Crabgrass is one of the most common weeds in our area of Columbus and it can overtake your lawn if it is not treated properly.
Around mid June to early July, crabgrass will begin to emerge in Columbus lawns. This annual grassy weed will grow quickly, especially in areas of your lawn that may be thinned out or bare. During its growth period the crabgrass plant drops thousands of seeds that remain in the soil until conditions are perfect to emerge again, thus completing another annual cycle.
When it comes to eradicating crabgrass, the best strategy is to be proactive by applying pre-emergent weed control treatments in the spring. The pre-emergent acts as a barrier in the soil and prevents the seeds from becoming viable plants, dying off before they emerge from the soil.
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Mid June is the best time to kill grabgrass that has emerged.
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Maintain proper mowing heights of 3" to 4.5"
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Crabgrass can be harder to control near edges of sidewalks, driveways, curbs and landscape beds.
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Crabgrass control can end up being a multi-year process until it's completely out of your lawn.
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It will be necessary to aerate and overseed in September so that new grass will fill in and compete and overshadow weeds.
DANDELION CONTROL
Keep your yard looking uniform and healthy by ensuring dandelions do not invade.
Dandelions are a common broadleaf weed and the plant is perennial, which means it will come back year after year without treatment.
Any type of weed will grow faster than your grass, the dandelion is no exception. There is a risk of dandelions choking out your lawn and taking away nutrients from the grass.
Flowers begin growing as early as March and can continue growing into the fall. Once the plant establishes its long taproot, it becomes much more difficult to get rid of it. They are also not easy to contain, as the fluffy balls of seeds can easily spread hundreds of seeds around your yard in one slight breeze.
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Easy to identify, as most people are familiar with the bright yellow flowers.
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Dandelions can grow in any condition in any yard, but prefer sunny spots over shaded areas.
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The best strategy to stop the spread of dandelions is with pre-emergent weed control treatments before the seeds pods emerge from the soil.
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Dandelions can be killed using selective herbicides that target weeds and not your grass.
COMMON WINTER ANNUAL WEEDS
IN THE COLUMBUS METRO AREA
The yellow flowers of perennial dandelion are always a sign that spring is here in Columbus, but there are many other less conspicuous weeds flowering at this time. Many of the early blooming spring weeds (chickweed, henbit, purple deadnettle, corn speedwell), are categorized as winter annuals, meaning they germinate in the fall, over-winter in a vegetative state, flower in the spring and produce seeds by late spring to early summer before ultimately dying. During the heat of the summer, these species mostly exist as seeds awaiting the opportunity to germinate in the fall. This lifecycle contrasts that of summer annuals.
CHICKWEED CONTROL
Green Up can eradicate chickweed from your lawn entirely with routine pre and post emergent weed control treatments.
Chickweed is a troublesome weed that should be removed before it has time to seed, otherwise it will sprout new growth throughout winter and into the spring.
Because of their white, star shaped flowers, chickweed is commonly referred to as the "snow in the summer" since it blooms in the spring and continues through the fall. There are various chickweed species, including star chickweed and mouse-ear chickweed, so it's important to identify the right type to avoid the wrong treatment method. Chickweed likes to grow in the damp, shady areas of your lawn and form thick mats that cover your grass. They also grow in areas with poor drainage. Unkempt and overgrown lawns is the biggest reason for chickweed infestation.
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Common chickweed is an indicator weed, meaning its presence might indicate underlaying issues such as compacted soil or poor drainage.
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Stubborn chickweed growth can be treated with pre- and post-emergent weed control. Fall pre-emergent around September stops seedlings.
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Any newly seeded lawn needs to mature before applying post-emergent weed control since the herbicide can harm and kill new grass growth.
CLOVER WEED CONTROL
Clover can come back year after year without weed control treatments and destroy your grass in the process.
Clover begins to invade your yard because there are certain conditions in your lawn that are contributing to an environment that encourages their growth.
Clover is a perennial, broadleaf weed common throughout the U.S. It has three characteristics: round leaflets on a long stalk, and small round white or pinkish/purplish flowers. Clover is a legume in the pea family and related to alfalfa. Legumes have the unique ability to fix nitrogen in the air and soil, creating its own fertilizer for itself other plants, which is the reason it was orginally added to grass seed mixes for easier to maintain lawns. It's more resilient than other broadleaf weeds, it is drought tolerant and it's low growing habit evades mower blades. It can also spread quickly. Conditions that contribute to clover growith: soil pH may be too high and heavily compacted, mowing height is too low, and nutrient deficiency.
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Clover grows well in nutrient-poor soils and is an indication that the soil lacks fertility, particularly nitrogen.
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Clover can grow in almost any condition, even when soil is hardened. Annual core aeration loosens heavily compacted soil.
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Short grass allows more sunlight to reach clover and other weeds.
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People often mistake clover for other weeds like black medic and oxalis, which look similar in structure but have yellow flowers. Clover leaves are more of a teardrop shape, while oxalis leaves are heart-shaped.
