How to deal with crabgrass in the Fall

Crabgrass, the stubborn annual weed known to take over a lawn yard in no time at all once you become negligent. This plant is so prolific in its growth that its growth pattern is not fixed. It grows all year long during the different seasons but is more resilient in the fall.

It is important to point out that Crabgrass is an annual weed that behaves like a perennial. This means that its lifecycle is supposed to be annual, but the speed with which it re-grows after spending its cycle makes it appear perennial.

In this post, we have discussed how to deal with Crabgrass in the fall but first let’s understand a bit more about the plant.

As most lawn maintenance companies have found out, Crabgrass is quite difficult to eradicate like other weed types. It can’t be done by mowing or pulling because each plant produces about 150,000 seeds or more that remain dormant in the soil waiting for the next season.

This means that even as you are eradicating the plants, the seeds already in the soil are still going to germinate to re-grow new Crabgrass. This peculiar factor is one reason why it seems Crabgrass has regenerative abilities.

When eradicating Crabgrass from your lawn, this factor has to be taken into serious consideration. Now, below are some of the steps to take when dealing with Crabgrass during the fall.

1.) Prevent the spread of Crabgrass on your lawn

The first step to take in dealing with Crabgrass during the fall is to prevent it from spreading as much as possible. How do you do this?

If you have a lawn mowing company working for you, get them to reduce the spread of the plant. Usually involves, cutting off the grass as close to the soil as possible to take off the seed-bearing parts.

When this is done, the cut parts bearing the seeds should be bagged and taken off the lawn yard for disposal or destruction in a waste yard.

Physical pulling and removal of the weed by hand can also be initiated as this takes off the plant wholesomely leaving nothing behind.

2.) Apply termination techniques to remove Crabgrass

Apart from stopping the spread of Crabgrass on your lawn, out rightly killing the plants is possible. However, it is best handled by experienced lawn maintenance companies because it is dependent on different factors.

Your lawn service provider of choice will have to choose a technique that suits your lawn size, geo-location, topography, and other dynamics.

3.) Clear your lawn of any dead Crabgrass debris

Seeds from dead Crabgrass can remain potent for a long time, and if the plant is not removed, re-growth is not only certain but can be swift.

Therefore, it is very important that after a Crabgrass eradication activity is carried out, the plants should be removed from the site.

In addition, Crabgrass is known to release a toxic substance that inhibits the optimal growth of other plant types. This isn’t exactly good news for your beautiful grass and should be taken seriously. Hopefully, your lawn maintenance company will already have this information and act accordingly.

4.) Reseed the affected parts of your lawn yard

After taken steps to eradicate Crabgrass from your lawn yard, it is essential that you reseed the affected areas.

First off, the affected areas will most likely look patchy because of the removed plants. Reseeding replaces the removed grass allowing your lawn to grow and look great again.

Fortunately, fall is ideal times to plant new grass or reseed your lawn yard so don’t hesitate to do this quickly. A lot of modern Texas lawn maintenance companies offer a special fall lawn care package that caters to this.

5.) Apply effective preventive measures to reduce any incidence of Crabgrass comeback

At this point, you have to ensure that you Crabgrass never grows back again on your grass after you must have terminated and removed them from your lawn.

To make this a possibility, you need to find a way to keep them off your lawn for good. One to do this effectively is to have the lawn care company providing you with fall lawn care apply a compound known as a pre-emergent on your grass.

Pre-emergent is known to restrict the growth of weeds like Crabgrass. It is advisable that a professional lawn service handles this service for you.

6.) Follow healthy lawn care practices to protect your lawn

One of the best lawn care packages to go for is GoMow weekly lawn maintenance. This gives your lawn the time to re-grow and re-stabilize properly after each maintenance activity.

If your lawn is in an area known for having Crabgrass, it is important that the best lawn care practices are carried out on your lawn. Watering should not be over-done, and lawn mowing shouldn’t be too low that it exposes your soil to invading weed seeds.

In addition, lawn care equipment from your weekly lawn maintenance provider should be cleaned thoroughly to avoid transferring Crabgrass seeds from somewhere else to your lawn.

Are you planning to eradicate Crabgrass from your lawn yard? This post will certainly give you ideas on how to get results faster today!