Applying Round-Up® Herbicide

Pressurized Garden Sprayer

June 10, 2010

Round-Up® is an herbicide that is banned for home garden use under the Ontario Pesticide Ban except for special circumstances such as poison sumac and poison ivy.   Quite frankly I don't feel the Ontario Pesticide Ban goes far enough but when it comes to toxic plants like poison sumac and poison ivy that can cause extreme reactions that can cause death I am glad there are limited, responsible uses for certain pesticides.  Round-Up® is the herbicide of choice for poison sumac and poison oak. 

Every home gardener needs three pressurized sprayers.  One of those sprayers should be dedicated solely to chemical herbicides (eg. Round-Up®) which in most cases will not be any stronger than white vinegar.  One should be dedicated to organic herbicides (eg. white vinegar) The other should be dedicated to homemade insecticides (eg. soap solution).  If you do not have any poison ivy, poison oak or poison sumac on your property then you can get away with using two pressurized sprayers.  Each sprayer should be clearly labled and stored properly out of the reach of children and pets. 

Round-Up® does kill on contact but it takes a few days to see the actual results.  It is extremely important that any other plants near the plant you want to kill are protected against overspray or run-off.  Round-Up® can be applied using a pressurized sprayer on a calm, warm, dry day.  It is best if it can be applied when the possibility of rain for eight hours following the application is zero.  Round-Up® can also be applied using a small paint brush to put the solution on the plant leaves where it will just as effective without the worry of accidental overspray onto other plants.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
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