Ken’s Quick Tip: Winter Weed Control (Why Brown is Beautiful)

Last week I posted a photo on the Village Green’s Facebook page. The photo which you can see here, shows a lawn that isn’t using Village Green for fertilization and weed control. As you can see from this photo, there is a lot of green in their yard which you would think is good. It is not. That much green in January is bad. It means their lawn has far too many winter weeds. During the winter months we have a saying at Village Green, ‘brown in beautiful.’ A brown lawn in winter means it is mostly free from weeds which will lead to a thriving and healthy lawn come spring and summer.

To understand why, it important to know a little more about weeds.

Fortunately for us in North Texas it is rare for cold weather that is well below freezing to last that long (we’re too close to the Gulf of Mexico.) And while it may be uncomfortable to us humans (and pets,) the truth is these cold temps aren’t that big of a problem for our plants.

There are two types of weeds, the kind that sprout from seeds and those that come back from their roots every year. Apply a winter pre-emergent will create a barrier in the soil, blocking most weed seeds from growing which means we only have to spot treat the weeds that are coming back from their roots. These treatments while the lawn is dormant in the winter cut spring weeds dramatically. This saves time and more importantly herbicides.

The exception to this is St. Augustine lawns. They are very sensitive to being treated with products and blanket treating a St. Augustine lawn with a weed control products will often stunt its growth. While we do apply a winter pre-emergent to St. Augustine, we apply it at about half the recommended rate. Our goal with St. Augustine is to make it so happy and healthy with watering and correct fertilizer the rest of the year that during the winter it is too thick for weeds to touch the soil. I call this Mother Nature’s weed control!

At Village Green we can’t prevent all weeds, but we can prevent most of them. If you need help with your lawn this year, give us a call at 972-495-6990 or email me at [email protected]. We’ve been helping our neighbors improve the health and beauty of their lawns and landscapes for over thirty five years and have a lot of experience and answers when it comes to fertilization and weed control in North Texas.