Weed Identification

Dandelion

Common and persistent - that's the dandelion. It produces thousands of weed seeds that float wherever a light breeze takes them.

If you choose to use broadleaf weed killer, be careful around your desirable broadleaf plants.

You can also pull the dandelions if you'd rather not use weed killer.

When pulling, try to dampen the ground before pulling the dandelion - and be sure to pull up the dandelion's root too. If you don't, it will come right back.

Chickweed

Common chickweed is a winter annual broadleaf plant. It thrives under cool, wet conditions. It rarely tolerates hot, dry conditions that occur in late spring or early summer.

For control of chickweed use preemergent herbicides.

Plantain

The plantain is a common broadleaf weed in lawns. It is a cool-season perennial weed found practically in any habitat. The leaves and stems may range from purplish to dark green in color and may be smooth or densely covered with short hairs.

Either pull them up or use post emergence herbicides in mid-autumn to control plantains. Apply a 2" - 3" layer of mulch to ornamental bed areas to suppress germinating weed seeds.

Japanese Clover

Since arriving to North America, Japanese Clover has spread aggressively. It's a ground-hugging summer annual that can displace desirable vegetation if not properly managed. It flowers pink to purple in mid- to late-summer.

Post emergence herbicides can be used to control the spread of Japanese Clover.

Grassy Weeds

Crabgrass

Easily one of the most common and problematic weeds around, crabgrass is a warm-season annual that can wreak havoc on thin, underfertilized, and poorly drained lawns and gardens.

They are best recognized by their finger-like seed stalks; their leaf blades lie flat on the ground with the tips ascending. Seeds are produced from mid-summer to the fall and the plants are killed by frosts in autumn. To rid your lawn of crabgrass use pre-emergent herbicides to kill the crabgrass seeds. If you need to aerate your lawn, do this before you use the herbicides.

Goosegrass

Goosegrass is an annual that grows as a compressed plant in compacted, dry areas where desirable turfgrasses have thinned out. It germinates later in the spring than crabgrass and tolerates close mowing.

Its strong, extended root network prevents it from being pulled easily and thoroughly - a post emergence herbicide is required for proper control.

Nutsedge

This is a warm season perennial that suffers during cold winters. As the soil warms back up, however, germination begins and heavy infestations can result in July and August. Also overwatering can bring out sedge.

Early detection is crucial for the proper control of nutsedge. General weed killers will not work against nutsedge. Nutsedge-specific killers are required.

Dallisgrass

Lawns in the Southeast often face this warm-season perennial that tends to grow in large, shallow-rooted clumps.