. Check out the CDC site for more information.
Now I want to share something I thought was interesting – I tried to join a certain Arizona Lyme Disease yahoo forum and was denied. They claim that I tried to join before and I don’t recall but I thought they might be interested in possibly preventing the disease with these new tick boxes. So there you go!
http://www.tickboxtcs.com/Select_TCS_Brochure.pdf
I’m sure each one of my readers have heard from their Grandparents or friends one tip that will help in getting rid of pests. So lets challenge everyone to contribute one or two great little tips.
For example there is one going around the web, which states that if you put some type of leaf into your bedroom – Bed Bugs will get caught in the bean leaf tiny hooks on the leaves. But who wants bean leaves all around the house?
So lets have a little fun here and tell me your stories, maybe the best one (my choice) will get featured on an upcoming home seal story.
Comments on my home seal at https://callprobest.com/home seal
OOPS, somebody should be watching where they are walking!
To late now but somebody applied a grass killer at a previous job and then walked on grass at another home, wasn’t us but you have to be careful!