For The Pros: Which Is Better, Liquid or Granular Broadleaf Weed Control?
This article was specifically written for turf professionals including but not limited to: landscapers, golf course superintendents, sod farmers, contractors and municipalities. The products mentioned in this article are not available for retail sale. If you are a homeowner and are curious about professional products and practices, speak to your landscaper about using Jonathan Green’s professional line of lawn care products.
There are several different types of broadleaf weed control options that come in two main categories: liquid or granular. Each type of control has its pros and cons, and most professionals have their opinions as to which type is best. If you’re just starting out or looking to switch from one type to another, this article can help you weigh your options!
Liquid Weed Controls
In the professional market, many lawn care professionals prefer liquid herbicides over granular herbicides for post-emergent control of broadleaf weeds. The reason for this is that liquid post-emergent herbicides usually perform better than their granular counterparts. Using liquids often result in a quicker weed kill while allowing the applicator flexibility. In the case of heavy weed pressure, you can spray the entire lawn or if fewer weeds are present you can either spot spray certain areas or even individual weeds themselves.
Granular Weed Controls
Other lawn care professionals will prefer to use a granular product because they feel it is easier and faster to apply, and it typically includes a fertilizer. These products are known as “Weed & Feed” because they fertilize your lawns and control the various broadleaf weeds that plague many of us in late spring in one easy step. This makes for a faster application which translates into lower labor costs per application.
Traditional granular weed & feeds are not without their flaws, however. These products have to be applied to a wet lawn so that the herbicide will adhere to the weeds which means that the applicator must either apply the product in the early morning when lawns are damp with dew, wait until after a rainfall to apply the product, or manually water the lawn just prior to the application.
Additionally, traditional granular weed & feed products must stay adhered to the targeted weeds for 48-72 hours to be effective. To accomplish this, the applicator has to time their application when no rain is forecasted for the next several days and they should advise their homeowners to limit the use of treated spaces until after that 48-72 hour window to avoid inadvertently knocking the herbicide off of the weeds. If it rains prior to that 48 hour minimum, the product washes off of the weeds and the applicator will have to reapply a straight (no fertilizer) granular or liquid herbicide to get an acceptable level of control.
Jonathan Green Fertilizer + Lock Up
Jonathan Green’s new professional grade granular weed & feed, Fertilizer + Lock-Up*, works differently. This new product still needs to be applied to a wet lawn and you still want no rain to be forecasted for 48-72 hours but, if it does rain, the product will wash off of the weed and be absorbed into the soil where it will attack the weed from the root up. This systemic approach is a significant advantage over all the other traditional weed & feed products on the market. This new type of weed & feed produces far better results as compared to other granular weed & feed products and the improved efficacy rivals that of liquid herbicides.
Lawn care professionals have no shortage of options when it comes to picking an appropriate herbicide to tackle weeds on their customers’ lawns. Whether you prefer the higher efficacy of targeted liquid herbicides, the time and cost savings of a traditional granular weed & feed or you want the best features of both with our new Fertilizer + Lock-Up, Jonathan Green’s professional line of products has you covered.
*Fertilizer + Lock-Up is only available for Turf Professionals, and is not available on our website or at your local independent retailer. If you are a homeowner and are curious about professional products, speak to your landscaper about using Jonathan Green’s professional line of lawn care products.
As with all herbicides, applicators must thoroughly read the product label to make sure they are following all safety guidelines, have the correct mix ratio, application rate/coverage and that the product is safe for the types of grasses in their customers’ lawns. The active ingredients in some herbicides, while being very effective at killing targeted weeds in the lawn, can damage ornamental trees, flowers and other desirable plants.