With the pending lawsuit(s) over RoundUp, Home Depot has opted to cease production and sales of their HDX Ground Control product, which was a terrific weed killer and vegetation killer. IMO HDX was better than RoundUp for about half the cost. I have a need to clear some weeds and overgrowth around the landscape beds in my yard and along the back property line and am struggling to find a good product to use. Anyone have any recommendations for products that work, are readily available, and don't break the bank?

Look for a lawn and garden shop or a DIY store near you, they'll have what you want, might cost a bit more than at HD.

The local lawn and garden shop/commercial mower dealer near us sells a 5 gallon commercial labeled container, my lawn guy gets it there, it's lasted a couple of years for me...

Glyphosate (generic name for Roundup) will do you just fine. Available in large quantities as concentrate at Tractor Supply / Diamond R, and many feed stores etc. They may have smaller quantities, or ready to use without dilution as well.

If you want something more oriented to broadleaf that won't kill grasses, I can recommend Grazeonnext, or 2-4D. Each has a profile of broadleaf that it will suppress. Note that as grass is on its "down cycle" toward winter, this broadleaf stuff may kill grass at this time of year as well.

Note that dilution ratio of these products tends to be around 2.5 oz of concentrate for each gallon of spray. That means a gallon (128 ounces) can last a looooooonnnnnngggg time. It doesn't go bad so long as you keep it as concentrate and keep the bottle out of the sun. It loses potency over time after being mixed with water.

Be aware that using any of these products around fruit trees or other desirable plants may have really negative consequences as tiny, and I mean really tiny, amounts of overspray mist, or ground cover will kill the shit out of almost anything.

As I buy the stuff in 2 gallon bottles, I could give you a bit for your use if you are west of town. I live between Clermont and Groveland.

Tractor supply.

If you have a farm supply store (Tractor Supply or similar), they'll have the generic industrial equivalent. Look at the bottle or webpage of the Home Depot product and find the active ingredient(s).

But you might have to mix/dilute it yourself, and/or invest in a cheap reusable sprayer if you don't have an old weed killer bottle with sprayer left over.

There is nothing wrong with roundup (glyphosate).

2,4-D production has decreased significantly, but is available in two formulations; the butyl ester aeromatic version has a high drift potential; you you use it anywhere near a garden or trees or broadleaf plants you want to keep, they will be damaged by the vapor.

Amine 2,4-D, on the other hand, can be sprayed or even brushed onto plants (brushing with a house broom is viable to avoid drift). It doesn't produce the same vapor and doesn't have the collateral damage potential to trees, bushes, etc.

With 2,4-D use, don't wear the same shoes into the house that you used while treating with the chemical, if you have houseplants.

If you apply per the label, it's generally safe for grasses and sedge.

For home use, there are plenty of herbicide products that will work fine. I still prefer roundup, though it's not selective, and can impact grasses as well as broadleaf.

There's actually a herbicide today that combines roundup (glyphosate) and 2,4-D: Enlist Duo uses choline or amine 2,4-D. It's primarily for ag work, and was designed specifically for some genetically modified products (Enlist) that were engineered to be resistant to the Enlist Duo.

Little known fact...2,4-D was originally designed as a WWII weapon, but didn't pan out. It's also part of the chemical imput into "agent orange," which is primarily the same family, 2,4,5-T.

quote:

Originally posted by sns3guppy:
There is nothing wrong with roundup

Other than the price IMO.

For those suggesting a visit to Tractor Supply, I wish. Living essentially in downtown Orlando, the nearest Tractor Supply is a hike.

And Artie, thanks so much for the offer of some of your stash, but you live where I wish I lived versus where I live over here in downtown Orlando. This stuff looks promising and can be drop shipped to my local HD. Compare-N-Save Weed Killer

Yep, Home Depot quit selling their HDX branded glyphosate about a year ago according to HD floor people. I guess lawn care guys are po'd, they bought it in bunches.

All my HD has is Roundup concentrate, 18% IIRC, the HDX was 41%. Less than half as strong, well over twice the price. The Roundup is $21, the HDX was $7-8.

I'm looking for Ranger brand glyphosate, 41%, locally with no luck so far, about twice the price of the discontinued HDX. At this point in the season and not needing big quantities, I'll get by until I find some. I'm sure the lawyers had a big hand in messing this all up.

quote:

Originally posted by sns3guppy:
2,4-D production has decreased significantly, but is available

If you apply per the label, it's generally safe for grasses and sedge.

