RUSHES

Juncus effusus – Soft rush

Juncus edgarae – Native rush

Juncus articulatus – Jointed rush

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DESCRIPTION

There are quite a few rushes; we haven’t listed them all here because what’s true for one is equally true for all, as far as control considerations go.

Rushes are a group of grass-like plants. They mostly have cylindrical, hollow ‘leaves’, and no conspicuous flower.

Rushes are erect, clumping plants, and most species will grow to well over a metre in height. They are very successful invaders, and scattered colonies of clumps will, with just a couple of years’ neglect as encouragement, be joining up with each other and stealing your paddocks before you can say, ‘Bugger!’

Of course, there can be an upside to rushes. Many livestock farmers say that a few colonies of rushes make an excellent shelter environment for lambs and calves. But usually rushes are just pinching your pasture space, and you’ll want to eradicate or minimise them.

Rushes like waste areas, wet areas, lower-quality pasture, peaty soils, and the margins of wetlands. They are widespread and common throughout New Zealand.

MANUAL CONTROL

You can dig them out. I did it as a kid; it’s an awful job and they grow back almost as fast as a 11—12 year-old can dig them out. If you do dig rushes out, you must be sure to remove all of the rhizome (underground) structure from the soil. Otherwise they will grow back for sure.

HERBICIDES TO CONTROL RUSHES

Only glyphosate products like G-360 GLYPHOSATE, G-540 GLYPHOSATE or Granny Herbicide make any sense. All the grass-friendly sprays, with the possible exception of MCPA750 are useless against these grass-like species.  But the problem with GLYPHOSATE is that it also kills all the useful pasture grass species. So you’ve got to be smart about how you use GLYPHOSATE. 

Herbicides to Spot Spray a Few Scattered Rushes

Hand (spot) spray with G-360 GLYPHOSATE liquid at 150ml per 15L knapsack, or 1L per 100L by handgun. Alternately, use G-540 GLYPHOSATE at 100ml per 15L or 660ml per 100L by handgun, or Granny Herbicide at 65g per 15L kanpsack, and 425g per 100L.

Weed killers to Control Moderate infestation of rushes:

Once there’s too many rushes for hand spraying to be practical, the best approach is to use a towed weed wiper, with 1 part G-360 GLYPHOSATE liquid per 3 parts water, or 1 part G-540 GLYPHOSATE to 4 parts water, or 1 part Granny Herbicide per 5 parts water.  Weed wiping protects the valuable pasture by passing safely above it, contacting and therefore killing only the rushes.

Herbicides to Control Heavy Infestation of Rushes

When the paddock’s no longer worth using because of extent of rushes, get rid of the rushes and the remaining pasture by spraying out completely using 6L G-360 GLYPHOSATE, or 4L G-540 GLYPHOSATE liquids, or 2.7kg Granny Herbicide, per hectare.