Tips To Prevent Crabgrass For Next Season
If you were plagued this season by crabgrass, you know how unsightly it can be and probably don’t want it to stick around. You can do things now to prevent it from cropping up again next season. But first, what’s crabgrass? This is a quick-growing type of thick grass or persistent weed that can rear its ugly head even in the nicest of landscapes. You may see some weeds that look like crabgrass but it’s only technically crabgrass if it’s growing during the warmest part of mid and late summer. Spot something in early spring? Chances are, it’s another type of weed entirely.
Water Your Lawn
Crabgrass loves dry conditions, so just when your lawn is getting starved from water at the height of the summer, it takes hold when it senses thinning. It can be tough to kill crabgrass effectively, as it tends to come back again and again. To prevent crabgrass in the first place, give your lawn a healthy dose of water every day (preferably via a sprinkler system) to keep the grass thick and green. Crabgrass is like a stealth enemy attack…it will wait until it senses weakness and will spring into action.
Keep it Manicured but Don’t Overdo It
Keep your grass manicured but don’t trim it too short. An ideal height for your lawn should be about two and a half inches long. Too short and the sun will burn it and crabgrass will hop into action.
Mulch Often
In addition to healthy grass, you also need healthy soil to keep crabgrass at bay. If you don’t get rid of it effectively, it will come back seasonally. So, as you walk around your yard this month, be careful to remove patches of crabgrass by the root and then cover the area with mulch. This will stifle the ability of the crabgrass seeds to germinate next season.
Use a Pre-Emergent
First thing next spring, use a pre-emergent treatment before your grass has begun to grow. This will cut the crabgrass off at the pass, as it doesn’t start growing until the weather is hot over a long period of time. Concentrate your efforts on problem areas — only you know where those problem areas are. Keep an eye on them and give them extra TLC. A granular herbicide applied at the right time is your best defense against a season of crabgrass. According to Family Handyman, this creates a chemical barrier at the surface of the soil so that as the seeds begin to germinate, they take in the herbicide and die off.
Weed and Seed
As fall approaches, go ahead and pull up any patches of crabgrass you see, but leave the established stuff alone. As you pull it up, it will leave a big hole which will just get scattered with a bunch of seeds you’ve just disturbed by pulling it out. Focus on the slender, green seed heads that don’t leave a gaping hole. Then, seed those bare and patchy areas.
Contact T&B Landscape and Irrigation
If you need help with any of the above tasks, we are here to help. Contact T&B Landscape and Irrigation at (978) 296-5290 for help with eradicating crabgrass from your Andover property.