2,4-D is what I use for most everyday weed control. It's great because it's safe for grass (although it can brown Bermuda if applied in hot weather, so it's not as great for middle of summer use... Most manufacturers recommend using on Bermuda only when highs are below 85/90ish). With 2,4-D, you don't have to worry about having brown spots all over your grass like you do if you're spot-treating weeds with Roundup/glyphosate.

There are even a few formulations of "Weed and Feed" type products with 2,4-D plus fertilizer, which are really handy for simple application to the entire yard in the spring to both knock down early spring dandelions/clover/crabgrass while giving emerging grass a boost.

I reserve glyphosate for more targeted occasional use in areas where I want zero plant growth, like cracks in the sidewalk, between patio pavers, or under deck stairs.


I know HD and Lowes both carry a couple different brands of 2,4-D, under the Spectracide Weed Stop and Ortho Weed Clear brands. Looks for the orange/black and orange/green bottles.

quote:

Originally posted by bigdeal:

For those suggesting a visit to Tractor Supply, I wish. Living essentially in downtown Orlando, the nearest Tractor Supply is a hike.

Call Farm City on Atlanta Ave. They are close to downtown and right near Orlando Brewing for a stop on the trip home. (407) 843-7470

Have you tried Killzall?

quote:

Originally posted by ArtieS:

quote:

Originally posted by bigdeal:

For those suggesting a visit to Tractor Supply, I wish. Living essentially in downtown Orlando, the nearest Tractor Supply is a hike.

Call Farm City on Atlanta Ave. They are close to downtown and right near Orlando Brewing for a stop on the trip home. (407) 843-7470

Even city folk kin get countryfied stuff...

I have been spraying the 8 acres I mow with Amine 24-D for over 40 years. Works great ,have never had any issues with pets or anything else.

I always bought roundup and it worked great . Last time I bought the generic 41% glyphosate from Home Depot and it didn’t do shit. None of the plants died , they ate it for breakfast . What the hell?!

Usually the plays are wilting and dying within hours but it’s been a few days and the plants don’t even care that I sprayed them. Not happy with this generic stuff that doesn’t do anything ....

quote:

Originally posted by bubbatime:
Last time I bought the generic 41% glyphosate from Home Depot and it didn’t do shit. None of the plants died , they ate it for breakfast .

What concentration did you dilute it to? Roundup is 2% glyphosate. So as long as it was ~2 or 3 ounces of concentrate (or more) to 1 gallon of water, it should have been at least as effective as Roundup...

Give it another shot at a higher concentration.

Or did it rain or get watered shortly after application? That would cause it to dilute too quickly before it has a chance to work on the weeds.

I've been using a glyphosate product that I purchased at Rural King. I think Eliminator Plus is the name. It's a generic 41% glyphosate.

quote:

Originally posted by craglawnmanor:
I've been using a glyphosate product that I purchased at Rural King. I think Eliminator Plus is the name. It's a generic 41% glyphosate.

I get 'Imitator' brand Glyphosate 41% from rural king, it's more aptly named. Don't rmember the price, but it's <$50 for a 2.5gal jug.
With most weed killers, the weeds need to be actively growing to actually die. It's September, many weeds are finishing their seeds & will be done before it could die. You might burn them back, but you probably won't kill the root & definitely won't stop the next generation.
That's one reason that hot/dry are bad times to spray. The other big one is that it's harder on the good plants for selective herbicides like 2,4-D containing products.

Ace Hardware is where I most recently bought glyphosate. It’s 41% unlike Round Up brand’s pathetic and overpriced 18%.

some years ago the son-in-laws father was driving a 18 wheeler tanker. one of the trips was carrying a very concentrated load of round up. some how he able to get a 5gallon bucket of the load. when he sprayed the road ditch in front of the house he had BARE dirt for 3yrs before anything grew back. .................................. drill sgt.

quote:

Originally posted by bubbatime:
I always bought roundup and it worked great . Last time I bought the generic 41% glyphosate from Home Depot and it didn’t do shit. None of the plants died , they ate it for breakfast . What the hell?!

Usually the plays are wilting and dying within hours but it’s been a few days and the plants don’t even care that I sprayed them. Not happy with this generic stuff that doesn’t do anything ....

Did you use a sticker/spreader? Some versions of Roundup (there are many) have a sticker/spreader included and all you need to do is add water. Some of the cheaper generics need a sticker/spreader added.

Also, have you checked the pH of your water? You will get much better results at the label pH.