Say Goodbye To Weeds With These Tips

Learn How To Rid Your Lawn From Weeds

Effective weed control is much more than spraying your lawn with a product. There’s so much meaningful work to be done before breaking out the quick-fix bottle treatments.

One of the biggest mistakes homeowners make when it comes to weed removal is mowing their grass too short. When grass is mowed too short, it makes the grass less healthy, making it more susceptible to weeds. The rule of thumb for most lawns is to set the mower to cut at 2 ½ to 3 inches high. Very likely, the most beneficial and easiest change you can make to protect your yard from weeds is simply to cut higher.

Know Your Lawn

There are literally tens of thousands of species of plants that constantly vie for space and resources on your lawn, most of which are far more competitive than the grasses that we use to cover our lawns. Complete eradication is simply impossible. The soil under your lawn contains millions and millions of seeds that are just waiting for the opportunity to germinate. Your job is to keep them from doing so.

Know Your Enemy

“Weed” is just an umbrella term for everything growing in a lawn that isn’t the grass you want – that means, invasive grasses, broadleaf plants, trees and other unwelcome visitors. Some of them have annual life cycles while others are perennials. Some have life cycles that begin in the spring while others germinate in the fall.

This distinction is important because there are times during a life cycle where weed control products are effective against a particular weed while at other times they can be completely useless. Effective weed management begins with proper identification followed by a complete understanding of that plant’s ecology and the best strategy for effective control.

Be Observant. Weeds Tell Stories

Weeds thrive where they have an advantage over grasses. Different weeds thrive under different conditions and can be very helpful in diagnosing the underlying problems within your lawn. For instance, the common lawn weed called Broadleaf Plantain will thrive in heavily compacted soils where grasses will not. If you identify Broadleaf Plantain in your lawn, it’s a good bet that your soil needs to be aerated. Once you’ve alleviated the compaction problem, the grass will naturally out-compete the Broadleaf Plantain weed.

Consult Lawn Care Professionals

Over the course of a single season, a lawn specialist can perform over 3,000 applications and cover over 1,000 acres of grass. They are fantastic resources for expertise on lawn care. Professionals here at Dr. Trees Oregon can massively improve your lawn’s health.

Weed science is surprisingly fascinating. Weed control strategies and products evolve over time so what may have been the best approach to controlling a particular weed a few years ago may not be the best way to do it today. Lawn care experts are trained to inspect their clients’ yards, assess what’s healthy and what’s not, and recommend effective solutions to provide lush, green grass. A healthy lawn is not just an attractive showpiece; rather, it provides tremendous environmental benefits. If you want to take the guesswork out of weed control, trained professionals like us can help.