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Lawn Care Problems and Weeds; they can be caused by a number of reasons, some that you can control and others that you can’t.
A weed can be one of the most unsightly types of lawn care problems. Weeds can crop up at any time but are most active in the spring of the year. These weeds can be caused by a number of reasons, some that you can control and others that you can’t. Uncontrollable Weather conditions such as drought can weaken an otherwise healthy lawn and make it more susceptible to weeds. A lawn that is under stress from other lawn care problems such as pests like the grub can allow weeds to take over a dying lawn as the weed plant itself is much hardier than the grass plant that composes your lawn. Heavy traffic areas were the lawn becomes worn down is also vulnerable to the emergence of weeds. Most weeds stand out from your lawn because they are a different color, size or shape than the beautiful, healthy green of the grass plants that make up your lawn. The best way to get rid of weeds is to prevent them from even appearing on your lawn. As they say in sports “the best offense is a good defense”, so what is a good defense? A good defense is doing a series of steps that will help prevent weeds from being able to get a stronghold in your lawn. But what can you do? There are three easy steps that all homeowners can easily accomplish to ward off those ugly weeds. First by adjusting the height that you mow your lawn to higher settings as mentioned in Lawn Care Problems and Weather will help keep the roots and soil of the grass plants that make up the lawn shaded from the heat and moisture evaporation properties of the sun. Next, if your lawn does not receive adequate weekly rainfall, then watering your lawn deeply occasionally (instead of frequent shallow watering which favors weed growth) will encourage a much more resilient roots system in the grass plant. Fertilizing your lawn on a regular basis to increase the growth rate of the grass plant will reduce the chances of weeds being able to thrive in your lawn. If you notice weeds beginning to grow on your lawn then you can apply fertilizer with a selective weed killer (herbicide) included that accomplishes two jobs in one. It will promote a stronger lawn while killing only any broadleaf weeds trying to establish themselves in your lawn. There are two types of weeds that are common in our lawns; they are grassy and broadleaf weeds. The most easily recognized example of a broadleaf weed is the dandelion, while the most widespread grassy weed is crabgrass. As mentioned above to prevent the establishment of broadleaf weeds (or to eliminate a few isolated weeds) the application of a selective herbicide (only kills broadleaf plants which grass plants are not) through a weed and feed fertilizer. A liquid herbicide can be applied to smaller concentrated areas of weeds. When dealing with grassy weeds such as crabgrass things become a bit more complicated. Crabgrass like many grassy weeds dies off in autumn and each plant releases hundreds of seeds which will take root in the spring of the following year. Due to this germination process of crabgrass the use of crabgrass preventer becomes extremely important in the spring season. To halt the growth of new crabgrass seeds on your lawn during the spring a pre-emergent coupled with fertilizer to thicken up your lawn is the best offence. This should be done prior to daytime temperatures reach 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18 degrees Celsius) on a regular basis. If crabgrass is not noticed until after it has germinated and it has begun to establish itself there are post-emergent products available that are effective on immature aggressively growing crabgrass. Application of these products should be made after the average daily temperatures are above 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21 degrees Celsius). In the case of well established crabgrass it may take more than one application of crabgrass killer to completely destroy the crabgrass in your lawn. There specific directions to achieve the best results possible from these types of products so make sure to follow directions closely on the labels. By taking a good defensive approach to maintaining your lawn, weeds can be eliminated from your list of Lawn Care Problems. “Keep It Simple to Succeed” lets get out there and make our lawns healthy an green!
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