In the South, weeds never really take a season off. Crabgrass and nutsedge take over in summer, and henbit, chickweed and annual bluegrass move in once warm-season grass goes dormant for the winter. Keeping a southern lawn clean takes a plan that runs all twelve months.
This site celebrates local lawn care companies doing great work, and one of our first spotlights goes to GrassRoots Turf. The family-owned company is headquartered in Acworth, Georgia, and serves homeowners across Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina.
Their weed control service is backed by a Weed Free® Guarantee, and they're known for video-recording their treatments so homeowners can see exactly what was done on each visit.
Here's how weed control works through the year in a southern lawn.
Late winter: stop crabgrass before it starts
Crabgrass seeds sprout once soil temperatures hold around 55 degrees. Across much of the Southeast, that's late February to mid March. Pre-emergent needs to be down before then, because it works by stopping seeds as they germinate. Once crabgrass is up, pre-emergent won't touch it.
Spring: spot-treat what breaks through
No pre-emergent stops everything. As the lawn greens up, broadleaf weeds like dandelion, clover and wild violet show up and need targeted post-emergent treatment. Many programs add a second round of pre-emergent in late spring to extend crabgrass control into summer.
Summer: nutsedge and grassy weeds
Nutsedge is the bright green, fast-growing weed that pokes above the lawn a day or two after mowing. It thrives in wet spots and hot weather, and it needs products made specifically for sedges. Pulling it by hand usually leaves the underground nutlets behind, so it comes right back.
Fall: the second pre-emergent
This is the step many homeowners miss. Winter weeds like annual bluegrass (poa annua), henbit and chickweed sprout in fall, grow all winter while Bermuda and zoysia are brown, and set seed in spring. A fall pre-emergent, usually in September, stops most of them.
Winter: clean up dormant lawns
Dormant warm-season lawns make winter weeds easy to spot. A winter post-emergent treatment cleans them up before they go to seed.
Grass type changes everything
Southern lawns aren't all the same. A product that's safe on Bermuda can damage St. Augustine or centipede. A good lawn care company identifies your grass type first and chooses products that are safe for it.
Questions to ask a lawn care company
- When will my spring and fall pre-emergents go down?
- Do you guarantee weed control between scheduled visits?
- Which products are safe for my grass type?
- How do you treat nutsedge?
- How will I know what was applied on each visit?
A company with clear answers, and a guarantee behind them, is one you can trust with your lawn.