Crabgrass attack!

[roc_on_the_rocks]

This is my 4th year at this house but I’ve never seen crabgrass dominating so badly. The city rebuilt the road in front of my house in 2014 and they patched my lawn with sod (which never really picked up, turning out very spotty). I always had occasional crabgrass around, but never close to this level. By the pictures it's noticeable the difference from the sodded grass in comparison with my old grass. (yes, my old grass is infested with nutsedge really bad this year)

We had a very wet summer, which made weeds growing twice faster than grass. But, aside from my next door neighbor, the lawns nearby aren’t infested with crabgrass like mine.

I apply Scotts Turf Builder with Crabgrass Control in the spring every year (but I can’t really tell any difference). When the crabgrass started invading I sprayed Ortho Weed B Gon MAX® Plus Crabgrass Control. It was totally ineffective, barely browning some leaves.

Should I still do anything this year? (here’s southern Indiana, it gets subfreezing in the winter). Is there anything I should do to avoid this repeating next year? Will this crabgrass die in the winter? Or the seeds will germinate for next year?

Thanks in advance.

 

[WhiffySpark]

What kind of grass is that?

 

[bdamico]

I pull em.

 

[sixty4]

Remove whatever crabgrass you have now and reseed. Perfect time to do this. Just did the same this weekend. I had 4 good patches as well. This came in handy.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Fiskars-Uproot-Weed-Remover-78706935J/202681983

 

[roc_on_the_rocks]

What kind of grass is that?

I don't really know.

 

[Bobcat753]

I would try using Round Up. Also it helps to put fertilizer with crab grass control once in the spring and once mid summer. If the Round Up won't kill it you are left with hand pulling the stuff or digging it out.

 

[roc_on_the_rocks]

It's quite an area to be pulling them by hand or tool.

Given that the grass in that stretch is weak, should I spray Roundup and seed new grass?

If that's the case, what's the preferred grass for Southern Indiana? Kentucky Bluegrass?

 

[Scoty]

Trying to control one type of grass in another grass can be difficult. You could kill everything in that area, wait the appropriate amount of time and reseed before fall. Make sure and use a good per-emergent next summer. Follow the directions for proper temps to apply. Too early in the spring and it won't be effective by the time the soil temps reach favorable crabgrass germination.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Pulling the crabgrass and reseeding is a good suggestion except that it is very hard to pull unless you saturate the sod !

There are only 2 chemicals that are effective on actively growing crabgrass, quinclorac and mesotrione. Of course glyphosate (Round Up) works also.

This is the time of year when crabgrass is at it worst, because it likes hot weather and then some moisture. Even though I have a lawn fertilizer weed control company they do not spray those chemicals unless you specifically complain about crabgrass. I did, but they said I would have to wait 2 weeks, so I decided to try something different



Get up close and personal with each crabgass plant and give them 2-4 shots each. Wait 2-4 days and repeat. I have had fantastic results !

For best results water the area the day before and the day after.

The active ingredients are the same as Weed-B-Gone Max Plus, but it is less than 1/2 the cost.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Make sure and use a good per-emergent next summer.

Pre-emergents must be applied in early spring.

 

[LS6 Tommy]

Another vote for pre emergent next spring. Just don't try to put any seed down at the same time or for about a month after. Avoid combo herbacides & fertilizers. "Feed killers" are often more trouble than good.

Tommy

 

[Stinger]

I do all the normal methods and then just pull whatever sneaks through the cracks of all of the treatments. I try to catch them when they are small and easier to pull.

With that said, nutsedge is the worst weed I've ever dealt with. I've found NOTHING that works well enough to stay ahead of it. Seems to get worse every year no matter what I do. I've went as far as to apply roundup to the individual nutsedge blades with a glove (rubber glove inside to keep it off my hands) and while it did work at killing what was visible, a million more popped up all over.

 

[Farmall450]

I do all the normal methods and then just pull whatever sneaks through the cracks of all of the treatments. I try to catch them when they are small and easier to pull.

With that said, nutsedge is the worst weed I've ever dealt with. I've found NOTHING that works well enough to stay ahead of it. Seems to get worse every year no matter what I do. I've went as far as to apply roundup to the individual nutsedge blades with a glove (rubber glove inside to keep it off my hands) and while it did work at killing what was visible, a million more popped up all over.

