Weed Free - Weed Control Services & Pesticide Training

ASULOX - Bracken Control Emergency Approval for 2017.

Asulox, the only active ingredient that is available for the control of Bracken in gardens and Forestry has for the past few years had restictions placed upon it by those lovely EU Ministers.

Rather than ban the product all together, the agreed deal is that users can purchase and apply it for a restricted period. Far better than no product at all to solve the problem.

15th May 2017 - Effective date for the Notice of Authorisation issued by CRD. Start of the Emergency Authorisation period of 120 days. Storage, promotion, sales and transfer authorised.

Pesticide Training Modules Available for Self-Study

Weed Free are able to provide formal training and assessments for Food and Environment Protection Act Certificates of Competence in the Safe use of Pesticides. Each year, we train many Greenkeepers and Sports Turf Managers and Local Authority Staff.

You can purchase self learn NPTC / City & Guilds training modules and other publications here. It is much cheaper than attending a formal training course and all you need to do is to register with NPTC / City & Guilds and then arrange to be Assessed in each Module. See the finer details in the individual modules.

Carbendazim Withdrawal Confirmed

On 10th October the HSE formally issued a withdrawal notice for Carbendazim. Subject to stock levels Carbendazim will be available for sale and supply until 28th February 2017. End users will then have until 31st August 2017 to store, use and ultimately dispose of any existing stock.

The reason is illustrated in the statement provided by John Moverley, Chairman of the Amenity Forum:

Garden Centre Weed Control Programmes

When a gardener visits their local garden centre, they are really expecting to find the landscaping, plants and borders and site looking like it is cared for at all times of the year.  The gardens on the site, inside and outside the retail space which are customer facing should be in order and weed free and pleasing on the eye.

A complete weed & pesticide application service

The Weed Free Spraying Mantis fleet of three shrouded boom sprayers are each capable of spraying in excess of 35 Hectares of amenity sports turf per day especially when it is windy. Their 1994 registered sprayer is still working daily after 19 years of loyal service and they comply in excess of all LERAP requirements.

Weed Free extend to all areas of the United Kingdom but we are especially active in Southern England primarily south of a line from The Wash to The Severn with the hub of activities centred out of our base in Berkshire.

Start your winter weed control now!

Yes, that's right, you heard correctly. It is now time to think about your winter weed control tasks whether you are a home owner, commercial facility manager, garden centre or golf course manager or owner.

The colder winter months are a great time to get 'weed free' and get your site clean for next year's spring burst of weeds.

Weeds really ruin the fabric of a fence line and building line and post and wire fence base as well as brickwork and pavings.

Making easy work of using a garden sprayer or knapsack

When gardeners and landscapers make liquid or chemical applications to their sites, they are faced with a big dilemma - how can they mark where they have sprayed already?

Professional Turf Managers have been using Spray Pattern Indicator Dyes for decades but these have never been widely available before to the amateur lawn owner.

Turf Managers also use what is called a foam bout marker on their large sprayers which leaves a trace blob of foam down the travelled run of the fairway so that the operator can match up with the last pass on the return run. The foam soon disappears after an hour via sunlight.

Chemical Free Weed Control in Cornwall

Wadebridge could soon be "chemical free" in the way it tackles weeds and pests, if town councillors embrace a change to how they maintain the town's parks and recreation areas.

Like many local authorities, Wadebridge Town Council currently uses Glysophate, a controversial herbicide which has been the subject of many academic studies. While most have concluded that it is safe to humans when used properly, a World Health Organisation report earlier this year linked the chemical to cancer.

Robot Weed Exterminator

The robots have learned how to kill. Thankfully, for now, that killing is confined to weeds in fields. A new robot from Bosch, the German company best known for making power tools and car parts, can travel through crop fields, learn what weeds look like, and crush them.

The robot, called the BoniRob, is the result of research by Bosch’s Deepfield Robotics division, in partnership with the German food and agriculture department, Osnabrück University, and Amazone, an agricultural machinery manufacturer. According to Popular Mechanics, the robot can identify targets with such speed, it’s almost impossible to see how quickly it can pound weeds into the earth.

Weed Free - Timing of Pesticide Treatments

In our busy lives, timing is everything. So is getting value for money and results which is why making applications of expensive pesticides at the correct time of the year is so critical.

The best time for example to apply total weed killers is in the colder winter months so long as the control active is what is known as a residual weed killer. You look a bit stupid blanket spraying gravel areas when there are no weeds but you just await the results in the spring time. Oh, plus it's cold too!