Weed Control Question

[KrazyKletus]

I planted a few different plots on my property this year.
Imp. Whitetail Clover planted 4/25/04
Bio. Prem Perennial planted 4/25/04
Bio Maximum planted 4/25/04

All of the plots are growing (Bio Maximum seems to be doing best)
However, with all of the recent rainfall I've noticed that grass weeds are coming up thick. I know that I can use poast or vantage for grass weed control, however, I wasn't planning on using it until late June to give my new plots a chance to get established.
Now I'm worried that the weeds will choke out the clover. Any suggestions on how to control this? Will spraying weed control in the next week on this young plot negatively impact the growing clover?
Any advice is greatly appreciated

[KrazyKletus]

Has anyone ever used Poast or Vantage on clover plots?
If so, what were the results?

[mike hartges]

Kletus, I used Poast on my clover last year. It was applied in the middle of the summer and it killed some grass type weeds I feel that it would have worked better if I would have sprayed while the weeds were younger instead of waiting till they were a foot tall. I don't know if it's ok to spray a new clover field with Poast. I recently purchased a wick bar. It's in the shape of a hockey stick with a piece of rope that is attached to the bottom of the stick. You put Roundup in the handle and it drips into the rope which runs parallel to the ground at the bottom of the wick bar. You just wipe it across the offending weeds and it kills thew without any spraying. They also make wick bars for atv's so you can kill early season weeds that are taller than your clover.

[passthru]

I have used one of the 2 but I cant remember which one. Anyway it had no Ill effect on the clover from what I saw. Maybe try a small spot in a corner and wait a week and see what happens to the clover. If you listen to Ed from QDMA he goes as far as spraying this clover with Roundup and it stunts it for awhile but does not kill it off. I have a buddy that sprays his clover every year with Roundup for a maintance and it does stunt it for awhile but it greens right back up and comes back even thicker. Read Eds book called Food Plots 123 and it mentions everything Ive written above. If I were you Id go ahead and spray it with the Post/Vantage and see what happens. Im sure it will not kill the clover.

[bishs]

I used Poast this spring also. Not sure on the young plants. I would try it. Spring is a tough time to get clover plots going. Too much weed competition. Late summer is much better. Plant your clover with a cover crop of rye and you will get much better results.
Using Poast may save your plot. If the weeds are heavy, you might be better off spraying it with roundup, then planting the end of August.

[slowpoke]

I have 3 small clover plots that are full of weeds and giving the clover a hard time so last week-end I tried Ed Spin's Round-up advice and mixed up 1% mix in my 4 gal back pack sprayer. I also put down 6-24-24 on the plots and will report on how it does later.
I seen Ed at the Elevator Mon. but didn't recognize him, sorry Ed. Ed I was in the big white truck with a trailer that parked on the scales. I picked up 3000# of lime. I would like to have talked to you for a while. I also seen he had his book there for sell. My buddy will be there Sat. to get some Lime, if the rain don't interfere and I told him to get his book, hope they still have some.

[wild bill]

once your clover reaches 3-4 inches you can spray it with vantage/poast. i would not use the roundup method till the plot is at least 2 years old.

[KrazyKletus]

I think I have identified my weed problem. Tall Goldenrod appears to be sprouting throughout my plot. It's much taller than the clover. I'm afraid it will shade and choke out the clover. Will Vantage/Poast take care of this?
If not, are there any other suggestions to slow this weed growth.
Can I mow the weeds down, or will that improve the growth rate of Goldenrod? Any suggestions are appreciated

[bishs]

Mowing will kill most broadleaf weeds. I would cut it, and set the height above the clover. When the clover matures, I would mow it 4 to 6 inches high. This helps the clover re-gain control of the plot.

[Lenaweebowhunter]

I sprayed Vantage on my plots to reduce the grass competition about 2 weeks ago. I can see the grasses are now yellowing and dying back.

One of the plots had tall grass, so I mowed it a week prior to spraying, to make sure the grasses were vigeriously growing. Ive had good luck using this product along with periodic mowing to reduce the brodleaves.

Give that new plot some sime before spraying with Poast or Vantage, mowing works very well in promoting the growth of clover that should overtake the grasses.