Stay informed with the latest trends in health, business, tech, travel, lifestyle, and more. Explore expert tips, creative ideas, and global insights—all in one place
We went through a long, cold winter. The warm, sunny days of spring are starting to roll in. When we get outside to work in the yard, we are going to want to focus our time on the yard and garden chores we enjoy the most.
At the same time, we also need to focus on getting ahead of the things we do not like to do. Since we are talking about gardening, the problems we are trying to avoid may literally grow and continually get worse. What I am referring to is weeds. Here’s what you can do to protect your plants.
Use a pre-emergent herbicide
The easiest way to control weeds is to stop them before they start to grow. For this, you need to use pre-emergent herbicides. In this category, there are several different products. There are products for lawns and others for landscape beds.
For the landscape beds, the two most common pre-emergent weed controls available are Dimension and Treflan. Treflan is the pre-emergent herbicide in the popular product called Preen. Dimension is not as well known. It is available in a product called Hi-Yield Turf and Ornamental Weed Control. This product is sold at independent garden stores. Preen is sold just about anywhere garden products are sold.
The main difference between these two products is longevity. With average rainfall, Dimension should be active for 120 days. Treflan will be active for 90 days. This is significant because you should set a calendar reminder to reapply these products according to this schedule. Reapplying is needed for continued weed prevention into summer and fall.
Another difference is that Treflan can be used around selected vegetables. You will need to read the label to see the specific vegetables you can use this product around. If you use this product, you will not be growing organically. There is an organic pre-emergent weed control: corn gluten. It is effective but only for 4-6 weeks. Dimension cannot be used around vegetables.
Use a post-emergent herbicide
Weed prevention should be the preferred method for controlling weeds. The second option is spraying with a post-emergent herbicide. This is the next best choice.
However, spraying is not always safe to do around existing desirable plants.
Pull out the weeds
There’s a third option: If you allow the weeds to grow, you can pull the weeds out of the ground. Nobody likes this, as it might have been a punishment when you were young.
Also, keep this in mind when you are pulling weeds: If you do not completely remove the roots, the weed will grow back.
Remember to apply a systemic insecticide
This is also the time of the season to apply a systemic insecticide to boxwoods to protect them from certain damaging insects. These would be leaf miners and psyllids. If you have seen your boxwood leaves turning brown in early summer, you most likely have these insects.
These insects are easy to treat, and now is the time to do it. Systemic insecticides are available in a formulation to be applied as a soil drench. What this means is they are mixed with water in a watering can or a bucket. How much you mix is determined by the height of the shrubs.
You apply it by pouring the insecticide into the soil at the base of the plant. Over the next few weeks, the insecticide will be absorbed into the plant. When the leaf miners and psyllids hatch from their eggs and start feeding, they will be eliminated.
Boxwoods are also vulnerable to another insect called the box tree moth. The systemic insecticide will not have any impact on this insect. This insect can be much more damaging. There are not any preventive controls.
I would recommend the systemic treatment to control the leaf miners and psyllids to keep your boxwoods as healthy as possible. If they encounter other problems, they will be stronger to sustain them.