Ortho makes a little bottle of concentrate just for Nutsedge / Creeping Charlie (Jenny) etc. As aforementioned, Quinclorac and preemergents are your only options.

 

[Kin Creed]

Strengthen the lawn in that area and soak the individual crabgrass clumps with a lot of quinclorac or other crabgrass killer. I just use weed b gone with crabgrass control which I think contains quinclorac. A real soaking will eventually knock out the clump. Each plant creates a lot of seeds which is why you need to kill all of them, otherwise they just multiply.

It took me a few years to knock out my crabgrass, but I finally have the upper hand. Still need to use a pre emergent plus kill the clumps that do apper in summer, which there are always some that show up. The key is to kill them off as quickly as you can before they spread their seeds. They do die in the winter, but somehow the seeds are left behind and seem to cause problems the next year.

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[Firebrick43]

How high are you mowing. A lot of people around here that have crab grass issue now to close which prevents a good thick folate and equally important root system. Should t mow closer than 3.5 - 4". A thick lawn will do more to prevent most weeds and many times eliminate the need for much fertilizer. Remember that whatever height you mow on top is what depth the roots will die back to. Shallow roots causes less water and nutrient intake as well as high heat stress allow other plants to compete

 

[ct01r]

Bayer makers a weed killer that includes something for crabgrass. It's pretty effective on my lawn. If I have a bad problem with crabgrass, I usually try to spray the Bayer a day or so before we get a good soaking rain. That way the crabgrass is on the way out, and the lawn has a chance to recover. I've used it throughout the summer with generally good results. Curt

 

[Kaizen]

The answers are all above. preemergent, pull what you can, mow high.
Problem with crabgrass is at this point they probably have seeds already....so when you mow or pull you disperse them.......aka planting crabgrass.
in my area if we have a lot of snow the crabgrass starts growing before all the snow is gone. so putting it down after the seed has germinated is useless. course scotts don't tell you that and everyone mindlessly does it.
Moving your grass as high as possible keeps sun from getting to a lot of weed seeds so they don't grow. I have my tractor at 4 inches. push mowers usually max at 3 if you're lucky.
if you have those seeds hanging on the crabs i'd wait till next year and stop wasting your money. all about timing.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Moving your grass as high as possible keeps sun from getting to a lot of weed seeds so they don't grow. I have my tractor at 4 inches. push mowers usually max at 3 if you're lucky.

TRUE !

Especially when summer heat arrives, move to the highest setting you can. This encourages thick grass which helps control other weeds.

 

[laser3kw]

Should t mow closer than 3.5 - 4". A thick lawn will do more to prevent most weeds and many times eliminate the need for much fertilizer.

pretty much what everyone is saying is long term planning is the key. What you prepare now is what you will get next year.
Eradicate now, reseed, let grow to a healthy length, per-emergent next spring.
If you re seed, break the soil up, lay seed, rake in and cover. Use hay or such to cover. I let my lawn grow long and then use the clippings to cover. Grass seed doesn't do well in direct sunlight.
Also about crabgrass germination:

Soil Temperature: Research says that crabgrass begins to germinate when the average daily soil temperatures reach 57 to 64 °F at a one-inch depth although large quantities of crabgrass seedlings will not start germinating until soil temperatures increase to 73 °F or above at a one-inch depth

I have a meat thermometer and have checked my soil temperature. If you were to read into the above quote, you would want to put down your per-emergent before you reach those temps.

 

[theoldwizard1]

With that said, nutsedge is the worst weed I've ever dealt with. I've found NOTHING that works well enough to stay ahead of it.

The Spectracide Weed and Crabgrass spray CLAIMS to control nutsedge, but I am very skeptical ! I had one area on lawn were I gave up fitting the nutsedge and just sprayed Round Up. Nutsedge pop back up within 1-2 weeks. Sprayed AGAIN. This time it took over 2 weeks, but it started to come back. Sprayed a third time the week before the new sod was installed. Trying to keep ahead of it by pulling individual blades (easily identified because the grow fast and are much yellower than blue grass),

Try Sedgehammer herbicide.

