If your lawn needs to be replaced because it is beyond saving, you may need to completely replace it. Planting a new lawn gives you a chance to start from scratch and you can even choose a different type of grass if you want to.
When you decide to replace your lawn, the first step is to remove what is there. Using Roundup will guarantee that the lawn dies all the way down to the roots and you won’t have to worry about digging it out.
First things first
Roundup is a broad-spectrum herbicide that will kill any plants you spray with it. It contains glyphosate, which is its active ingredient. This is an efficient way of killing anything growing in your soil to prepare for the new grass that you will plant.
There are several different products, including Roundup Weed & Grass Killer Ready-to-Use, Roundup Weed & Grass Killer Concentrate Plus, and Roundup Weed & Grass Killer Super Concentrate. They will all kill the grass without harming the soil.
The active ingredient, glyphosate, is a systemic herbicide that the plants absorb through their leaves. It then travels through the vascular system to the roots of the plant. It doesn’t leach into the soil from the plant roots and they say that it doesn’t stay in the soil for more than 24 to 48 hours.
The thing to be aware of is that glyphosate is non-selective as a herbicide, so it will kill all plants. If you have shrubs or bushes near the lawn, flowerbeds, or trees, it will kill them. If you use Roundup on a windy day, you may accidentally kill them as well.
Prepare to Use Roundup
When you have decided to use Roundup to kill your lawn, you will start by watering the lawn 24 hours before you plan to apply the Roundup. This gives the grass a chance to grow and provides the weed killer with more surface to adhere to. Once you finish watering the lawn, turn your sprinklers off. You won’t water again until you are ready to plant your new grass.
Prepare the Roundup
Choose the Roundup product that is ideal for your specific needs. If you are using one of the two concentrates, you will need to mix it in the pump-up sprayer. Be sure to follow the directions. Then adjust the spray nozzle so that it is set for spraying the Roundup. You can test it on a concrete area so that you don’t accidentally kill a plant. If you are using the ready-to-use type of Roundup, you won’t need to mix it. It is literally ready to go.
Apply the Roundup
Make sure that you choose a day that is sunny and doesn’t have a lot of wind. Wind will blow the Roundup and could accidentally kill trees or other plants that you’re not wanting to harm. You should apply the Roundup first thing in the morning because it has time to dry onto the grass blades, and it will work more quickly because it has a longer time period of exposure to the sun and the heat.
As you spray the Roundup, be sure to saturate the grass blades but stay clear of any other bushes or trees that you don’t plan to kill. Once you finish, wait two days and spray another dose of Roundup over the entire lawn again. Two days after the second application, check to see if any areas are green. If they are, spray it one more time.
Clean up
Once the grass blades turn brown, they are dead. You will actually see the grass dying within the first 24 hours and it can take up to two weeks for the grass to be completely dead. You should wait a minimum of two weeks before you reseed or lay new sod in the area.
Different types of grass and weeds die at different rates. Roundup kills hundreds of different kinds and some will die in a few hours, while others may take a few weeks. The important thing is to make sure that it has killed everything and clean it up before you plant a new lawn.
When Is it Safe for People and Pets to Walk on the Lawn?
People and pets can safely walk on the lawn once the Roundup is completely dry. This usually takes two hours. Once it is dry, it is still absorbed into the grass and killing it, but it is no longer harmful for people or their pets.
What Time of Year Should I Use Roundup?
For the purpose of killing grass, it doesn’t matter when you kill it, but the time of year can impact when you will be able to plant a new lawn. If you live in an area that takes cool weather grasses, you will plant them in the early spring or the fall. If you plan to plant warm-weather grasses, you will plant them by August or September.
Make sure that you leave yourself plenty of time to plant your new lawn when you choose when to use Roundup to kill your lawn. You can use Roundup in the fall and then wait until the spring to plant your grass. This is another option that works for some people. Either way, do not plant your new lawn until at least two weeks have passed since you sprayed the Roundup.
Final Words
Roundup is an effective product for killing your lawn and it is easy to use. It is a non-selective herbicide, so it will kill any plant that it comes in contact with.
Make sure that you plan ahead and know when you plan to plant your new lawn before you apply it. You will want to take steps to ensure that it kills your lawn efficiently, and then clean up so that you can plant your new seed.
Choose a day that is sunny, hot, and not windy, and check the lawn every couple of days. You should do a second application a few days later and then make sure that all of the grass is dying.
