Weeds in you lawn?

You may have received letters and handouts on your door wanting you to subscribe to a lawn care service. I am often asked if these services are better then doing it yourself. My answer is your buying a service not magic! Weed and pest free lawns depend on how you want to spend your time and money. Beautiful lawns are a result of timely and appropriate care.

Pre-emergent weedkillers are often confusing to many. These products are by definition are designed to be applied prior to the time a weed seed germinates. They do not kill weed seed. They only work after the seed germinates. The herbicide is absorbed by the first tiny shoot put out by the newly emerging seed.

The best time to put on this product is before the seed germinates. After the seed has germinated and is growing these products are not effective. Timely and applications are most important. Most failures can be traced to improper timing or sloppy application.

Some common weeds in out lawns that we want to take care of now are Crabgrass and Spurge.

Crabgrass

This weed is preventable problem. With proper cultural practices of higher mowing and timely fertilization these will help prevent major problems. Crabgrass germination happens when the soil temperature reaches 60 degrees. We are probably not taking the lawns temperature everyday some things that we can watch for other plants to tell us what is going on with the soil temperature. Forsythia is a spring blooming shrub with bright yellow flowers. The other shrubs that will be flowering soon are Lilac bushes bloom pink,purple, lilac, and white. They are also very fragrant. My rule of thumb is when you see the forsythia blooming you can put on your pre-emergent on your lawn. Depending on what type of pre-emergent you apply some last longer than others so make sure you always read your labels.

Spurge

This is another type of lawn weed that can be prevented and by using a pre-emergent. Spurge does not germinate until later in the season, so this is why it is important to read your labels to see how long the pre-emergent last. You may need to apply again.

IFA Intermoutian Farmers Association has a great 4 step program that will help you get going on helping you prevent weeds on your lawn. Don't over look solutions to your problems in a can, bottle, or bag. Good cultural practices are the best preventative for almost any weed problems.