Lawn Care Blog

Don’t wake up on the wrong side of your lawn this spring, opening your eyes to a crabgrass forest. If you’re worried about crabgrass, start paying attention to it now, so you won’t be scowling at it later. Certainly, crabgrass is ever-present in the lawn, especially during warmer months, but it’s always in a different stage. Rarely is the entire lawn full-grown crabgrass, because individual seeds are different in size, depth and germination time. As the weather gets warmer, crabgrass begins to emerge. According to researchers at the University of Maryland, the minimum daytime soil temperature for the first sighting of crabgrass is 54 degrees. Soil temperature has to be between 60-70 degrees for major crabgrass growth.

Harford County lawns can see 54-degree soil temperature as early as March. Short of taking painstaking temperature measurements, you can take the advice of Harford County lawn care services and watch for weeds to grow next to sidewalks, patios and driveways. Soil next to concrete gets warmer more quickly, and seeds often get lodged between the concrete edges. Once crabgrass begins to sprout here, you can be sure the rest of the lawn is not far behind. The earlier you apply a preventer or pre-emergent, the better chance you have of staying ahead of the crabgrass. However, the earlier you apply, the earlier it will wear off, so be aware that two or three applications might be required during the season.

Finally, if you have thin or bare patches in your lawn, be sure to seed it first so the new seeds can take hold. Crabgrass preventer has to be applied after seeding.

The biggest mistake that I see homeowners making on there lawncare is timing of the applications. Even though you may have the best of intention, and done your research, the application ends up going down late due to normal delays such as weather, prior commitments, equipment failure, etc.  Most lawn care products are time sensitive and will not work properly if applied out of the designated window of opportunity.  Crabgrass and weed control are the two best examples.

One of the best ways to alleviate this problem is to hire a reputable lawn care provider that specializes in treating lawns with fertilizers and pesticides.  This company will need to be state certified in the areas pertaining to your needs. They should also have a clear, definitive plan of what they are going to apply and when they will be applying it.  All of this information should be made available to you before a service agreement is reached.

 

HillSide Lawn Service is a Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvania States certified company.  We have six certified applicators working for us making applications and recommendations for over 3000 customers in the tri-state area.  We are very good at getting our timing right, and we also use tested products at the correct rates.  This all adds up to you getting the best looking lawn available at a competitive price. Call us today to have a free estimate and start service before the lawn care curve is on the downslope!  

Just to be sure that we all know what mature crabgrass looks like, I thought I would post these late July pictures of crabgrass reaching maturity.  Two of these pics show the plant in mulch beds, unscathed by a mower, you can see the true size and shape of the unsightly lawn weed. Notice how the runners are creeping out onto the sidewalk, just like it creeps through your lawn.  All of these runners will put out seedheads, which will produce next year's crop of this invasive, annual grassy weed.  If you have crabgrass in your lawn, call HillSide Lawn Service for a free lawn analysis and a plan to get rid of your crabgrass for good.