Weed Control

Weeds detract from the beauty of lawns due to the contrast in color and texture between the desired grass plants and the weeds. In addition, weeds compete with the desired grass plants for available water and nutrients, usually resulting in thinning of desirable plant cover.

Lawn weeds may conveniently be divided into two classes based on the way in which they emerge from the seed. Monocots emerge with a single seed leaf whereas dicots emerge with two seed leaves. Most monocot weeds found in turf-grass are termed weedy grasses. Examples include crabgrass, annual bluegrass, tall fescue, and quack-grass. Dicots, on the other hand, are termed broadleaf weeds and include such plants as dandelion, clover, ground ivy, knotweed, and plantain. The most common weeds are listed below:


Weeds
	Common Chickweed is a winter annual that tends to be mat-forming when mature. The leaves are opposite with no hairs and tend to be oval in shape. A vertical line of hairs can often be observed along stems. Flowers are white and are in small clusters at the end of stems.

Dandelion is a hardy perennial with a thick, fleshy taproot and no stem. Leaves grow in a rosette from the crown. They are long, narrow, irregularly lobed, and lance shaped. The lobed tips are often opposite each other and pointing toward the crown. Leaves are often purple at the base and emit a milky latex when broken. The deep golden yellow flowers are borne in heads on long hollow stalks. Blossoms soon mature into spherical clusters of whitish fruits, like white puffballs, composed of parachute-like seeds. The seeds are carried by the wind.


	Ground Ivy is a perennial with creeping stems which root at the nodes. It forms dense patches and thrives in the sun and shade. The leaves are round, scalloped along the margin, heavily veined and rough on the upper surface. Leaves are borne opposite of each other on square-shaped stems. Funnel-shaped blue to violet flowers are found in clusters in leaf axils and occur in the spring.


	Henbit is a very common winter annual that emerges in late summer or very early fall which is earlier than most winter annuals. This weed has small square stems and the flowers are reddish purple. Henbit branches freely from the base and has a slightly spreading growth habit.


	Musk Thistle Rosette is a member of the sunflower family and is a winter annual or biennial with erect, robust stems from a fleshy taproot. Leaves alternate, smooth, dark green with a light green midrib and a whitish margin. Leaves deeply dissected, each lobe having one to five spines at the tip. Flowers with spine-tipped bracts, deep pink to purple, rarely white, and arranged in nodding heads. It reproduces by seed.

	Wild Garlic is a perennial plant that grows through the cool part of the year. It is one of the first winter weeds to emerge. This weed has an odor of garlic which develops from a basal bulb covered by a membranous coat. At maturity the bulb is covered with small yellowish bulbs, flattened on one side, which readily split apart. Leaves are hollow and round. The greenish pink to purplish flowers are borne in clusters at the stem tip and are often mixed among small greenish aerial bulbs. Wild Garlic is often mistaken for wild onion, which does not have hollow stems.

Grassy Weeds - Controllable


	Annual bluegrass is a light green bunch-type to slightly spreading winter annual weedy grass. Some subspecies exist which are classified as short-lived perennials (Poa annua ssp. reptans). These perennial types are particularly evident in bent grass golf greens.


	Crabgrass is tufted or prostrate summer annual with smooth leaves on both surfaces. A few hairs at the collar region. Smooth Crabgrass has a smooth leaf sheath that distinguishes it from Large Crabgrass, which has a hairy sheath.


	Dallisgrass is a clump-type perennial that has short thick rhizomes. The ligule is membranous and usually has a sharptip. A few long hairs can usually be found in the collar region. Dallisgrass also has a characteristic prominent mid-rib. This difficult to control perennial grass is very drought tolerant and is therefore more problematic in dry soils.

Nutsedge is an aggressive perennial and has one of the most prolific growth rates of any weed in the world. The tubers are dark colored, form in chains along rhizomes, are bitter to the taste and start to form in spring and proceed throughout the summer. The leaf tips are more blunt than yellow nutsedge. The seedhead is purple or dark red in appearance. It is one of the most difficult turfgrass weeds to control.


	Sandbur is a summer annual that has the characteristic seeds that are burs or spurs on a seeding stalk. Sandbur often has a reddish color at the base of the plant, particularly when in the seedling stage. As the name implies, sandbur is often found on sandy soils. Burs can be painful when touched.

Effective control of weeds in turf is based on correct identification. If you have a serious weed problem in your lawn, or simply need weed control in non-growing areas, The Arlington Lawn Ranger can help.

We Offer:

Turf Weed Control
Dandelions, crab-grass,
clover, chickweed, dallisgrass,
ground ivy, henbit)
Rock Areas (Rock bed applications to prevent all vegetation growth)
Garden Maintenance (Weed pulling in beds where there is a mix of desirable plants,
and weeds)

Call us today at (817) 709-1695 to set up an appointment for a free estimate and experience The Lawn Ranger difference!