Weeds weeds weeds!

If it's really bad, the shortest route would be to till the top layer and either re-sod or re-seed. Either way this is the most expensive option, but if done right you will have a perfect lawn this year.

My personal choice, would be to just follow best practices: Cut your lawn at a consistent rate to keep weeds down. Seed in the early spring and/or late fall. Fertilize once or twice each season (5 weeks before and after seeding.) And use Scott's Weed-B-Gone spray on problem areas.

Option 2 will take 2-3 seasons to show the same results as Option 1, but is far less expensive IMO.

Anything that got 2,4D, Salt based .. Google it

Its pretty weird .. Cause 2,4D is banned in Ontario ( Residential Use Banned ) but Border Agents are Feds So Apparently they will allow you take few cans ..

2,4D is not banned for Commercial use so all the golf courses, company properties are spraying this ??? Go figure ..

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0037A ... UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001DK ... UTF8&psc=1

bought those 2 in 2013 on amazon.com and they shipped it to my door here in toronto. still got half a bottle of each. works wonders on all but clover. just follow the directions and you and your daughter will be fine.

redzone wrote: ↑http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0037A ... UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001DK ... UTF8&psc=1

bought those 2 in 2013 on amazon.com and they shipped it to my door here in toronto. still got half a bottle of each. works wonders on all but clover. just follow the directions and you and your daughter will be fine.

Again based on 2,4D

Thanks guys. Did you also purchase a sprayer or just re-use an empty household cleaner spray? Just wondering if I really need the big canister.

I just want to add, that no matter how much upkeep people perform on their lawns...it's a losing battle if the neighbor(s) don't do their part also.

buy a 1 gal sprayer. makes life easy. a hand spray bottle would take forever and tire out your hands.

robbieD wrote: ↑Thanks guys. Did you also purchase a sprayer or just re-use an empty household cleaner spray? Just wondering if I really need the big canister.

Absolutely no household spray bottles. Buy one of these: http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/chapi ... 4001p.html

redzone wrote: ↑http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0037A ... UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001DK ... UTF8&psc=1

bought those 2 in 2013 on amazon.com and they shipped it to my door here in toronto. still got half a bottle of each. works wonders on all but clover. just follow the directions and you and your daughter will be fine.

The shipping info of these two products now show that they are to be shipped to US address only (not cdn address).

Beefeater wrote: ↑The shipping info of these two products now show that they are to be shipped to US address only (not cdn address).

check the alternate sellers list. i had to look through a couple of different sellers to find one that would ship international.

*edit yup take a look at the alternate sellers list and find one that says international shipping.

I paid in total $52.25 US at the time for both shipped (the dollar was also above par). Expensive compared to cross border shopping but convenient. I still have over half a bottle of both and i bought that stuff in 2013. I spray twice a year(mind you my yard is toronto sized. )

redzone wrote: ↑check the alternate sellers list. i had to look through a couple of different sellers to find one that would ship international.

*edit yup take a look at the alternate sellers list and find one that says international shipping.

I paid in total $52.25 US at the time for both shipped (the dollar was also above par). Expensive compared to cross border shopping but convenient. I still have over half a bottle of both and i bought that stuff in 2013. I spray twice a year(mind you my yard is toronto sized. )

wont this product get stopped at the border??

its not illegal at the federal level so it shouldn't get stopped.

Mine made it just fine!

robbieD wrote: ↑My backyard is starting to resemble some sort of biodiversity experiment where every known species of weed (except the good kind :twisted is thriving. Help me RFD!

Question 1: Does ANYTHING sold in Canada actually work? If so, what? Or does one need "the good stuff" from down south?
If (answer == "good stuff"), then Question 2: Is "the good stuff" going to give my 1 yr old daughter, who I hope will be spending a lot of time playing outside, cancer or a third arm?

Re: Question 2
I'd say better safe than sorry when it comes to chemicals and young children. If you're planning on letting your daughter play on the lawn, then either spray it with chemicals and wait a few weeks before you let her play on it, or don't use the chemicals at all.

The way to fix your lawn is highly dependent on how much effort you want to put into maintaining it -- it is by no means a one-time job. Once you've rid yourself of most/all of the weeds the first time, you'll need to grow your lawn nice and thick so that weeds have less room to grow. This means over-seeding your lawn every season and watering it regularly. Get rid of new weeds before they have a chance to spread either by picking them out or using chemicals. That being said, I've had little to no luck with the Weed-B-Gone they sell here in Ontario. It may kill the weed on the surface, but I find that it doesn't get to the root, so they just grow back. I don't waste my money on that stuff anymore. I find digging them out by hand is most effective, but that's back-breaking work that most people would rather not do. And as vkizzle said, if your neighbours don't take care of their lawns, then it's much harder, but not impossible, for you to maintain yours. A thick lawn will most certainly help to keep your neighbours' dandelions out.

Be careful about nickscott's suggestion about tilling the top layer. It will only work if done correctly, otherwise it will be a huge waste of money. I have a neighbour how ripped out all of the top layer in their backyard to re-sod last year, but they didn't do a good job of getting out all the weeds down to the root. This year, all of the weeds are back.

redzone wrote: ↑http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0037A ... UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001DK ... UTF8&psc=1

bought those 2 in 2013 on amazon.com and they shipped it to my door here in toronto. still got half a bottle of each. works wonders on all but clover. just follow the directions and you and your daughter will be fine.

May have to try this and have my brother bring it over.

We took possession of our house in November, and while we could tell the backyard lawn was in rough shape, I didn't expect to see as many weeds/dandelions as I'm starting to see this week.

Is it generally harder to maintain a backyard that backs onto a ravine?

In my opinion it is better to resod. Better than spraying chemical on the ground your child plays on. Not that expensive, but a little bit of work.

Never fails: whenever there's weed question, it's crapped with illegal chemicals...

The expensive way: resod.

Extensive way: till n seed n water n water n water....

Cheap way:
Seed n sprinkle topsoil during early spring. Weeds will have a tough time flourishing on a thick lush lawn. In the meanwhile, get several of this from dollar store (not dollarama) and have the whole family at it. Never let the yellow flowers turn into "cotton balls" << seeds!

[IMG]https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/imag ... zmV9Oo84Pg[/IMG]

vkizzle wrote: ↑I just want to add, that no matter how much upkeep people perform on their lawns...it's a losing battle if the neighbor(s) don't do their part also.

Indeed. Any good alternatives to lawn grass for this area that isn't concrete or rocks?

I know some people do clover and others do a xeriscape etc.

This question comes up every year.

The CBSA will not stop you from importing weed killer that is banned for cosmetic use in Ontario as long as the following conditions are met.
1-It is a personal quantity. This usually means 2 bottles of concentrate.

2 - It is properly labeled in its original container.

3 - The product you're importing is not actually controlled at a Federal level.


Now, there's always people who say "CBSA is federal and won't enforce provincial laws". Unfortunately it isn't this simple, if the CBSA and the province of Ontario enter into a Memorandum of Understanding regarding the importation of weed killer into Ontario for cosmetic purposes the CBSA will then have the authority to prohibit you from importing the product.