Question
Location: Northern Los Angeles county, zip-91390
We bought a home with approximately 15 palm trees of various species in the front yard. It seems that the palm seedlings in the lawn out number the blades of grass. I think the culprit palms are the 2 trees that are approx 30 to 40 ft. high, so we can't trim the blooms ourselves to prevent the seeds from dropping. Is there any thing that we can spray on the lawn to prevent the growth of the seedlings?  

Answer
Hi Teri,
If weed-and-feed products do not work, then try Round-Up. Round-Up will kill all plants that it get into contact with (including grass). The key to applying this is to work with a partner. One hold two pieces of stiff cardboard below the leaves of the sprouts and "traps" the stem between the boards. The other person sprays (or use a paint brush and paint the leaves.. I prefer this method as less chance of getting Round-Up on grass and flowers).

Once applied, you can go on to the next sprout.

If you work with another person, you can do this quickly.

Maybe not the easy broadcast solution you were looking for, but it should work.

Round-Up is taken up through the leaves. It will then prevent the plants from photosynthesizing (converting sun energy into plant food) and the plant dies. Once the product is dry, it is harmless to other plants (it will not translocate or drift).

Do be careful when applying, however, as droplets which fall on other plants will kill them, too.