 

[Radix2]

I would say based on your results so far that what you have is probably not actual crabgrass.

Crabgrass is an annual, and starts from seed each season - hence the effectiveness of pre emergents that prevent germination. It also has a slight difference that allows selective herbicides to kill them without killing the perennial grasses.

Given that neither of those treatments work, I think it is likely that you don't have crabgrass, but instead some unsightly breed of perennial grass. Most sods are started from a mixture of types, with the final lawn produced by the types best suited to the spot.

Tough to get rid of one bad type that seems to like the area.

You can try changing the environment to better favor your good grass - different mowing height, more or less water, trim for more sun... Or kill the area off and try starting over and hopefully that stuff won't show up again.

 

[Professur]

Fire. Fire always works.

 

[lowflyn]

The Spectracide Weed and Crabgrass spray CLAIMS to control nutsedge, but I am very skeptical ! I had one area on lawn were I gave up fitting the nutsedge and just sprayed Round Up. Nutsedge pop back up within 1-2 weeks. Sprayed AGAIN. This time it took over 2 weeks, but it started to come back. Sprayed a third time the week before the new sod was installed. Trying to keep ahead of it by pulling individual blades (easily identified because the grow fast and are much yellower than blue grass),

Try Sedgehammer herbicide.

Roundup (glyphosate) does not kill any nutsedge. All you'll do is piss it off. Image/certainty/solitare/dismiss. Anything to kill nutsedge is not cheap...

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[Burl]

Zoysia grass is the answer. It takes a few years, but NOTHING bad grows in it, no weeds, crabgrass, NOTHING.

 

[rjacobs]

Lesco crabgrass pre-emergent once in the spring and again once temps drop below 90. Crabgrass will go dormant above 90 degrees, but once it drops down below 90, game on, so gotta get that pre-emergent back down again in late summer/early fall.

The Lesco stuff uses a chemical called dimension which is a great pre-emergent and a so-so active growth killer, but its one of the only pre-emergents which will do both.

The twice a year application seems to keep the crab grass under control in my yard down here in Dallas.


Also, lets stop discussing nutsedge...otherwise mine will start to grow again.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Lesco crabgrass pre-emergent once in the spring and again once temps drop below 90. Crabgrass will go dormant above 90 degrees ...

Not my experience ! Crabgrass seems to thrive above 90 while everything else dies out.

 

[veracassandre]

This is my 4th year at this house but I’ve never seen crabgrass dominating so badly. The city rebuilt the road in front of my house in 2014 and they patched my lawn with sod (which never really picked up, turning out very spotty). I always had occasional crabgrass around, but never close to this level. By the pictures it's noticeable the difference from the sodded grass in comparison with my old grass. (yes, my old grass is infested with nutsedge really bad this year)

We had a very wet summer, which made weeds growing twice faster than grass. But, aside from my next door neighbor, the lawns nearby aren’t infested with crabgrass like mine.

I apply Scotts Turf Builder with Crabgrass Control in the spring every year (but I can’t really tell any difference). When the crabgrass started invading I sprayed Ortho Weed B Gon MAX® Plus Crabgrass Control. It was totally ineffective, barely browning some leaves.

Should I still do anything this year? (here’s southern Indiana, it gets subfreezing in the winter). Is there anything I should do to avoid this repeating next year? Will this crabgrass die in the winter? Or the seeds will germinate for next year?

Thanks in advance.

I would have a go at utilizing Round Up. Additionally it puts manure with crab grass control once in the spring and once mid summer. On the off chance that the Round Up won't slaughter it you are left with hand pulling the stuff or uncovering it.

 

[sixty4]

It's quite an area to be pulling them by hand or tool.

Ok then rent a tiller rake the area and reseed. If you put down roundup you will have bare spots for a good long time, nothing will germinate. Ask me how I know.

 

[pepi]

Could be worse, could just have the crabs.

 

[gordo9742000]

I wouldnt even try fighting it until the cool weather. First frost will kill off crabgrass if that is what is. Then feed grass with a good fall fertilizer and follow up with a pre emergent in the spring. We are in the middle of a drought in Mass and the only thing that is growing is crabgrass. At least its green.

