It's that time of the year again - the best time to go after crab grass. The trick to good control is timing. Crab grass is a summer annual weed - it goes through an entire lifecycle between spring and fall, just like your annual flowers do. The big problem is that when crab grass dies, it leaves behind thousands of seeds ready to pop up the following year. So tackle this intruder before it has a chance to mature. Here's how:
* Purchase a pre-emergent herbicide to kill crab grass. It can be combined with your spring fertilizer, or you can purchase it on its own. This type of herbicide will kill the plants as they germinate, before you even see them. If you have a newly seeded lawn, the only product to use is Siduron, which will not kill the grass as it germinates. The other products are non-selective, meaning they'll kill everything. * Watch the temperature in your area to attack this plant at exactly the right time. The best time to use it is in spring when your soil temperature reaches 60 degrees. A good rule of thumb is to apply it just after the bright yellow forsythia bush blooms in your area. For the best results, mow your lawn before applying the herbicide. * For crab grass that has taken hold in early summer, you can hand pull it. If there is too much for this to be an option, use a post-emergent herbicide such as dithiopyr or quinclorac. Mature crab grass in later summer is extremely hard to control. Your best bet here would be to let the frost kill it, then overseed the area and fertilize. Mark your calendar to use a pre-emergent herbicide the following spring. * To remove crab grass organically, use corn gluten meal which acts as a pre-emergent herbicide as well as a fertilizer. If you have a heavy crab grass infestation, it is important to be persistent, since it will be a longer period of time - perhaps years - before you see significant results. ********************************************************************** This message and its attachments may contain legally privileged or confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient, you must not disclose or use the information contained in it. If you have received this e-mail in error, please notify the sender immediately by return e-mail and delete the e-mail. Any content of this message and its attachments which does not relate to the official business of Eraring Energy must be taken not to have been sent or endorsed by Eraring Energy. No warranty is made that the e-mail or attachment(s) are free from computer virus or other defect. ********************************************************************** [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
