[johnnysauntie]

PI has invaded the roses in my front planter. Roses are the spreading, Carefree variety, not upright bushes. PI is, in most cases, growing near the center of the rosebushes.

I'm allergic to PI but am willing to plunge in and tackle with long sleeves, gloves, etc. I have tried pulling the weeds, but they have a big long rhizome-y root and invariably, they return.

I have also tried the "hand of death" with round up (put on rubber glove, put old sock over rubber glove, saturate with roundup, pat up and down offending plant) but the roundup just makes the PI wilt, it doesn't kill it dead. And I want it dead. Not merely inconvenienced.

Here's hoping some of the inventive minds here have a solution! I'm counting on you, COTH!

[cyndi]

You need to use Brush B Gone to kill PI - RoundUP just makes it burp, IME.

I also use the BBG at a higher strength than called for. BBG is made especially for woody plants like PI and blackberry. RoundUp is made for broadleaf weeds.

If you use BBG, if you just can get it on most of the leaves, it should die. ...hopefully a slow, painful death.

I am very allergic to it too, and get it from the horses (they EAT it with no ill effects!) and end up having to take steroids almost every summer. It is a neverending battle to get rid of it at our place.

[Tom King]

I wouldn't bother with 2-4-D. PI just comes back later even if it looks like you killed it. Arsenal in very small doses can be misted on a few of the PI leaves that have had their stems broken and it will die-get it on the broken stem part. You can use something like a fly spray bottle. Be careful though, anything it touches other than a pine tree will die.

Sorry, but it doesn't come cheap, even though the price has come down 30% in the last year.

http://www.keystonepestsolutions.com...roducts_id=174

[johnnysauntie]

thanks both! I'm going to try the hand of death with the BBG cyndi recommended. the Arsenal is terrifying - that will be the last resort.