 

[rjacobs]

Not my experience ! Crabgrass seems to thrive above 90 while everything else dies out.

maybe I didnt word it correctly. Crabgrass seeds can not germinate above 90 degrees. Or the plant doesnt produce them. Something along those lines. So, depending on temperature, its not important to have a pre-emergent down and working(4 month life span) during periods where its 90+. Down here in Dallas I put it down around Feb 1st(protects me until June, when its usually 90+), and then I just put down another application today because temps are barely breaking 90 and getting into the 70's at night and ive seen evidence of some crab grass starting to grow. This application will get me through december when it will be cold enough that it goes dormant.

Of course the physical plant can and will grow, grows like a....weed into massive bushes that my neighbors dont take care of!

 

[Falcon67]

This is the only thing I've found so far that hurts crabgrass and nutsedge. Crabgrass ignores pre-emergent here, at least on my lawn.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/IMAGE-Cr...gclid=CK6Pivv_7s4CFQmUaQodRucANg&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[theoldwizard1]

Roundup (glyphosate) does not kill any nutsedge. All you'll do is piss it off.

HA !

 

[theoldwizard1]

This is the only thing I've found so far that hurts crabgrass and nutsedge. Crabgrass ignores pre-emergent here, at least on my lawn.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/IMAGE-Cr...gclid=CK6Pivv_7s4CFQmUaQodRucANg&gclsrc=aw.ds

Makes 3 gallons. $12.99 Not cheap !

 

[CJ7VFR]

Fire. Fire always works.

Don't laugh, but yes it does.

I can remember when I was a kid seeing all the old timers in our neighborhood lighting their yards on fire, a little bit at a time, with controlled burns.

These were mostly the older Italian guys, and they would stand there, with a glass of wine in one hand and the garden hose in the other, and burn their lawns and spray the hose on anything they didn't want to burn.

It worked very well, and I recall them having some of the most beautiful lawns in the area.

One funny thing I also saw every year was these guys would be outside talking to each other, drinking their wine and telling stories as they watched the grass burn. Anytime one of their wives would come outside one of the guys would always squirt the women with the hose!

Not much mind you, but every time all the guys would laugh and tell the wives to bring out more wine.

Jim

 

[theoldwizard1]

I can remember when I was a kid seeing all the old timers in our neighborhood lighting their yards on fire, a little bit at a time, with controlled burns.

You have to see the movie Fastest Indian !

 

[roc_on_the_rocks]

Thanks everyone for the good suggestions/comments, I much appreciate it.

Before we proceed any further, can someone please help confirming this is indeed crabgrass?

Yes, there's the nutsedge too

 

[DC73]

Most of the consumer grade products available at the big box stores etc are just not strong enough to be effective on crabgrass. I recommend Drive XLR8. You can order it online (Amazon, eBay, etc).

Not sure if it is safe for other grasses but it is safe for hybrid Bermuda, IF, you do not mix it stronger than the maximum rate AND IF you do not apply it too heavily in the same area. I completely solved a crabgrass problem this past spring with only one spraying but I also killed a bit of Bermuda because I forgot where I started and sprayed one area twice.

Nutgrass is a very different animal. Roundup will only kill the surface vegetation but will not touch the tubular root under the ground. At my last house, I finally got rid of the nutgrass by carefully digging up the root and some surrounding soil before replacing with new soil. I have heard that sugar used in connection with Image or another sedge killer can be effective but I am not sure how best to use the sugar. Need to do some research.

I'm sure some areas are different but around here, pre-emergents are recommended twice per year. Once in the early fall and again in early spring.

DC

 

[lowflyn]

It does appear to be crabgrass.

At this point in the growing season I would either kill the patches and reseed or using controlled methods (glove/sock) wipe each plant with glyphosate.

Plan your preemergent schedule for next year and stick with it.

I'll also tell you I have yet to find an effective preemergent for nutsedge. Just one of those necessary evils. I know in my area several stores (co-op, big box stores) carry small individual use packages to kill nutsedge. They aren't cheap but they work. It costs me well over $100/acre to spray for nutsedge and I buy products by the pallet.

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[theoldwizard1]

Most of the consumer grade products available at the big box stores etc are just not strong enough to be effective on crabgrass. I recommend Drive XLR8.

That is just quinclorac.