weed lickers are they any good

beef burger

im new to this site but was wondering are weed lickers a good job to get rid of rushes because they just seem to be taking over round this part of the country or is spraying them a better method of getting rid of them.

Conmaicne Mara

Both work. If I had the choice I'd go with the licker, less chemical being put about the place.

bbam

We use the licker and very happy with it..
The spray does stunt grass growth, and with the licker its handy to give a field a run just after its been grazed.. The spray also kills off all clover which is a big disadvantage.

Western Pomise

Have a carpet type licker as have plenty of land that grows great rushes:),a licker works well as long as its working on young green rushes,you are better off spraying strong 2 or 3 year old rushes and then keep them controlled with a licker.

KatyMac

Sorry for the stoopid question, but what does a licker look like/do. I'm having to get about 20 acres sprayed this spring as the rushes are having parties in the field - just went to hell last year as the ground was too wet for me to get in with the topper. Usually I was able to run around twice in the year and the cattle were able to eat the young rush and keep things under control. I only have a very basic tractor(MF 165) so I'm wondering what is needed to run a licker. I know that if I go into a dealer I wouldn't be able to look as if I knew what I was talking about so could get sold a lemon.

beef burger

thanks for the replies i think i'll get 1 and try it out we have a good topper so that will be the 1st job cut them 1st then lick them as there fresh. less of a kill on grass and clover which is a great bonus god knows last year wasnt much of a year for grass growth or farming in general will it be much of the same for 2013.

Deskjet

are there any downsides to weedlickers that you would not be obvious until you use one a few times I am considering buying one as I already have a sprayer and I am not that happy with the results and I find it does check the grass and does not kill for long. I would assume rush/weeds killed with round up would be killed of for far longer !

Farrell

Deskjet wrote: »

are there any downsides to weedlickers that you would not be obvious until you use one a few times I am considering buying one as I already have a sprayer and I am not that happy with the results and I find it does check the grass and does not kill for long. I would assume rush/weeds killed with round up would be killed of for far longer !

FIL has 1, are a good job, as they don't kill grass like spray does.
Main things I see is, make sure cloth is not too well worn, apply adequate fluid to the cloth.
If the rush is very heavy & you don't apply enough, you won't have a complete kill.
Been advised recently to cut, 2 week later sow fertilizer, then 2 week later lick, as the rush is starting to die the growing grass will smoother out dying rush to reduce any new growth.

Deskjet

Farrell wrote: »

FIL has 1, are a good job, as they don't kill grass like spray does.
Main things I see is, make sure cloth is not too well worn, apply adequate fluid to the cloth.
If the rush is very heavy & you don't apply enough, you won't have a complete kill.
Been advised recently to cut, 2 week later sow fertilizer, then 2 week later lick, as the rush is starting to die the growing grass will smoother out dying rush to reduce any new growth.

Would you say they are better than a sprayer to kill rushes. As a side question what do you find the best chemical to kill rush I used mcpa this year don't think it worked great. Maybe there were other factors like time of year I sprayed (early June) and life cycle of the rush (cut last year 2013)

Farrell

Deskjet wrote: »

Would you say they are better than a sprayer to kill rushes. As a side question what do you find the best chemical to kill rush I used mcpa this year don't think it worked great. Maybe there were other factors like time of year I sprayed (early June) and life cycle of the rush (cut last year 2013)

Never sprayed but saw a field done, it had to be reseeded as everything killed ( no sure what used). We use gallop & water, round up strongly recommended.
Listening to some, if topping / cutting & licking done right it can reduce by 90/95% over 3/4 years.
There is lots of guys who are in the business & could come & do for you.
What part of the country are you?