Mid to Late April must be the weediest time of year for North Texas. This is caused by our weather, which can be warm and humid one day, and cool and blustery the next. Add decent rainfall in April and you have the perfect environment for the weeds you may be experiencing in your yard this year.
If you are wondering what to do (or what we went wrong with your fertilization and weed control program,) let me reassure you that what you are seeing are winter weeds. Three are extremely common in North Texas now.
1. Henbit (the weed with purple flowers)
2. Rescue grass (a tall, bright green grassy weed)
3. Poa annua (a very short grassy weed with tiny seeds)
These weeds can be controlled, but once they are sprouted they are hard to control with weed control products because it is spring and they are winter weeds. In other words, they are no longer growing in a way that allows them to absorb any weed control products thus you’ll be wasting your money trying to get rid of them in this way.
My recommendation to get rid of them is to simply cut your lawn short (but please don’t scalp it) and often.
I know that seems counter intuitive, but remember these winter weeds are past their prime, and struggling to stay alive. They are winter weeds and thrive in cooler temperatures. If you cut them you are putting further strain on them. And as we move further and further into spring in our area, as we well know, the cooler temperatures are replaced by warm and humid weather. If we string enough of these days together your winter weeds are going to go away (until next winter/spring, unless you have a good preventative plan in place.)
The next question I typically get after giving the above advice is if a person should skip lawn care now.
I know it may sound self-serving for the guy in the lawn care business to say NO, but remember, you should be working to prevent spring/summer weeds now. Not winter weeds. You prevent those in late fall, early winter.
Keep in mind that one of the best weed preventatives is a healthy growing lawn. You keep your lawn healthy and thriving and it will fill in gaps where winter weeds left (leaving little room for future weeds.)
If you have any question regarding your lawn and landscape give us call at 972.495.6990 or [email protected]. We are always happy to answer your questions.