is Preen bad for the environment?

[Anonymous]

I have heard Preen is a great way to control weeds.

Is it bad for the environment?

[Anonymous]

The active ingredient in Preen is trifluralin, I'm told. I don't know anything else about it.

My own results with Preen are mixed. When applied underneath a layer of mulch, I think it does help reduce weeds some.

I've heard that an organic alternative to Preen is corn gluten meal. And there is a "Preen Organic" product where this is the active ingredient.

[Anonymous]

I think Preen is corn gluten meal.

[Anonymous]

The active ingredient in Preen is trifluralin. It is a suspected carcinogen, is toxic to fish/aquatic life and earthworms.

[Anonymous]

I don’t think Preen works all that well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The active ingredient in Preen is trifluralin. It is a suspected carcinogen, is toxic to fish/aquatic life and earthworms.

Agree. These poisons are changing our climate. Please avoid using it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The active ingredient in Preen is trifluralin. It is a suspected carcinogen, is toxic to fish/aquatic life and earthworms.

This. Yes, it is bad. Just pull weeds, have dense plantings (I use natives and this is very effective at "weeding out" the weeds), and apply a thick layer of leaf mulch. The first year or so you'll still have weeds but, as plants grow in and the mulch smothers them out, it will be less and less.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think Preen works all that well.

+1
I used it along a fence line trying to keep neighbors happy and a metric ton of weeds still sprouted. So I poured poison on my dirt for absolutely zero effect.

[Anonymous]

The garden center first recommended Preen to me for some weeds I am trying to remove and smother, and when I asked if it would be safe for my dog, they told me to use corn gluten instead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The garden center first recommended Preen to me for some weeds I am trying to remove and smother, and when I asked if it would be safe for my dog, they told me to use corn gluten instead.

Neither Preen nor corn meal gluten will work for existing weeds; both of them are pre-emergent products. If you have weeds you want to smother, you’re going to have to do it with layers, some arrangement of newspaper, cardboard, weed suppressing paper (think cardboard but easier to cut), soil and then mulch.