- It’s going to rain tonight/tomorrow. Will the spray wash off?
- The lawn is wet. Won’t the spray just slide off the weeds?
- It rained ½ an hour after you left. Won’t you have to do it again?
- My lawn got mowed the day after you sprayed. You’ll have to re-spray, won’t you?
- How long does the spray need to dry before the next rain event?
- Isn’t it a bit windy to spray today?
- What about pets, kids re-entering the area?
These are just some of the questions we commonly get asked during the cooler/wetter months.
SO HERE’S THE TECHNICAL STUFF…..
Just about every leaf-absorbed herbicide specifies a surfactant, leaf wetting agent, sticker, penetrant or adjuvant to aid the products adhesion, penetration and effectiveness. Certain weed types are harder for a liquid product to penetrate and move throughout the plant from leaf surface to root tip.
It is our job to know what product to use, and when and how to apply it. Is a wetter, a sticker, a water proofer, an adjuvant or a penetrant required? Some products already have these as part of their make-up and don’t need any additives – unless it’s a waterproofer to fortify the product against impending rain.
OUR WET WEATHER SPRAYING POLICY
On a dry lawn, ½ an hour is sufficient for a water-proofer/sticker to adhere to a lawn, deeming the product sealed on the weed. We try and work with at least an hour of guaranteed dry weather. We don’t need 12-24 hours, which is a common misconception.
Where it gets tricky are days where intermittent fine periods may not be quite long enough to dry the lawn and weed canopy, meaning we are applying product and having to wait on site until it dries, to ensure a satisfactory result.
With regard to wind, we use air-inducted nozzles and wind-proof shrouds on our bigger machinery. On our smaller gear we have drift guard nozzles and air induction. We won’t generally spray if wind speeds are over 20km/h.
FOOT TRAFFIC AND PET TRAFFIC
Our base rule is no entry into the area until the products have completely dried. If we spray at 9.30 am, we recommend no foot/paw traffic until the afternoon. If we spray at 2.30 pm, no traffic for the rest of the day. Of course, the longer the better, but 2-3 hrs is sufficient even in a shadier, longer-to-dry section of lawn.
OUR GUARANTEE TO YOU
We apply products responsibly to guarantee performance as the manufacturer intended, in weather conditions conducive to that product’s success. We will return on request from a client, one month after application and provided our invoice has been paid within 7 days as per our Ts & Cs, to assess and respray if needed, if you are concerned about the result.
We invest a lot of money in the herbicides we use to provide you with cutting-edge, safe, stable products and we pride ourselves on our service. It is our worst nightmare to have to return a month later as part of a warranty claim and re-apply these products. We still have to pay our technicians even though we’re not invoicing for the work, as well as supply respray products. Our reputation takes a hit as clients may have to wait 4-6 weeks for a result they should have received in 2-3 weeks.
Thankfully these days, after 30 years in the business, this hardly ever happens. Why?
- We have learnt patience.
- We have honed our judgement calls on the kind of weather conditions we can apply products in.
- We will NOT spray if it is raining or rain is imminent.
(On that note, please allow us to make the judgement call on this, rather than cancelling a job yourself because of the forecast. Even BOM get it wrong from time-to-time! If you cancel, we may not be back in your area for a few weeks, and we could have potentially still done the job if there were fine breaks.)
When the day just isn’t conducive to applying hit and stick Herbicides, Fungicides and Foliar Fertilisers, we use the time to maintain and service our equipment or complete ongoing training to stay abreast of best practice, ensuring we continue to provide you with a premier service.
