Weed Control for Lawns
Learn about weed control products and good maintenance practices for a weed-free lawn
Prong 1 - Lawn Weed Control with Pre-Emergent
Start by browsing these 3 articles about controlling weeds in lawns with pre-emergent herbicide. Let us untangle the confusion for you.
Pre-emergent Weed Control Products 🛒
Prong 2 - Lawn Weed Control by Mowing
Yes, mowing is a significant way to reduce weed population and you can use a clean electric mower or robotic mower.
Prong 3 - Hand Weeding
This may not be what you want to hear, but hand-weeding is a time-tested option that's clean, green, and cheap, plus it gets you outside and moving around. Hand weeding becomes immensely satisfying because you immediately see the results of your work. I tackle sections one-at-a-time and am always surprised that it goes faster than expected. You can use your fingers for most, but you might need a trowel, one of the many specialized hand-weeding tools, or shovel for others.
Prong 4 - Lawn Weed Control with Post-Emergent
We recommend selective post-emergent herbicide after the above three approaches have been tried. Post-emergent is unavoidable for certain colonizing weeds, such as nutsedge, where the underground roots are impossible to remove through hand weeding.
Post-emergent Weed Control Products 🛒
Tackling Winter Weeds
Winter weeds are an eyesore in dormant warm season lawns, yet they can be prevented with correct application of pre-emergent herbicide. If winter weeds are bugging you, the tips in this article are what you need.
Annual Winter Weeds 🥶 🌱
Prevent these winter annuals (approx. 9 month life cycles) from even appearing in your lawn by applying pre-emergent herbicide in SEPTEMBER. If some get past the pre-emergent you can mow to prevent them from flowering and going to seed (yes, mow a dormant lawn if you need to!). Hand pulling is the next best option because post-emergent herbicides don't work well when the temperature is under 65 degrees.
Annual Summer Weeds 🌞🌱
A regular pre-emergent routine in FEBRUARY and APRIL will go a long way in preventing these annual (approx. 9 month life cycles) weeds before you even see them in your lawn. If that fails, you may need to spot weed by hand weeding or spraying with post-emergent herbicide. Again, regular mowing will help prevent them from going to seed and getting even worse.
Biennial Weeds 🌱
The spread of these biennial weeds (approx. 12 month life cycles) by seed can be prevented with our recommended 3x a year pre-emergent herbicide routine. However, for existing parent plants or colonies, you will have to eradicate them from your lawn by hand weeding or digging, mowing, or an application of post-emergent herbicide.
Perennial Weeds 🌱
The spread of these perennial (living for several years) weeds by seed can be prevented with our recommended 3x a year pre-emergent herbicide routine. However, you will have to eradicate the parent plant or colony from your lawn by hand weeding or digging, mowing, or an application of post-emergent herbicide.
When Lawns Invade Other Lawns 🌱
Sometimes one type of turfgrass will invade another type. If that happens, these articles cover the steps you can take for different scenarios.
Other Lawn Invaders 🍄
How do you get rid of moss and mushrooms? While there are seemingly simple answers out there, the underlying causes are actually complex. We’ll help you explore the best options for treating moss and mushrooms in your lawn (maybe even learning to love them!)
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