Controlling And Getting Rid Of Quackgrass Takes Persistence But It Can Be Done Here’s How To Kill The Invasive Perennial Before It Takes Over Your Lawn
Despite its whimsical name, quackgrass is a formidable enemy that can take over a lawn quickly. Its strong, deep root system can grow into separate plant clumps if split, and no selective herbicide will kill it while leaving your lawn unaffected. Thats why quackgrass also known as couch grass, twitch, quick grass, quitch grass, dog grass, scutch grass and witchgrass is considered one of the hardest weeds to eradicate.
Quackgrass is a large nuisance in home lawns because it is tough to get rid of, says Drew Wagner of Sod Solutions. Removing this grass requires persistence and frequent inspection.
If you spot clumps of quick-sprouting grass that is taller than your turf, with broad rough leaves and thick white roots, you may have a quackgrass invasion. Read on to learn how to identify this aggressive invader and eradicate it for good.
How To Remove And Prevent Moss In Lawns
- Pin
Moss is one of the most common and most annoying of all lawn weeds. Moss seems to plague any lawn areas that are shady and dampprecisely those areas where desirable turf grass seem shy about growing thick and full. There are many thousands of species of moss, but they are all relatively primitive plants with tiny leaves that are only a single cell thick. Rather than seeds, these plants reproduce through spores, and because mosses are structurally much different than vascular weeds, they do not respond to the same control methods. Many mosses have existed almost unchanged for millions of years, which is an indication of how adaptable and tenacious they are.
Mosses are very shallow-rooted plants, so immediate removal is not particularly hard. But permanent control of moss is mostly about changing the cultural conditions that favor their growth.
Working Time: 15 minutes to 100 hours
Total Time: 1 day to 1 year
Skill Level: Intermediate
Material Cost: $0 to $1,000
Can You Eliminate Tall Fescue Clumps By Digging Them Out
Yes, you can get rid of tall fescue clumps by digging. Herbicides can be toxic to your health, pets, or children. Also, you can harm your lawn with weed killers. If you want to stay away from glyphosate, digging out the tall fescue clumps is a good alternative.
You can use a shovel to dig at least 3 inches into the soil. The roots of the weed grow deep in the soil. Thus, you may need gloves since vigorous pulling is needed to extract the clumps. After removing the weed clump, refill the hole with soil and seed the space with grass.
Also Check: Best Time To Apply Turf Builder
Fescue Grass : What It Is And How To Grow It
Fescue is a perennial grass thats known for being climate-tolerant and a popular choice among northern homeowners. Read our guide to learn what you can expect when you grow a fescue lawn.
Fescue is known as cool-season grass with heat, cold, and drought tolerance. The grass is a popular selection for homeowners in the northern part of the country but is well-suited for areas that experience both warm and cool seasons.
Tall fescue is a low-maintenance grass with a signature bunch-forming growth pattern that rarely requires dethatching. Fescues deep roots are efficient in drawing nutrients out of your soil, and as a result, the grass typically requires less fertilizer than other cool-season grasses. To learn more about fescue grass characteristics, growing patterns, and care, read our guide to decide if its right for your yard.
About Tall Fescue Weeds
Tall fescue was introduced to North America by European settlers who planted it to provide hardy, nutritious forage for livestock. Since the plant remains green even in dry conditions, it was widely planted in the 1990s to replace thirsty Kentucky bluegrass in drought-ravaged regions.
Tall fescue weeds are opportunistic, popping up in disturbed habitats, including along roadsides and railroad tracks, in pastures and abandoned fields, and sometimes along streambanks. It tolerates a wide range of soils and moisture conditions.
Although it was initially planted with only the best intentions in mind, tall fescue has naturalized into many parks and other public areas in the United States and southern Canada, where it competes with native species. It is considered an invasive species in many regions.
You May Like: Flying Ants In Grass
You Can Get Money For Letting Your Lawn Die If You Have A Plan
The Metropolitan Water Districts Turf Replacement Program pays $2 a square foot for up to 5,000 square feet of lawn converted to approved water-wise uses in residential front or back yards , and some local agencies offer an additional rebate on top of that, which could mean a bigger payout once your work is completed and approved.
In recognition of the water crisis, MWD has extended the deadline to get lawns removed and new water-wise plants installed, Kimitch said. In the past, such programs typically required the work be completed within 90 days, but the deadline has been extended to six months for people who have already applied to remove their lawns and up to a year for new applicants.
Get paid to tear out your lawn
-
How much will you get? $2 a square foot for up to 5,000 square feet for residential front or back yards and the same for up to 50,000 square feet of commercial landscaping.What are the deadlines? Six months to complete the lawn removal if youve already applied. New applicants get a year to finish.How do you apply? On the MWD website
That means people can let their lawns die this summer, she said, and then start planting in the fall or winter, when cooler temperatures and seasonal rains make it easier for plants to settle into their new surroundings.
