Weeds are unwanted plants which grow to share space with your plants or grass, spoiling the look of the turf as well as competing for nutrition.
There are few weeds which are rampant in most lawns. Find below a listing of these common weeds, with their ../images.
Most common lawn weeds
Chickweed :This weeds grows in cool and wet conditions. Cannot survive the summers. Has small white flowers during spring.
Barnyard grass :An annual grass which is light green in color. Can be easily abolished through regular mowing.
Carpet weed : Starts sprouting around spring and florishes by summer. Tends to spread rapidly. Prefers shaded area. Would need to be hand pulled for elimination.
Ground ivy :Has kidney shaped leaves and grows in moist areas. Takes roots at each joint and thus spreads through the lawn. Difficult to uproot it due to its style of propagation. Best to uproot it when it is sprouting. Use of herbicide may be employed but usually has less effect.
Sorrel : Has yellow flowers around spring. Most farmers use it as cattle food. Hand pluck them to eliminate their growth in your lawn.
Spurge : This weed is deep rooted and persistent in its proliferation. Has small yellow blossoms towards spring. Should be pulled off before it takes seed to prevent propagation.
Annual bluegrass : Grows under cool and moist conditions. Mostly a bane of any lawn owner’s life because it is difficult to mow it off, it grows less than the mowing height.
Dandelion :These weeds attack your lawn by spring and they are fast growers. These weeds are greedy for water and nutrition. Hand pluck them on sight.
Weed prevention tips
Given below are some useful tips on weed prevention in your garden.
- If you want to play it safe you can consider mulching the length of your would be lawn with plastic or organic mulch for a period of a month. The mulch should be laid out at least 6 inches thick.
- The objective of this process is to kill any would be weeds by preventing access to sunlight and air. You can use cheap organic mulch like peat moss and straw for this purpose.
- This step requires a lot of patience since you need to wait for a month, facing a yard which is covered with mulch. If you are willing to go through this, it would be well worth the effort since you will have a weed free lawn.
- Most people are not so patient and it’s fine to just dig into the next step. You can content with weed pulling when they do arise later.
Working on weed prevention would help you maintain an even and attractive lawn. Usually a few hours of effort put into the lawn works towards creating the right image for your garden.
Other types of lawn weeds
Beyond the most common weeds, there are several other weeds which can propagate in your lawn.
Weeds not only spoil the look of your garden but also compete with your lawn grass for water and nutrition. Some of these weeds have a tendency to propagate quickly and can turn out to be quite a bane in any gardener’s life.
List of weeds to look out for
Foxtail grass : Usually germinate by spring. These weeds have a tendency to propagate in large numbers and produce seeds in thousands. Mowing you lawn regularly would help keep them at bay, they can also be controlled by apply nitrogen rich fertilizers.
Horsenettle : A perennial weed, its has purple or white flowers and spines on its stems along with thick erect leaves. If you soil is sandy you can except their arrival. They flower away during summer and take seed quickly. It is a poisonous weed to boot. Use herbicide or just puck them off with your hands. Make sure you have your gloves on.
Nutsedge :These weeds can be quite a pain and need to be controlled through multiple applications of weed control herbicides during their growing days. They usually sprout around late spring to early summer when the soil is warm. They have a tendency to propagate in large numbers if not controlled early.
Ragweed :You will find ragweed everywhere, on the roadsides, pavements and pathways. If they inflitrate your lawn you need to take quick action since they pollinate at tremendously large rate. Use of herbicides would help control their growth in your lawn. Usually grows during summer.
Speedwell :An annual weed which flowers through out the summer. Leaves are broad and arranged in an alternate fashion and the flowers are light purple in color. Mowing regularly would control they onset.
Violets :Grow in areas where shade is abudant, usually under moist conditions. They germinate during the colder seasons. These species of weeds are annuals and they are a few perennial varieties also. The flowers are light blue or pruple in color. One way to control these weeds to hand pluck them such that their entire root system is pulled off. You can also use post emergent herbicides to control their onset.
Henbit : These weeds have purple flowers and they germinate by spring time. They usually grow in large numbers if your lawn is not maintained properly. They look pretty and are usually used for bouquet decoration. Taking precautions like applying pre-emergent herbicides during fall can control the growth of these weeds.
Keeping weeds at bay
Follow the tips mentioned below for a weed free lawn.
- Mow your lawn as often as possible. Mowing cut the weed heads off which discourages further growth.
- Don’t cut the grass too short while mowing. Its not good for the grass, as it becomes less heat resistant, but it almost promote weed growth as the weeds get access to sunlight.
- Fertilize you soil well; weeds strangely don’t grow well on fertile soil.
- Hand pulling weeds helps at times especially when they grow tall (you went wrong somewhere!). Be sure to pluck them off from their roots.
- Avoid herbicides as much as possible, it is not good for the soil. Try the above steps first. If they don’t work for some reason and you are inflicted by a lot weeds, you can go in for a pre-emergent or a post-emergent herbicide as per your circumstance.
A weed free lawn is usually a sign of a well maintained lawn. Signs of weeds growing on your lawn are indications of the fact that you are not looking after the hygiene of your garden. Following these simple tips would help keep the weeds at bay and result in an attractive lawn.