Keeping that lawn beautiful is not just about cutting the grass. Wind, foot traffic, birds and other animals bring the seeds for weeds into your lawn and there just isn’t any security force available against those dastardly seeds. So we just must resort to a constant and vigilant war against the weeds. Here are some suggestions.
Weed Killing a la Natural: Keeping your yard maintained properly, will inhibit weeds being able to take root. If you have a thick healthy lawn, mow it to no lower than 3″ in height with good sharp blades, make sure it gets 1″ of water per week and fertilize 1 to 4 times per year, top coat your yard once a year with topsoil or compost, and aerate your yard every other year, weeds will have a harder time growing in your yard.
But, that isn’t always enough, especially when our yard isn’t quite full and healthy yet. So for more control, if your weeds are sparse and few and far between, you can use the Kitchen method.
Kitchen Method: For spot weed control you can pour boiling water on the weed and it will kill it dead to the roots. If carrying a bucket of scalding hot water around the yard is not your thing then try Vinegar with a little dish liquid and spray it directly on the leaves of just the weeds you are trying to kill. This method takes about a week to kill but it does work. More stubborn hardy weed types may take additional treatments. You can omit the dish liquid, it is used to help the spray stick to the leaves and penetrate any glossy outer coating to make the vinegar more effective.
If your weed problems are more wide spread, you have shaky hands and are afraid of affecting your grass, or your not sure what is weed and what is grass then use a selective post emergent herbicide to kill those weeds. The top four are listed below.
Trimec: Trimec classic was introduced over 35 years ago and is the top herbicide used in professional golf courses, sports turfs, public parks, cemeteries and lawns. It is also the most widely used herbicide in university trials. It works in all kinds of temperatures. However, Trimec is also the most hazardous to apply and it is not readily available. If you want more information about Trimec or to purchase Trimec visit www.pbigordon.com.
Spectracide Weed Stop is my personal favorite. It comes in different formulas depending on your type of grass, your region and the types of weeds you have. It also comes in either pull and spray or concentrate bottles. All of the formulas are a selective broadleaf herbicide that won’t harm grass. Check out their website to determine which formula is right for you. www.spectracide.com You can find it at Lowe’s, some Wal-marts, nurseries and garden centers.
Bayer Advanced All In One Weed Killer for Lawns is my personal second favorite and is the best, if you don’t know what kind of grass you have or what kind of weeds you have. This product kills over 200 listed weeds plus crabgrass in one easy step. It can be used in cool weather too. It comes in 2 sizes of ready to use sprayers, a battery operated sprayer bottle or concentrate. It too can be found at Lowe’s, some Wal-marts, nurseries and garden centers.
Ortho Weed-B-Gon Max Plus Crabgrass – Weed-B-Gon has a reputation of not working very well without several applications. This new formula promises to do a better job by killing over 225 kinds of weeds, is rainproof after one hour and is guaranteed not to kill grass. Find it at Lowe’s, some Wal-marts, nurseries and garden centers.
Sources:
www.scotts.com
www.pbigordon.com
www.spectracide.com
www.bayeradvanced.com
http://forums.gardenweb.com
