Why crabgrass

Seeding in the late Summer will add tougher, modern grasses that compete well with Crabgrass. Slice Seeding is great if the problem is throughout your lawn. Our program works to continuously strengthen your lawn over time, so the longer you use our fertilizers, the more weed-resistant your lawn will become.

Avoid watering for short periods of time every day, which promotes the germination of Crabgrass and other weeds. Get In Touch. Call Us. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit.

Curabitur posuere, velit at auctor convallis, lacus erat commodo nisl, eget gravida nulla magna eget magna. What Is Crabgrass? As we have all likely seen, crabgrass grows out of cracks in a driveway, compacted dirt, gravel — just about anywhere there is empty space. Crabgrass does its greatest damage in thin lawns or patches that may have been damaged by insect or disease pressure.

Any open or susceptible space is quickly monopolized by new crabgrass plants, growing at an exponential rate as summer kicks into full gear during July and August.

Left untreated, either before or after germination, crabgrass ends up being a sprawling summer-time plant, often growing up and over any nearby desirable grass. While some crabgrass may germinate on the edges of walkways or driveways, these plants can be effectively treated when small to mitigate a full-blown crabgrass invasion.

Once seeds germinate and crabgrass sprouts emerge, pre-emergents no longer work. Then it's time for "post-emergent" herbicides, which target plants instead of seeds. Crabgrass killers are designed to kill existing, actively growing crabgrass plants before they can produce more seed. When using crabgrass killers or any herbicides, it's important to understand whether the product is a "selective" or "non-selective" herbicide. Selective herbicides target specific weeds or plant categories, such as grassy plants versus broadleaf plants.

Non-selective herbicides kill all plant types, including lawn grasses and other plants you want to keep. These products typically include selective herbicides that kill broadleaf weeds, such as dandelions and other common lawn weeds , and keep grasses unharmed. Actively growing crabgrass in your lawn calls for selective, post-emergent herbicides, such as Image All-In-One Lawn Weed Killer or Image Herbicide Kills Crabgrass , that kill crabgrass and leave your lawn grass untouched.

Always read product labels carefully, and make sure the label lists your lawn grass type as approved. Some lawn grasses, such as centipede grass and St. Augustine grass, are susceptible to herbicides that don't harm other lawn grasses.

When crabgrass threatens to disrupt your lawn, you can take control, break the cycle and prevent its spread. Crabgrass is a summer annual, meaning that in most climates it grows one year, produces seeds, and then dies off. The next year, the seeds sprout and the cycle continues. In temperate climates, the crabgrass will grow two years. It also spreads by putting out runners, which sprout roots where they touch the ground.

To prevent those seeds from germinating, experts at Purdue University suggest keeping a grass lawn healthy, thick and lush [source: Purdue ]. That means watering deeply and infrequently, rather than sprinkling often, which produces shallow roots vulnerable to crabgrass infestation.

Also, a healthy lawn should be mowed no shorter than 2 or 3 inches 5 to 8 centimeters. Shorter than that gives crabgrass an opportunity to move in and make itself at home. You can also use chemicals to keep crabgrass seeds from sprouting. Those are called pre-emergent herbicides. Once the seeds have sprouted, your best option is to pull the crabgrass out by hand.