norwalk
ArboristSite Lurker
Well, they dodn't have a smiley icon to represent cautiously relieved.
After stupidly coming close to poisoning 14 mature trees lining my driveway, it appears that my worst fears won't be realized.
I spoke w/ the mfr of the product (Total Vegetation Killer by Spectracide - contains Prometon 2.5% as active ingredient) and they were of the opinion that at the low dosage (approx 1/5th minimum effective dose) I applied there would probably not be a dramatic effect on mature trees.
In asking 4 arborists and 3 nurseries what to do I was told by all but one to apply water liberally to dilute the chemical further. ACCORDING TO THE MFR - THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT NOT TO DO!!! Luckily, on a hunch and after some research on the Internet, I didn't water. In fact I covered the ground with tarps in case it rained.
This particular herbicide (Prometon) doesn't bind well to soil and the additional water would have just washed it down into the root zone of the trees.
I also spoke with 2 university professors specializing in plant biology and herbicides. one from Rutgers, one from UConn. Both didn't think that I killed the trees, but both reccommended an application of activated charcoal to help neutralize the herbicide. The fellow at UConn was of the opinion that Prometon doesn't work well on woody plant species (trees) so I was in luck. Interestingly, most of the information available
on the web, including research papers, seemed to contradict him on this although he was reading from an industry standard publication on herbicides.
I purchased 5 gallons of liquid flowable charcoal called "52 pickup" from Parkway Products in TX. They shipped it overnight and I applied it this evening using a pump sprayer.
I feel much better after applying the black goo! It is supposed to be extremely effective even when dealing with soil sterilants such as I used.
For anyone who makes a similar mistake - this appears to be the way to go. For anyone who regularly uses herbicides, it looks like having some of this product on hand in case of spills or accident would be a good idea.
Anyway, in my case I'm left with watchful waiting - just to be sure there are no ill effects. Once this stuff gets into the roots there's nothing you can do but hold your breath and watch to see if the tree survives. I'm hoping that the charcoal will bind enough of the poison before it gets to the roots.
After stupidly coming close to poisoning 14 mature trees lining my driveway, it appears that my worst fears won't be realized.
I spoke w/ the mfr of the product (Total Vegetation Killer by Spectracide - contains Prometon 2.5% as active ingredient) and they were of the opinion that at the low dosage (approx 1/5th minimum effective dose) I applied there would probably not be a dramatic effect on mature trees.
In asking 4 arborists and 3 nurseries what to do I was told by all but one to apply water liberally to dilute the chemical further. ACCORDING TO THE MFR - THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT NOT TO DO!!! Luckily, on a hunch and after some research on the Internet, I didn't water. In fact I covered the ground with tarps in case it rained.
This particular herbicide (Prometon) doesn't bind well to soil and the additional water would have just washed it down into the root zone of the trees.
I also spoke with 2 university professors specializing in plant biology and herbicides. one from Rutgers, one from UConn. Both didn't think that I killed the trees, but both reccommended an application of activated charcoal to help neutralize the herbicide. The fellow at UConn was of the opinion that Prometon doesn't work well on woody plant species (trees) so I was in luck. Interestingly, most of the information available
on the web, including research papers, seemed to contradict him on this although he was reading from an industry standard publication on herbicides.
I purchased 5 gallons of liquid flowable charcoal called "52 pickup" from Parkway Products in TX. They shipped it overnight and I applied it this evening using a pump sprayer.
I feel much better after applying the black goo! It is supposed to be extremely effective even when dealing with soil sterilants such as I used.
For anyone who makes a similar mistake - this appears to be the way to go. For anyone who regularly uses herbicides, it looks like having some of this product on hand in case of spills or accident would be a good idea.
Anyway, in my case I'm left with watchful waiting - just to be sure there are no ill effects. Once this stuff gets into the roots there's nothing you can do but hold your breath and watch to see if the tree survives. I'm hoping that the charcoal will bind enough of the poison before it gets to the roots.
