Spraying Rushes

jmurf100

Going to spray a field before ploughing and reseeding in a few weeks time, problem is theres quite a bit covered in rushes, whats the best spray to use to kill the rushes and should they be cut and gathered up before ploughing??

invicta

Use Roundup not gallup and top tight before ploughing.That should do the trick.

TUBBY

i am fairly sure that roundup and gallup have the same active but that gallup is the generic.

anyway, either way make sure you spray two weeks before ploughing to ensure you have a dead butt.

ravima

+1 on the roundup or generic one. However, having done what you are doing, I found that the rushes keep coming up and need to be sprayed again and topped for a few years afterwards.

drainage is the problem.

jmurf100

Is there any spray that will kill the rush completly? I have been told that roundup wont kill them.....

johngalway

Spray them with mortone.

As ravima says, if the place is wet, drain it, or you're wasting your time and money.

jmurf100

Will Mortone work on them at this time of year or would they want to be cut now, let grow for a while and then sprayed??

lilbelter

jmurf100 wrote: »

Will Mortone work on them at this time of year or would they want to be cut now, let grow for a while and then sprayed??

Yes, u should defo cut them before spraying with mortone, leave for about 1-2 weeks to allow maximum penetration into the root. Should work fine any time of year really

johngalway

I'm not sure. I sprayed mine September/October last year I think. Cut them there a few weeks ago and I achieved a very good kill as there's been damn all regrowth (so far, fingers crossed). If you're worried, then yeah cut them first. That way you'll only br spraying fresh, new, growing rushes instead of spraying older ones as well.

reilig

If you're going to spray for reseeding, don't waste money on mortone. Any of the Glyphosate sprays (Roundup, Gallop etc) will kill the rushes (roots and all) equally as well, if not better, than mortone. You will have the added advantage of having killed the grass off for reseeding in the one pass!!

Alexander Supertramp

reilig wrote: »

If you're going to spray for reseeding, don't waste money on mortone. Any of the Glyphosate sprays (Roundup, Gallop etc) will kill the rushes (roots and all) equally as well, if not better, than mortone. You will have the added advantage of having killed the grass off for reseeding in the one pass!!

Good thread here for any farmer like ourselves who are plagued with rushes. We are looking to plough a field or two soon. Just to make sure I'm on the same wavelength, would the best way of working be to cut the rushes, spray with roundup 1-2 weeks later then plough the field?

Bizzum

Its a good few years since I done anything with rushes but I seem to remember that for best results the spray should be applied to green sappy rushes. When we did them we topped and sprayed the re-growth.
This might be a non runner if you are keen to get at the reseeding now.

reilig

Bizzum wrote: »

Its a good few years since I done anything with rushes but I seem to remember that for best results the spray should be applied to green sappy rushes. When we did them we topped and sprayed the re-growth.
This might be a non runner if you are keen to get at the reseeding now.

+1.
My Father sprays about 200 acres of rushes per year for various neighbours near and far and he will only put on spray during the growing season. The rush needs to be growing in order to take in the spray and kill it.

Bizzum

Another thing I recall from ploughing rushy ground is the root on the cursed thing. Its no wonder they are so resilient.
Those big woody brown clumps take some abuse.

Alexander Supertramp

While roots on them surely. You couldn't pull the damn things out no mater how hard you tried. Thanks for the replies anyway. Looks like there is plenty of spraying and ploughing needed.

rossman33

I am nearly over run with rushes, after the last few bad years, planning on rotating the grazing and then spraying after the cattle moved on. can anyone give me advice on rates of application in a sprayer. is agroxone 50 the best, i want to get the so and so's killed off.

ootbitb

keep up the ph and sharpen the topper , cheaper than spray unless you are draining ... which ain't cheap either.

invicta

does p.h. over 6,: not drive rushes utterly bananas????:eek:

bbam

ootbitb wrote: »

keep up the ph and sharpen the topper , cheaper than spray unless you are draining ... which ain't cheap either.

I think the only real progress is to spray or lock them. Definitely wet areas will need draining bit you'll find that they'll spread to dry areas too.

Any information I read was that low PH increases rush and moss growth and reduces grass. We've started spreading lime to counteract them.

rossman33

Is now a good tiome to spray, or do I wait for a dry week, if we ever get one. Other question I have for those experienced out there are, how long do I keep the cattle out of the fields after spraying, also how long do I wait after spraying before cutting at the butt. In my own mind I have declared all out war this year on the blessed rush. any advice welcome.

redzerologhlen

rossman33 wrote: »

Is now a good tiome to spray, or do I wait for a dry week, if we ever get one. Other question I have for those experienced out there are, how long do I keep the cattle out of the fields after spraying, also how long do I wait after spraying before cutting at the butt. In my own mind I have declared all out war this year on the blessed rush. any advice welcome.

A dead mild day is best and not too sunny or warm. It says it on the leaflet with the spray how long to keep cattle out and I think it is 2 weeks for MCPA. It says to cut a month after spraying on the leaflet but I wait 2 or 3 months because they are a lot easier to cut.

upgrade

redzerologhlen wrote: »

A dead mild day is best and not too sunny or warm. It says it on the leaflet with the spray how long to keep cattle out and I think it is 2 weeks for MCPA. It says to cut a month after spraying on the leaflet but I wait 2 or 3 months because they are a lot easier to cut.

Does anyone know how soon you can cut rushes after licking them? I'm plagued with them 2,and moss and other weeds too that have come into a reseeded field,dont think the lime worked right

ootbitb

I have heard it said that applying too much lime at once can impede drainage especially on peaty soils.

Don't know if it still happens but in the past quarry dust has been used instead of good grade lime...needless to say this proved costly to the farmer.

bbam

upgrade wrote: »

Does anyone know how soon you can cut rushes after licking them? I'm plagued with them 2,and moss and other weeds too that have come into a reseeded field,dont think the lime worked right

We don't cut them until sure the tussock is completely dead.
How soon this happens depending the strength of the mix and what is in it.

I'd be afraid if you cut it too soon the systemic nature of the weed killer might be disrupted.

We applied Gallup at 20:1 and they were ready for cutting after 4-5 weeks.