by
Karin Mangan, All About Lawns Columnist
Are you constantly battling lawn weeds in your backyard lawn? As with any battle, to win you must understand your enemy, have a plan, and stick to it.
Know Your Enemy: Identify the Lawn Weeds in your Backyard Lawn
Using the wrong approach to lawn weed control could make matters worse. Start by identifying the type of lawn weeds that are blighting your backyard lawn. Prevention is a key element in your offensive. Annual lawn weeds such as crabgrass develop from seeds in the spring. They are particularly difficult to remove once they take hold, so using a pre-emergent control in the spring, mixed with the fertilizer that you put on your backyard lawn, should be a vital part of your lawn care regime.
A post-emergent herbicide should be used in late summer to kill off any lawn weeds that have developed. Always use the right quantity of herbicide. Applying more than recommended may turn your backyard lawn brown.
Some weeds cannot be beaten with herbicides. You may be wasting your time trying to fight them this way and may only give them more time to take hold while damaging your backyard lawn. The only remedy for these lawn weeds is to dig them out and replace the area with either turf or seed.
Don't Give the Lawn Weeds a Chance to Regroup
Winning the lawn weed battle requires patience. It may take repeated applications of herbicides to gain the upper hand, followed by annual pre- and post-emergent treatment to keep your backyard lawn looking good.
Know When You're Fighting a Losing Battle Against your Lawn Weeds
If you are feeling outnumbered by your lawn weeds and don't have the energy to continue the fight, why not replace your backyard lawn with a pool and forget about those pesky lawn weeds.
Sources:
Lawn Care Tips, Weed Control
American Lawns, Weeds
Karin has worked as a writer and researcher for the past 10 years, writing on a variety of subjects. She has a research-based PhD in English studies and is engaged in an ongoing battle to tame her backyard.
