Ask a Lawn Care Specialist: How To Deal With Weeds?!?

Spring is glorious with it's bounty of growth and abundance of life in every nook and cranny. While we can all enjoy the beauty of spring, it can be hard to overlook the fact that weeds are soon going to choke out the grass that we want to dig our toes into as soon as possible.

Read on to find out what to expect with warmer seasons in lower Virginia, Chesapeake Bay and nearby areas. Also, we're going to ask our lawn professionals at LawnCraft Lawn Care what they think are the most prevalent weeds in the spring and what we can do to keep them from overtaking our turf.

"Spring: the music of open windows." – Terri Guillemets

According to WeedAlert.com, there are 8 main perpetrators of un-permissed habitation in the Virginia region, namely:

• Dandelion

• Chickweed

• Plantain

• Crab grass

• Wood Sorrell

• Thistle

• Down Brome

• Geranium

I asked our chief lawn care specialist, Brian, which are the three worst and how he deals with them. Read on for our tips and tricks to a weed-free yard, with an without pesticides.

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1. Chickweed

This controversial weed may be difficult to deal with- not only is it a rampant re-seeder, but is a hardy cool-weather plant that will easily survive to overgrow your spring garden every year. However, the nutritional benefits of this plant are a redeeming factor and it is entirely possible to simply pull the weeds as they crop up.

Assuming you have a natural backyard free of pesticide use, you can actually harvest the chickweed for use in delicious dishes such as a nutrient-rich chickweed pesto. A few handfuls is all you need! Henbit and dandelion greens also work well, all you need to do is replace the basil with your garden's bounty in any simple pesto recipe.

Another enticing chickweed use is as a salad green, simply throw it into your favorite salad recipe for a boost of vitamin C and extra texture.

For those with no interest in consuming their garden's weeds, the best organic option seems to be temperature-related. Increasing the root temperature to over 180 degrees seems to efficiently kill all roots, though it will also damage your grass so be careful. One way to do this is to pour boiling water over the weed, in the center of the patch.

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2. Henbit

This plant is notorious for it's ability to quickly cover any available ground. S, the best way to combat this pest is by keeping your soil full of dense, healthy vegetation, including your turf. For those areas that can't be planted, make sure to use mulch to help keep the weeds from taking root.

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3. Dallisgrass

Dallisgrass is especially annoying, because of it's size and how fast is grows- twice as fast as turf grass. Pesticides would do work on these green monsters, but the best way to battle an aggressor like this is with good defense. Regular maintenance, such as aeration, fertilizing, and dense seeding, help keep your lawn strong enough to defend itself. The lushest lawns have no room for new growth, such as an invasive dallisgrass. If the pant does take root, simply pulling it out is the best environmentally-friendly way to remove it.

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If you are having a hard time with the weed growth on your Virginia Beach property, give the pros at Lawn Craft Lawncare a call, or go online to book now. Take care!