How to Get Rid of Weeds in Grass
Lawns are great. They’re beautiful. They’re fun to play on. You can enjoy the feel of lush grass beneath your toes. Everything about them is wonderful. Except the maintenance.
Taking care of a lawn is a lot of work, and one of the greatest plagues of any homeowner is the presence of weeds. No matter how diligent you are, they somehow find a way to persist. They spoil your otherwise pristine natural wonderland, and if you don’t attack them vigorously, they’ll eventually take over the whole yard.
How do you beat weeds? There are a lot of methods, and if you employ a couple of the best methods, you’ll find that weeds aren’t a big deal. You might have to take out the occasional unwanted growth, but the job is quite manageable. These are some of the best methods that we have found.
Pull Them
It’s the classic method. If you have weeds growing, you can use brute force and pull them out of the ground. If you manage to get the roots when you do this, they will struggle to ever return, and you can ultimately win this war.
Pulling weeds is one of the safest ways to get them out of the grass without damaging the lawn. On the other hand, it makes your back sore. If your weeds are prolific enough — or if they’re hard enough to pull manually — you might struggle with this tried and true method.
Use Natural Herbicides
A natural herbicide can save you a lot of back pain and eliminate weeds a lot faster and easier. If you find the right natural herbicide, you can spray it right on the lawn without killing the grass. For this, one of the better options is vinegar. Especially if you can find it with the acetic acid percentage above five, vinegar is great at killing weeds.
You do want to exercise caution. You can’t just dump gallons of vinegar on your lawn. In high concentrations, it will kill the grass too. But if you use light, targeted sprays specifically on the weeds, it will kill the weeds and leave the grass largely unscathed.
Use Engineered Herbicides
If the risks of vinegar concern you, there are herbicides that can be dumped on your grass without harming it. Engineered weed killers are designed to eradicate specific genomes of weeds without bringing any discomfort to the grass. They largely come in two types. You can get spot sprays that are sprayed directly on any weeds that you see. These tend to be a little stronger and are better for stubborn weeds that survive your other attempts to eliminate them.
The other method of herbicide delivery is through a mass lawn treatment. Whether a spray or packaged with a fertilizer, these weed killers go across the entire lawn and specifically go after weeds. They are probably the easiest way to get rid of most of your weeds.
Prevent Them
Then again, preventing weeds sounds a lot easier than dealing with them, and you have a lot of options to do this. Pre-emergent weed killers are your best friends. Pay attention when shopping. There are grass-friendly versions and versions that will not be good for your lawn. Make sure you get the right stuff.
Assuming you do, the pre-emergent killers will prevent the weed seeds from germinating. The weeds never pop up, and your life is much easier. Check the label. You usually want to apply the pre-emergent stuff once a year (most often in the spring) for the best results. Some might have you reapply throughout the year.
Pre-emergent killers prevent the vast majority of weeds from taking root. The few that get past this method will be easy to handle.
There is a second way to prevent weeds from growing, and that is by keeping your grass healthy. If your grass has a strong root system, it will dominate the soil and choke out most weeds. In addition, you can mow a little higher. This prevents the weed seeds from getting enough sunlight to sprout.
Get Pro Help
None of these things have to be strictly DIY. You can call on pros to help you manage your weeds. They can recommend the best tools. They can also install automated systems that help you maintain a healthy, weed-free lawn that works well. Whatever your lawn needs in Fort Worth, you can find professional care with Clearfork Lawn Care. We’ve been in this business for years, and we know how to make North Texas lawns thrive. Give us a call. We’ll discuss options and help you find the best path forward to have the lawn you’ve always wanted.