HENBIT WEED CONTROL
Don't let henbit overtake your lawn. Our weed control treatments keep your lawn uniform.
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Each plant can produce up to 2,000 seeds, which is why henbit is difficult to treat without professional help.
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It grows well in moist, shaded areas and can often be found under trees and shrubs where grass has a hard time growing.
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Pre-emergent herbicide is the most effective strategy to combat henbit. It is applied during the fall once temperatures begin cooling off.
PURPLE DEADNETTLE WEED CONTROL
Purple deadnettle is one of the first weeds to appear at the start of the spring season in Ohio
Purple deadnettle is notoriously persistent. When this weed doesn't have other plants around it to compete, its production of 27,000 seeds per plant make it much tougher to handle without professional help.
Purple deadnettle and its cousin, henbit, are frequently confused for one another because of their similar features. Both weeds have square stems and purple flowers, but purple deadnettle foliage tends to be wider and lighter in color, while henbit flowers look more tubular. The leaves of purple deadnettle are triangular and the upper leaves are often purple in color. The henbit leaves are more rounded to heart shaped.
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Since purple deadnettle is a winter annual, that means their seed germinate in the fall and survive through the winter.
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Once spring begins, the weed will flower up and around April or May and develop more seeds before dying back in early summer from the intense heat.
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Purple deadnettle prefers moist turf and cooler spring weather. They can be seen mostly growing in shaded areas of your lawn and will quickly invade bare spots.
SPEEDWELL WEED CONTROL
Don't let speedwell overtake your lawn. Our weed control treatments keep your lawn uniform.
Though there are several speedwells found in Ohio lawns and gardens, corn and Persian speedwells are the two that behave as winter annuals.
Speedwells grow prostrate with toothed leaves which are opposite each other on the lower portions of the stem and alternate toward the upper portions. Flowers are usually combinations of bright blue and white that though small are easy to see amongst the green foliage. Starting in early spring and sometimes late winter, this Ohio weed is highly invasive and of the few weeds that is considered stonger than turfgrass.
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Corn speedwell only spreads by seed and is very aggressive in stressed, thin and newly seeded turfgrass or other areas exposed bare ground.
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Sound lawn maintenance practices - watering, mowing, fertilizing - encouraging a healthy, dense lawn will suppress speedwell.
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Speedwell has a fibrous root system and is easily pulled by hand, especially when the soil is moist. It wil not re-grow from the roots so hand weeding is effective as long as all of the leaves and stems are removed.
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Corn speedwell is classifed as hard to control with herbicides. The most effective approach is to apply pre-emergent in the fall to prevent seeds from sprouting.
OXALIS WEED CONTROL
Don't let Oxalis overtake your lawn. Our weed control treatments keep your lawn uniform.
Oxalis is a perpetual weedy groundcover that some people find pleasant to look at because of their delicate clover like leaves and attractive blooms.
One of the most common broadleaf weeds, oxalis, or creeping woodsorrel, is often confused with clover. It's distinctive characteristics, however make it easy to determine that you may indeed have an oxalis problem in your lawn. It is also harder to eliminate than clover. Oxalis leaves are heart shape. Clover on the the other hadn, has three oval shaped leaves grouped together. If you are having a problem with oxalis weed in your lawn, our weed control treatments will get rid of them. When sprayed with generic weedkiller, it will generally not die.
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Oxalis starts off as a bright green color but can turn more of a burgundy color after they are exposed to stress or heat.
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The weed also has flowers that bloom a vibrant yellow, and grows in pretty much any condition, from sunny to shady, to dry to moist.
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In just one oxalis plant, there is the potential for 5,000 new plants to form from their seed pods. Seed pods burst open and can shoot seeds at least 10 feet away from the in intial plant.
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Take proper care of your lawn - sign up for a yearly fertilization program.
GROUND IVY WEED CONTROL
If you notice ground ivy in your yard, you'll want to start applying post-emergent treatments immediately to limit the growth as much as possible.
Ground ivy can take years to get under control and is hard to remove unless handled by qualified lawn professionals.
Ground ivy, also known as Creeping Charlie, is a broadleaf, noxious weed that is difficult to remove for multiple reasons. It is a winter perennial that will continue coming back every year unless it's controlled. It also hugs the ground so much that mowing over the weed is near impossible. This makes any kind of hand weeding ineffective as well. The biggest issue with ground ivy is the root system. It establishes multiple sets of roots, so even if you tried to dig the weed up and pull it out, there could still be a whole bunch of roots left in the soil, helping to keep the ivy alive and spread further out onto your lawn. Ground ivy can also wrap itself around other landscape plants and "stangle" them.
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Ground ivy is often mistaken for purple nettle or henbit. All three weed species are similar in flower color, leaf structure and height.
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Because it's classified as a broadleaf weed, using a post-emergent is the best option.
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Professional grade selective herbicide should be appliced twice a year for about 2 - 3 years, once in the spring wthen weed flowers and then again in the late fall when ground ivy is actively growing.
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Take proper care of your lawn - sign up for a yearly fertilization program.