If you love gardening and nurturing your beautiful plants, you would be familiar with the fantastic feeling of seeing a well-groomed garden with no single stem out of place.
However, one thing that can kill the vibe of your plants and garden is the presence of weeds.
Nobody wants to deal with the wild weeds that often come with growing plants. Moreover, getting rid of the weeds can be challenging once they start showing up in the garden.
Today, we will discuss one of the ways people fight off weeds and ensure the optimal growth of plants.
We’ll see when to apply Tenacity in spring — Tenacity is a herbicide used to control weed growth even before it emerges from the soil.
If you have ever used Tenacity for weeds, you might have many questions regarding it, such as when to apply Tenacity in spring.
Keep reading as we attempt to answer all your questions in detail.
Let’s begin!
How Does the Tenacity Weed Killer Work?
Before you know when to apply Tenacity in spring, let’s first learn a bit about how this herbicide works to protect your garden.
Most herbicides work in one of two ways:
- Killing the plant by coming directly in contact with it
- Through the systemic method
Tenacity herbicide works on the systemic method in which the plant absorbs the herbicide instead of coming directly in contact with it. Gradually, the stray plant is killed by the dose of herbicide it absorbed.
In contact with herbicides, weeds have a better chance of surviving as the chemical may sometimes not reach the roots.
Mesotrione is a chemical produced by the bottlebrush plant and is the major component of Tenacity.
This chemical stops the creation of one of the enzymes produced by the plants, called p-hydroxyphenyl pyruvate dioxygenase or HPPD. HPPD is an enzyme that is necessary to produce a pigment required during the process of photosynthesis. As this enzyme is no longer produced due to the herbicide, the photosynthesis process is blocked, leading to the weed’s deterioration. Gradually, the stray plant will turn white and die.
While applying Tenacity to the weed, it might sometimes seep into the grass and turn it white. You will have to wait for the results to wear off.
Make sure to read the instructions for tenacity application carefully before applying, and don’t overuse it to prevent the grass from turning white.
Now, let’s see when to apply Tenacity in Spring.
Related article: Overgrown with Weeds? See 5 of the Best Weed Killer for Lawns
When to Apply Tenacity in Spring?
If you want to know when to apply Tenacity in spring, you are targeting one of the weeds that grow in high temperatures, such as bluegrass or dandelions.
The good thing about tenacity weed killer is that it can be applied in hot and cold seasons.
Before the weed takes over, the chemical is usually applied in the fall season for pre-emergent treatments. But for post-emergent treatments, when the weed has already appeared and spread, Tenacity is applied in the spring season.
What you need to make sure of is that the temperature of the soil is not more than 55°F when you are applying the weed killer for the best results.
Choose a time during the spring or fall season when the air is dry, and you need to leave Tenacity to dry for at least 1–2 hours before you can use the garden without interfering.
If you don’t want to affect the grass in your garden, mid-summer is the best time to apply Tenacity, as the grass will have ample time to recover. If you use the herbicide in the winter, you probably won’t see any new grass growth when the next spring arrives.
The exact temperature range will depend on whether you are going for post-emergent or pre-emergent treatment of the weed.
Still, you must ensure that it is several degrees higher than the freezing temperature. Applying the herbicide to the lawn will also vary depending on the situation you choose.
So, to know precisely when to apply Tenacity in spring, you would have to choose either a pre-emergent or a post-emergent technique.
Pre-emergent Application of Tenacity
The pre-emergent method is where you apply the herbicide in the fall, usually before the weeds start growing in your garden.
- This application takes place during or before the stages of seeding and overseeding.
- The wonderful thing about using Tenacity as a pre-emergent is that it will not stop the grass from growing as it works on systemic application.
- When using this technique, it is essential to soak the lawn in water. The ideal amount is 0.15 inches of water in 10 days after applying Tenacity. You should use 0.15 to 0.18 ounces of Tenacity in one gallon of water, which should be enough to cover an area of 1000 square feet. About eight ounces of Tenacity will be enough to be used in thirty gallons of water.
- After one to two hours of application, rain won’t do any harm or wipe away the herbicide.
Make sure that the grass in your garden is at least a month. Don’t apply Tenacity on the land if you have just planted the grass.
Tenacity will help you wipe off weeds like crabgrass.
Post-emergent Application of Tenacity
For post-emergent treatment, you will mostly apply the herbicide in the spring after the weed has started growing.
- Although there are some differences in the process, the proportions to be used remain the same in both cases.
- You can use the same amount of Tenacity for the lawn in post-emergent treatment, but you must keep it safe from rain or irrigation water for at least 5–6 hours after application to ensure it works properly.
- In this case, you will also have to check the lawn two-three weeks after the initial application of Tenacity to see if the plants need any more herbicide or if it is already working.
That would be all. Let’s head toward the conclusion.
Conclusion
I hope now you know when to apply Tenacity in spring.
You can actually use Tenacity in both fall and spring, but you must remember to take care of some ideal conditions while going for either one of the methods.
The recommended temperature is between 65 to 85 degrees for tenacity application, and it should always be more than 55 degrees but never more than 85 degrees.
Besides that, take care of the water application, and you will have a garden free of weeds or strays.
I hope you liked today’s article.
Regards!