Like a lot of homeowners, you are probably frustrated by the sight of weeds. For many, crabgrass is one of the most frustrating. Not only is this weed very difficult to control, but it is also common in our region and tends to spread like wildfire. It often doesn’t take long for a small crabgrass problem to become a big one!
That’s why crabgrass control is so important.
Of course, timing is a critical part of weed control schedules. Knowing when to kill crabgrass can help you succeed. At Lawn & Pest Solutions, we focus on a preventative approach, but we’re also ready to tackle whatever our clients face.
In this article, we’ll talk about some of the most important things you ought to know about crabgrass control timing, including when to apply products.
Most people are familiar with crabgrass. In fact, there’s a good chance you are reading this article because you found some in your lawn. Or, maybe you’re just trying to be proactive and prevent it from becoming a problem.
Either way, we love that you’re taking action.
Just in case you aren’t completely familiar with crabgrass, we’ll fill you in.
Crabgrass is a common grassy weed that frequently pops up in lawns in Northern Mississippi. Thanks to our warm climate, it can grow and spread easily. It begins germinating in the soil in spring, and if left unchecked, it usually really kicks into high gear in June and July.
As for appearance, this weed tends to form coarse clumps that protrude from your lawn because it grows taller and faster. It’s also typically lighter in color than the rest of your lawn. It may appear yellowish-greenish.
Crabgrass loves thin lawn areas and will easily invade them. Once crabgrass gets thick and strong, it can actually start to outcompete your lawn. Unfortunately, this leaves bare areas in its path that you have to fix later, or else they are continually vulnerable to crabgrass.
Like any other weed, crabgrass is an eyesore to homeowners. But the other major problem with crabgrass is that it can start to choke out your healthy turf. You do not want your healthy grass to be crowded out by crabgrass.
These are good reasons to implement effective crabgrass control.
Yes, you can definitely prevent crabgrass from growing in the first place…and that’s honestly the best way to tackle crabgrass control. Preventing crabgrass involves using a product called crabgrass pre-emergent (also called “crabgrass preventer”), which prevents crabgrass from germinating in the first place.
Crabgrass pre-emergent works by dissolving and forming a thin barrier at the soil surface, intercepting germinating crabgrass seeds. When the germinating seed comes into contact with the product, it stops growing. This prevents much crabgrass from growing in the first place.
Since crabgrass can be so difficult to control once it has germinated, we definitely emphasize the importance of preventing it with pre-emergent products.
But because these products work by inhibiting germination, they must be applied PRIOR to germination occurring. If this window is missed, you’ll have to shift entirely to a crabgrass control strategy using post-emergent products.
Knowing when to kill crabgrass will be important to your success.
The idea is to apply crabgrass pre-emergent products before it germinates. This is based on soil temperatures warming up. Since we tend to have early warm spells here in North Mississippi, we take a two-layer approach to be highly proactive.
At Lawn & Pest Solutions, we apply crabgrass pre-emergent in the January/February time frame and again in late March/early April.
As for when it’s too late to kill crabgrass? It’s never too late, since we have post-emergent crabgrass control products that kill the weed on contact. However, once crabgrass has germinated (or, when root growth begins taking place underground), it’s too late to prevent it from emerging fully when temperatures rise.
If you already have crabgrass growing in your lawn, some lawn care companies might tell you to just wait until next year to try to get it under control with a prevention strategy. But this is a differentiator for Lawn & Pest Solutions.
Even if crabgrass is already growing, we’ll help you attack it right away. While we may not get it as clean as we’d like in the first year (since we only treated it post-emergently), we still don't want you to wait a full season to tackle crabgrass control.
This prolific weed is only going to continue to grow and spread, becoming even more of a hassle and a headache for you! The crabgrass life cycle is one year, but during that time, it can cause major trouble.
After all, a single crabgrass plant can produce up to 75,000+ seeds.
These seeds will remain dormant in the soil until the ideal time for germination. That means that crabgrass can just keep coming back, even despite your best efforts to control it. This is one of the reasons crabgrass control is so challenging.
Ideally, you do want to focus on crabgrass prevention whenever possible.
But we know that life gets busy. People sometimes don’t think about weeds until they see them already growing.
Since crabgrass can be treated pre-emergently (preventing germination) and post-emergently (after germination), you can tackle this weed at any time.
As we’ve stressed, prevention is the best strategy for the most effective results.
Yes, crabgrass can be killed with a post-emergent crabgrass product.
Even if you did apply a pre-emergent product, breakthrough growth is still highly possible with this aggressive grower.
Breaks in the pre-emergent barrier, such as those caused by mowing/trimming, digging, dryness or cracking, or excessive rainfall, can lead to breakthrough crabgrass growth.
You can use post-emergents on any crabgrass that still did end up germinating and growing, even if you have used pre-emergents for prevention.
Weeds like crabgrass are a major source of frustration. They can be really difficult to get rid of, and you might find yourself in an endless cycle of trying different approaches that aren’t working. If you’ve tried to tackle crabgrass (or other lawn weeds) on your own, you might be ready to throw in the towel.
Instead of taking on the hassles and headaches of crabgrass control on your own, let a pro handle it for you.
Of course, if you’ve been searching for lawn care, you know your options are not limited. There are plenty of lawn services in Tupelo, Oxford, and New Albany, MS. The key is to find the best option for you!
While there are lots of companies that can help you fertilize your lawn or treat your weeds, you also want a company that is going to treat you right. You don’t want to have to make phone calls that go unanswered or work with a revolving door of technicians. You simply want to find a lawn care partner that you can trust.
You deserve this much when you are paying for their services.
At Lawn & Pest Solutions, we’re here to help. We know homeowners can become frustrated with lawn care companies if they’ve had past struggles. But we’ve built our company to be different.
If you have any questions, you can always reach out. Whether you choose our company or someone else, we want you to be happy with your decision.
Want to improve your lawn’s health and create a thicker, greener lawn that is more resistant to weeds? Lawn & Pest Solutions can help you with lawn care in North Mississippi. Get started today with a free quote. Together, we’ll customize a plan that gives you the most attractive lawn on the block.