Horticultural vinegar and nematodes are options for weed and pest control for your lawn and garden.
Horticultural Vinegar
Horticultural Vinegar is produced from grain sources and contains concentrated acetic acid as well as a plant based surfactant. It can be used to control weeds on hard surfaces, however it shows limited success as vinegar tends to burn the top growth, and does not kill the root of the weed. Multiple applications are required.
- To be effective against weeds, vinegar must be distilled to 10 to 20 % acetic acid
- A non-selective herbicide that homeowners still have access to, but that professionals are not allowed to use for commercial applications
- Burns weeds in interlocking brick patios, driveways, stone landscaping
- Use it on interlocking driveways, patios, around pools, decorative stone works
Nematodes
Grubs as well as a few other insect pests can be treated with nematodes, a tiny worm that infects and kills the grub. Nematodes need to be applied near the surface, on cloudy, preferably rainy days during specific time periods when grubs are at their smallest (August/September). Soil must be above 54 degrees and the area needs to be watered thoroughly to get nematodes through the thatch area to
the grubs.
Diagnosis is also very important as certain types of nematodes are needed for certain types of grubs. How many grubs per square feet and how large an area to be treated will affect the price, so pricing is done after diagnosis.
In our experience, there has been very little demonstrated success using nematodes to control grubs in ‘real world’ conditions; however nematodes have been shown to be effective when the conditions at application are perfect.