These grasses are really, really drought-tolerant, Becker said, and require little mowing, maybe two or three times a year, if people want to create a meadow area in their yards.
Choking Out Bermuda Grass Weeds
Its possible to choke out Bermuda grass from your lawn by mulching. This is best done using landscaping fabric. Alternatively, you can smother the Bermuda grass root system using a piece of cardboard.
To get rid of Bermuda grass naturally, go for the choking method. In general, there are two great ways of doing this as described below:
Using landscaping fabric
Mulching ensures that your wanted plants have access to moisture and nutrients.
Monitoring on a regular basis prevents the spreading of Bermuda weeds, which usually happens especially in instances where the installation of the fabric sheet wasnt done properly.
You should, therefore, contract a lawn expert if you arent sure of the correct way to go about covering your lawn with landscaping fabric.
The Bermuda grass root growth should be contained within two months by the dense landscaping fabric.
Using pieces of cardboard
This is another effective sheet-mulching technique. The barrier created by the cardboard pieces over the Bermuda grass turf denies the unwanted plant of the sunlight that it needs for photosynthesis.
Don’t Miss: How To Make Lines When Cutting Grass
Why Moss Grows In Lawns
There are many reasons why moss appears in a turf-grass lawn, all of them cultural:
- Low soil pH
- Low nutrient levels in the soil
- Poor drainage and damp soil
- Excessive shade
- Compacted soil
It should be noted that these conditions are precisely those that make it hard to grow desirable turfgrasses. Thus, one of the best means of moss prevention is to create conditions where grass can thrive. While it’s possible to temporarily eliminate the moss growing in your lawn, it will only reappear unless you identify and correct the conditions favorable to its growth.
What Is The Wide Blade Grass In My Lawn
Wide grasses are a bummer, arent they? This is true much more than it should be really, but we all seem to love uniform lawns.
Luckily, we can find assistance from a very unlikely source
Legendary military General and Author, Sun Tzu , once said:
To defeat your enemy, you must KNOW your enemy
A bit dramatic perhaps, but the Chinese proverb holds true.
Identifying the grass youre dealing with will help you come up with your assault strategy. As noted in a study done by researchers at the University of Minnesota, St. Paul, identifying grasses without floral parts can be a challenge even for the experienced restorationist or botanist.
The good thing for us as home or land owners is the relatively short list of likely suspects. These once recognized will more than likely constitute the vast majority of grasses found in residential to light agricultural settings.
Also Check: How Much Does It Cost To Have Your Yard Mowed
Tips To Help Eliminate Ryegrass While And After Mowing:
- Do a thorough mow, maintaining your cutter to a minimum of not more than two inches above the ground. A thorough mow only covers a significant step to help you eliminate it.
- Do not relent and mow again as soon as new shoots appear this will inhibit the progressive growth and place you towards eliminating the ryegrass.
- Stop watering the ryegrass for over 14 days since mowing it. Note that ryegrass takes in so much water, and you should notice a decline in progressive growth for lack of it. Take advantage of summers to deny the water, and you should compound your elimination ability or ryegrass.
- Use physical inhibitors- nylon sheets, especially black ones. They compound the terrestrial heat while placed on lawns with ryegrass. Typically, the layer covering reduces the photosynthesis process slowing down on the thriving ability of the grass.
Best Fungicides For Lawns
Anna Brown
Have you noticed dark, brown, yellow, or white areas on your lawn? Those might be signs of lawn fungus.
Keep reading for advice on how to recognize the lawn fungal disease and for my list of the best fungicides for lawns.
Just like tomatoes and other garden plants, lawn grass can also be affected by a great variety of harmful fungal pathogens.
Any lawn will naturally contain many types of fungi. However, the majority of them will never cause any problems.
Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. This means that the owner of this website might be compensated for any qualifying purchases made via these links.
Contents
In Lawn Care, Sod Varieties by Palmers TurfNovember 4, 2017
Proper fertilization, mowing and watering helps fescue lawns withstand disease. It is always better to perform proper maintenance to prevent diseases than use fungicides.
Fescue yards are subject to four common diseases, including:
1. PYTHIUM BLIGHT This occurs late in the spring when there are hot days, warm nights and plenty of rain. A white growth will begin at the edge of a dead patch. It is commonly seen on lawns which have had too much seed planted in the fall or spring. Too many new seedlings allow the disease to kill large patches. Fertilizing heavily in the late spring causes verdant growth for the fungus to grow on. Pythium blight can be controlled with fungicides. Controlling it by careful seeding and fertilizer is better.
Don’t Miss: Murry Lawn Mower Part
Lawn Fungus Types: What To Look For
What is brown patch? How serious is root rot? The following are two of the most common diseases that are likely to develop on warm-weather lawns. Do keep in mind that there is a wide variety of fungal diseases that can affect your lawn. If you arent quite sure whats wrong with your lawn, call a lawn care company to help diagnose the problem.
