If controlling weeds wasn’t hard enough, you have some invasive plants that disguise themselves as grass to disrupt your vibrant landscape. Learn how to identify and prevent these imposters and what grassy weed control options are best for your lawn.

What are Grassy Weeds

Unlike broadleaf weeds, slender grassy weeds can blend seamlessly with desirable turfgrass. However, crabgrass, quackgrass, and foxtail is similar to all weeds in that they compete with your plants for resources and can weaken your healthy turf and crops.

In order to effectively control grassy weeds, you need to properly identify them. Here’s what to look for:

• Narrow, blade-like leaves
• Clumps of growth
• Seed heads

While you may not see them at first, grassy weeds will end up growing taller than your turf, making them stand out more. But by this point, they’ve probably already spread their seeds which will make them harder to kill. This is why prevention is more important.

Preventative Weed Control

Preventing grassy weeds from sprouting, reseeding, and taking hold is easier than controlling established infestations. Here are some strategies.

1. Regular maintenance. Keep your lawn healthy by aerating soil to reduce compaction, overseed to fill in bare spots, and fertilize to strengthen your lawn.
2. Suppress weeds. Limit a weed’s access to vital resources by using landscape fabric under gravel walkways as a barrier. Add a few inches of mulch in landscape beds to block the light weed seeds need for germination.
3. Proper mowing. Keep your lawn at the recommended height for the type of grass you have. Taller grass shades out weed seedlings.
4. Strengthen desirable plants. Water deeply and infrequently to encourage deep root growth in desirable plants.

Even if you try some of these preventative measures, grassy weeds may still emerge. When this happens, it’s best to act fast before they have time to grow and reseed.

Grassy Weed Control Options

There are several methods of weed control to try. Each depends on the type of weed, level of infestation, and timing. When it comes to weeding, you want to remove the whole plant, root and all, to make it less likely the weed will return. If you simply cut it off at the head, there’s a chance it will grow back.

1. Hand pull weeds from small areas in the early stages of growth.
2. Use a hoe or other garden tool to cut weeds at the soil surface. While it may grow back, repeated cutting weakens the weed.
3. Mowing can prevent some grassy weeds from setting seed throughout your lawn. It’s best to pick up and properly dispose of grass clippings containing weed seeds instead of letting them reinhabit your yard.
4. Apply a pre-emergent herbicide before weed seeds germinate to form a barrier that inhibits weed growth.
5. Use a post-emergent herbicide on actively growing weeds.

When using a chemical control option, be sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions carefully. Also, keep in mind selective herbicides target specific weeds without harming your lawn, while non-selective herbicides will kill any plant they contact.

It may be necessary to use a combination of control methods to be successful. To help ensure success, you can also contact a professional lawn care service such as Cardinal Lawns to not only go to battle with weeds, but maintain your lawn so they don’t come back. Call 614-808-4446 to set up a consultation to weed out grassy weeds and get your vibrant landscape back.