Botanical name: digitaria

Type: Weed

Appearance: Blades are a similar color to your grass, but they spike out in different directions. It got its name from the way the blades somewhat look like crab legs.

Risk: Crabgrass is opportunistic, growing where your grass is weakest.

Timing: It appears around mid-spring, when the soil temperature reaches 55 degrees.

Outlook: Without treatment, you will have crabgrass in your lawn year after year.

How to Control Crabgrass

Prevention

Crabgrass thrives in warm, dry conditions, so a little water can go a long way in preventing this weed. Just remember that some other weeds prefer the moist environment.

Like other lawn weeds, crabgrass can be prevented by taking good care of your lawn, as there won’t be root space for the weed. You can get your grass in tip-top fighting shape by:

• Watering Well: Your grass needs adequate water to thrive. It prefers long soakings about two to three times weekly instead of daily watering, depending on the rain levels from the week.
• Reseeding patchy spots: Grass roots go deep into the ground and take up a lot of space, taking away the valuable real estate weeds need to thrive.
• Aerating Your Soil: Soil compaction keeps air and water from reaching the deeper levels of soil where grass roots grow, so only plants that grow nearer to the surface, like weeds, can thrive.
• Checking Your Lawn’s pH Level: If your soil’s pH level isn’t neutral (about 7.0), your grass doesn’t have the right environment to thrive, but weeds might. To balance the pH level, your soil may also need applications of lime.

Treatment

Treating this weed is essential because each plant produces thousands of seeds before dying in the fall, meaning your lawn might be covered next springtime!

If you only have a few plants in your lawn, you can pull them by hand or using a digging knife. The sooner the better, especially aim to have them removed before seeds can form.

If it has taken over your lawn, a more aggressive herbicide treatment is necessary. Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s directions.

Shades of Green Lawn & Landscape knows just what your lawn needs. We used science-based practices to ensure your yard is as healthy as can be to fend off ground ivy troubles. Our lawn care packages offer all-around care for your yard. Call us today at 765-771-9998 for a free quote and more information.

Need Help with Crabgrass?

Call Shades of Green Lawn & Landscape today at 765-771-9998 and let's talk about how we can help you with Crabgrass and other Indiana lawn weeds.

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