Read Also: What Kills Creeping Charlie Weeds
How Do You Get Rid Of Fescue Grass
- May 1, 2022
Spray the fescue grass clumps with glyphosate, found in many common herbicides, in early spring when it first starts growing. This helps kill it quickly before bluegrass starts growing normally. Damage to the rest of the grass should be minimal.Jul 18, 2017
Answer: The most effective method to eradicate the wide blade fescue is to stop the seed from turning into a plant. The best way to achieve this is by taking care of your garden daily. Other than that, you can also use herbicides to keep the wide blades fescue away.
Also Check: Does Trugreen Mow Lawns
Identify The Tall Fescue Clumps
Tall fescue identification will help you use the correct products and methods, which can save you time and money. So, how does tall fescue look like?
Tall fescue is a dark green weed that spreads via the seeds and stem. It germinates during the cool periods.
The stem can produce other small stems, and the roots depth ranges between 2-3 feet.
Tall Fescue
Wait Until The Fescue Begins To Die Off And Then Pull It Out By Hand
After wiggling the brush around the inside of the clump, you can simply wait for two or three days until it starts to turn brown.
If you wait for a day or two, the clump will turn brown. In the photograph above, you can see that we managed to kill the fescue off without damaging the surrounding lawn.
After two or three days, the fescue will begin to die off and its roots will weaken.
As a result, you can either pull it out by hand or simply wait for it to wither away.
Also Check: How Much For Trugreen
Are Tall Fescues Wanted In A Lawn
Tall fescues have been the subject of much improvement and breeding. The resulting turf types make a good lawn if they comprise 100 percent of the lawn. However, when the pasture-type tall fescues invade a bluegrass lawn, you may note that the clumps are tougher and the lawn mower has difficulty cutting them. The tall fescue clumps often green up earlier in spring than the surrounding bluegrass.
Is It Tall Fescue And If So How Do I Get Rid Of It #333410
Asked June 17, 2016, 2:16 PM EDT
Hi – My name is Eric and I live in Clarkston/Waterford on Lake Oakland. We moved here 13 months ago and enjoy living on the lake. However, our back yard has what appears to be two types of grass growing in it. It looks like some type of Kentucky Blue and then, at first what I thought was crab grass but what I now think is tall fescue . Would love a professional’s opinion.
From what I think I know, the only way to get rid of the fescue is to kill it with something like Roundup Weed and Grass Killer. After it’s dead I’d rake it up the best I could, lay down a layer of dirt, then seed, straw, and water.
So, here come the questions!
- Is it tall fescue?
- Agree to kill to get rid of it and seed with some sort of Kentucky blend? Any other recommendations?
- OK to use Roundup near the lake?
- Is it OK to fertilize near the lake? I try not to fertilize hoping that the water drawn from the lake has enough nutrients to feed the lawn.
The Kentucky portion of the lawn needs a little help too. From what I can tell we had grubs last year . I’ve treated recently with Scott’s Season Long Grub control but would like to transition to Milky Spore. OK to use that around the lake? Also, the ground seems a little compacted so I think I might aerate.
Would love a little turf advice.
Oakland CountyMichigan
You May Like: Scotts Disease Ex Label
How To Remove Fescue Grass Without Resetting Your Entire Lawn
In this guide, we are going to show you how to remove fescue grass from your lawn without doing a full reset.
Fescue grass will often appear on your lawn in clumps. These clumps can look unsightly. Furthermore, they will usually grow at a much faster rate than the rest of your lawn.
The problem with fescue is that many species of the grass have deep roots. As a result, it can be difficult to pull them out by hand.
Spraying the entire lawn with a herbicide is also out of the question. This is because any chemical that kills fescue will also kill other types of grass.
Therefore, we need to be smart about it.
Spectracide Immunox Fungus Plus Insect Control For Lawns
Spectracide Immunox Fungus Plus is another effective fungicide for lawns and turfs.
Besides protecting your lawn from dangerous funguses, this product has insecticide properties and will also kill the lawn-harmful insects such as ants, fleas, brown dog ticks, sod webworms, and others.
Another advantage of Spectracide Immunox Fungus Plus is that it cannot be easily washed away by rain once you apply it.
I usually use a garden sprayer to apply the fungicide, but this particular product can be directly connected to the water hose. Theres no need to manually dilute it with water since that will be done automatically once the water reaches the bottle.
While I love its design, the fact that you dont need an additional sprayer and the easiness with which you can apply the liquid fungicide, the recipient can clear fairly quickly.
Thus, if you decide to choose this product, you should probably consider ordering multiple bottles in order to have enough fungicide to repeat the treatment after two weeks as its stated in the instructions.
Spectracide Immunox Fungus Plus can prevent and control a large spectrum of grass diseases caused by fungi.
As this product is intended particularly for lawns, I would not recommend its use for the garden, vine or fruit trees without confirmation from the manufacturer.
- PROS
Also Check: How To Get Rid Of Violets In My Lawn
