For those with a green thumb.

[texanron]

I'm looking for recommendations on a good weed and grass killer that I can buy at Home Depot/Lowes. I'm going to sod the backyard this spring so I'm trying to get a head start on the process of preparing the yard.

[The Annoyed Man]

Napalm.

[Divided Attention]

Be careful, as some are residual and will kill the new grass. Vinegar is a decent one, and you can plant in it quickly - you need to look for the strongest concentration you can find, the 10% won't do it.

[texanron]

Napalm.

I think the recipe for bathtub napalm included dish soap and gasoline......

without chemicals..

how large of an area?

wet newspapers, overlapped will prevent grass and weeds from growing.. My aunt was an organic nut for years and she used plastic sheets staked down over her garden area to kill grass and weeds naturally..

Chemicals are fine. The area is at least 1k square feet.

Be careful, as some are residual and will kill the new grass. Vinegar is a decent one, and you can plant in it quickly - you need to look for the strongest concentration you can find, the 10% won't do it.

I do have concerns about whatever I use affecting the new grass.

[Ameer]

If you're going to sod, a weed preventer might be a good idea. My parents use the Miracle-Gro stuff that prevents seeds from germinating and it nearly eliminates weeds in the shrub beds. It might also prevent grass seed from germinating so I wouln't use it for seed, only sod. Maybe "kill it with fire" first and then use the weed prevention to stop it from returning.

There's also liquid weed killers that say they don't kill the lawn but I don't know if they're totally safe of just kill less grass than Roundup.

[Divided Attention]

Thank you Ameer! I totally forgot about our "Dragon tongue". Now - you can't do this in a thick area, and it is best to have a soil break ring dug and someone with a hose on standby if there is a lot of thick, tall grass. We have a "weed burner" that hooks up to a propane tank. Works great on fence lines, and we have used it in the garden to prep. Works great on burning hair off of rabbit cages too - make sure to remove the bunny first.

[Ameer]

Works great on burning hair off of rabbit cages too - make sure to remove the bunny first.

[PBratton]

Works great on burning hair off of rabbit cages too - make sure to remove the bunny first.

Now Darn it! Shouldn't important little bits of info like this be given at the BEGINNING of the instructions? Sniffers the bunny is NOT happy right now...

[Divided Attention]

Hasenpfeffer at Divided Attention's house!

Sorry - no Hasenpfeffer right now, todays offering Caldo de conejo con chile verde. YUM! We also enjoy enchiladas, dumplings, spaghetti, chili, pot pies, grilled, fried, kabobs, many fine things.

Don't knock it till you have tried it. Not only yummy, but healthier too. No 10% solution of anything, no hormones in their feed, treated with dignity, respect and love right to the freezer.

ETA - totally did not mean to hijack the thread... back to the regular programming of successful pretreatment against weeds before sodding.

[C-dub]

I would say the easiest and non-chemical way would be to cover the ground and deprive it of sunlight for a week or two. Mow the area as low as possible first, water it, cover it with mulch or black plastic or something that will prevent the sunlight from getting through and won't be easily blown away in the wind. This will kill everything underneath and be suitable for sod or seeding immediately. Well, after a couple of weeks to make sure everything is dead.

Later, of course, regular anti weed stuff will be needed to prevent all new weeds from popping up.