Ribwort Plantain

madmac187

Hi folks just wondering, how much I go about killing Ribwort plantain in a lawn I have sprayed and sprayed and nothing is killing it , any suggestions ?

Jim_Hodge

Any lawn weedkiller used as directed would do the job. Or hand weed it out.

looksee

Dig them up individually. I personally love plantain, I think it can be a very elegant plant in the right place, but I agree that in the lawn it maybe not as desirable.

The Continental Op

Deja vu? Haven't we had this discussion before?

Ribwort Plantain is the easiest thing to kill with selective weed killer but in a previous thread the OP stated that they couldn't kill it with a selective weed killer. Well they were wrong then and the OP is wrong here.

Currently I'm using Dichphar which is dead cheap and kills Ribwort Plantain.

Anyone that has Ribwort Plantain in a "lawn" doesn't have a lawn. They have a compacted area of poor probably very shallow soil that grows weeds better than it does grass. In decent growing conditions Plantains are only a minor weed in the lawn.

The Continental Op

Just back in from a walk with the dogs where I spotted a few dying Ribwort Plantains I sprayed with Dichophar just over a week ago. I was going to get my phone and go back down and take a picture (might on next dog walk) but decided to have a bit of a google instead.

This is the first link I found

https://www.lawnhealth.co.uk/lawn-weeds/identification/ribwort-plantain-plantain-lanceolata/

And I quote

Chemical control

A good selective weed killer can be used to control ribwort plantain. Like all plantains a single application is usually enough for complete control.

RainInSummer

In fairness to the OP I sprayed RoundUp Biactive @40ml per L from a knapsack sprayer over a large area approx 11 days ago. Almost everything has turned either red or yellow by now as you'd expect. Everything except the ribwort plantain. It's knocked back a bit but it's no where near as badly effected as the others and doesn't look like it will croak. I used a dye as well to ensure complete coverage so the few hundred plantain didn't miraculously escape.

N.B. I have sprayed a lot in my day but there's always the possibility that I am mixing incorrectly or not applying sufficiently.

The Continental Op

40ml per litre is more than enough - I use 25ml to the litre on Japanese Knotweed with good results. 11 days is far to short a time to know exactly whats been killed by glyphosate. Most grass will show yellow after about a week and only needs about 15ml to the litre for a good kill. Broad leaved weeds often take much longer can't say for sure with plantain as I've always hit it in grass with a selective weed killer. I know I've also used verdone and straight 2,4-D among other selective on it with good effect.

A bit of googling does suggest that plantains can be resistant to glyphosate but something like Dicophar at 7.5ml to the litre definitely kills it and at that rate a one litre bottle (€20) lasts for years.

You can do a mix of selective with glyphosate which is very effective on tough weeds on non crop areas. I had good success on Bracken with it last year. Wouldn't do that all the time only when really needed.

RainInSummer

I have a couple of liters of Dicophar out the back too. Usually use it at 10ml per L.

Now that the robots been looking after mowing duty I don't use it at all really though.

looksee

WHAT! I have been spraying Roundup Bioactive today, clearing an area that is going to be a restored bit of garden - the last bit!! But I was using 10ml (kinda) per litre as advised on Roundup's website - they for some reason don't put the dilution on the bottle, not sure what that is about, so I may have got it wrong. A capful is 15ml so I usually put 4 capfuls in my 5 ltr sprayer.

I previously sprayed some nettles (there are loads more generous nettle patches round the edges of the garden, along with dead wood heaps, ferns, wild hedgerow, brambles, rabbit holes and ivy) and it took about 3 weeks for the tops to turn yellow, they still don't look entirely dead but I'm going to be pulling them up anyway.

The Continental Op

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120575939#Comment_120575939

10ml is on the lean side but will be fine. There is a very good reason for there not being a dilution rate on the can. You can't quote an accurate dilution rate when it depends on the volume of water you are spraying on the weeds. I've one spray that will cover 3 times as much as another because the nozzles are different. The Roundup you buy by the 5 litres and even the one litre is for commercial use and a professional user will have calibrated their sprayer so they know how many litres of water they will spray over a given area so can work out the dilution rate in litres of Roundup per hectare. 3 weeks is about right for it to start to have an effect on nettles etc and another week at least to die. If the nettles look like they are dying off they will eventually go.