What is the number one enemy of a beautiful lawn? Weeds, of course. But with proper lawn care and treatment, you can keep weeds at bay and achieve that perfect turf that you have been dreaming of.
Grow a Thick, Healthy Lawn
Taking great care of your lawn so that it will grow thick and healthy is the number one way to prevent weeds from popping up. When weeds have to compete with vibrant, dense grass for sunlight, nutrients, and water, they cannot thrive. Fertilization and weed control treatments, along with good watering habits will help to foster a healthy and weed-free lawn. Proper mowing techniques are important too. Remember, grass should never be mowed too short. It is usually best to use one of the two highest settings on the lawn mower.
Aerate and Overseed Your Lawn
In addition to regular maintenance, aeration and overseeding will help keep your lawn weed free. The aeration process removes soil plugs, which relieves compacted soil and allows water and air to more easily absorb and reach the roots of the grass. For cool season grass such as fescue, aeration should be done in the fall and be followed by overseeding. Overseeding will cause healthy new growth in your lawn. Warm season grass should be aerated in the summer and does not require overseeding, as it does not spread from seeds, rather from its own rhyzomes and stolons beneath the surface. Similar to pruning a shrub, aerating breaks up these roots and encourages new growth.
Treat Weeds Before They Appear
Even the most well maintained lawn is going to require some weed prevention treatment. By applying a pre-emergent herbicide to your grass in early spring, you can knock out weeds before they appear. Pre-emergent herbicides are applied before seeds germinate. This creates a protective barrier in the soil that does not allow weeds to grow. Pre-emergent weed killers are a great way to combat annual weeds such as crabgrass. Annual weeds are weeds that grow from seeds, and germinate, grow and die within one growing season.
Spot Treat Broadleaf Weeds
Broadleaf weeds are easy to identify because they don’t resemble grass. The pesky dandelion is an example of a broadleaf weed. For lawns with a few broadleaf weeds, spot treatment with a post-emergent herbicide is simple and effective. If the lawn is full of many broadleaf weeds, a broadcast treatment will be needed.
If you have any questions about preventing weeds in your lawn or if you are interested in starting a turf management program, please do not hesitate to contact one of our helpful lawn care companies near you.
