Licking Rushes

zetorman

Have a good few acres of rushes to sort. Have them cut and waiting for new crop of green ones to appear !! Intend to lick them with Mortone but hear mixed views about it. Any other product better ? Any tips about licking....homemade licker behind a 35.

Farrell

zetorman wrote: »

Have a good few acres of rushes to sort. Have them cut and waiting for new crop of green ones to appear !! Intend to lick them with Mortone but hear mixed views about it. Any other product better ? Any tips about licking....homemade licker behind a 35.

Gallop or round-up would be better for licking as your only getting the rush.
Need some dry weather with growth, which could be a wait

tractorporn

Farrell wrote:

Gallop or round-up would be better for licking as your only getting the rush. Need some dry weather with growth, which could be a wait

+1 use some form of Roundup. We go with a mix of a third Gallop, a third veg oil and a third water. Gets a great kill and the rush won't come back. After two years of that you'll have gotten rid of 95% of the rushes.

patsy_mccabe

tractorporn wrote: »

+1 use some form of Roundup. We go with a mix of a third Gallop, a third veg oil and a third water. Gets a great kill and the rush won't come back. After two years of that you'll have gotten rid of 95% of the rushes.

But water won't mix with oil. The oil will just float on top.

50HX

mcpa does the job fine with a licker, stick a drop of Quix and you'll get a better stick and see where you've done

spray is not the only answer for rushes

you also have to consider the soil ph, water drainage and fertiliser

drainage isn't always an option

when you put out spray it reduces the ph...the answer to this is Lime but on heavy land you can't go mad on it either as it will make it fierce soft

spray & fertiliser for a long term control is the most viable option with a rotation of lime as well (test the soil)

tractorporn

patsy_mccabe wrote:

But water won't mix with oil. The oil will just float on top.

Haven't found that to be the case, the land where we would be going in would be rough enough so it keeps the little tank agitated.

Sacrolyte

If this bloody weather keeps up we won't be licking any rushes cause we be atein em.

mikefoxo

zetorman wrote: »

Have a good few acres of rushes to sort. Have them cut and waiting for new crop of green ones to appear !! Intend to lick them with Mortone but hear mixed views about it. Any other product better ? Any tips about licking....homemade licker behind a 35.

Fancy throwing up a picture or two of the licker you made. I have a 35 too;)

Wigster

Sacrolyte wrote: »

If this bloody weather keeps up we won't be licking any rushes cause we be atein em.

I cut rushes last summer with the intention of licking but weather broke and never got around to it. If we got few dry days now could you lick them this month? How long before cutting them afterwards? Can't stand the sight of them.

Farrell

50HX wrote: »

mcpa does the job fine with a licker, stick a drop of Quix and you'll get a better stick and see where you've done

spray is not the only answer for rushes

you also have to consider the soil ph, water drainage and fertiliser

drainage isn't always an option

when you put out spray it reduces the ph...the answer to this is Lime but on heavy land you can't go mad on it either as it will make it fierce soft

spray & fertiliser for a long term control is the most viable option with a rotation of lime as well (test the soil)

Then if we didn't spray/lick/wipe & just applied lime in ground/gran/slag form, would that reduce the rushes naturally (if drainage was good)?

limo_100

tinking of getting a licker this year just wondering how many acres could you do a day with a licker and tractor

50HX

Farrell wrote: »

Then if we didn't spray/lick/wipe & just applied lime in ground/gran/slag form, would that reduce the rushes naturally (if drainage was good)?

if you've good drainage and get the soil nutrients right then you are on the road to getting rid of them,

if this was the case i'd cut, clean em up and on then with fertilizer

do you see rushes growing on good free draining land....generally not

they are the greatest curse

if i'd a market for em i'd be retired already...:)

50HX

limo_100 wrote: »

tinking of getting a licker this year just wondering how many acres could you do a day with a licker and tractor

get the one with the bristles...more expensive but far better job imo

fine tedious head wrecking job is licking

if' you'd full acres of rushes i'd guess 6-8 acres a day maybe

only ever do it field by field

limo_100

50HX wrote: »

get the one with the bristles...more expensive but far better job imo

fine tedious head wrecking job is licking

if' you'd full acres of rushes i'd guess 6-8 acres a day maybe

only ever do it field by field

is that the one that detects the weeds it self? who makes the one with the bristles??

greenpetrol

Would cattle need to be kept out of licked fields for long?

50HX

limo_100 wrote: »

is that the one that detects the weeds it self? who makes the one with the bristles??

no but it's controlled from the cab with a timer that you can set depending on coverage of rush in field, there's also an aver ride button on it

check the link below

for sale in newmarket in cork by Hourigans

found it a brilliant job with the last 2 years

only field that hasn't been really effective in is one that was neglected with fertiliser a bit...not the lickers fault

really couldn't fault it and way better than the carpet roller one

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=li83VPABdVs

50HX

greenpetrol wrote: »

Would cattle need to be kept out of licked fields for long?

i think a min of 7days to be on the safe side

limo_100

50HX wrote: »

no but it's controlled from the cab with a timer that you can set depending on coverage of rush in field, there's also an aver ride button on it

check the link below

for sale in newmarket in cork by Hourigans

found it a brilliant job with the last 2 years

only field that hasn't been really effective in is one that was neglected with fertiliser a bit...not the lickers fault

really couldn't fault it and way better than the carpet roller one

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=li83VPABdVs

what would the price of one of them be??

50HX

limo_100 wrote: »

what would the price of one of them be??

i got mine for 3700

there is 3 of us bought it 2gether

not always the best road to go down but we agreed to try it and if it didn't work out then sell it

so far so good tho

SirustheVirus

Wigster wrote: »

I cut rushes last summer with the intention of licking but weather broke and never got around to it. If we got few dry days now could you lick them this month? How long before cutting them afterwards? Can't stand the sight of them.

Hi Wigster, How long did you leave the rushes after licking before you topped them ? I licked a field last week and they are slowly starting to die. I am wondering how long will I leave them before I run the topper over them and clean up the field??

tatoo

Is four weeks, at this time of year, long enough to leave them after topping before I hit them with a licker ?

_Brian

tatoo wrote: »

Is four weeks, at this time of year, long enough to leave them after topping before I hit them with a licker ?

They just need to be long enough to get decent contact with the drum without murdering the grass..

cj maxx

I know the advice is to top / hit the regrowth but a fella sprayed rushes for me , no topping , with mcpa last year and got a great kill