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To its credit, crabgrass IS green. It does temporarily reduce CO2 and is a source of oxygen in the atmosphere. It is organic and adds humus to the soil. It can help deal with soil erosion. That being said, what is so BAD about crabgrass? Is its reputation really well deserved? We Have Met the Enemy, and He is Crabgrass! Well, in a word, crabgrass is awful. It's ugly in the way it grows. It's aggressive and crowds out everything around it that is desirable. It steals the nutrients from the more deserving plants. And it spreads what seems to be a billion seeds into the air that are light enough to be spread to the four corners of the earth on a mild breeze. It's also a source of great conflict among the neighbors who like caring for their lawns and those who don't. A big problem with crabgrass is that by the time you find it, it's generally too late to do anything about it. Oh sure, you can spray it with Roundup® weed killer, but the crabgrass always seems to be nestled next to your lawn treasures you don't want to risk harming. Unfortunately, there is no selective spray that singles it out for extermination. You're almost stuck with pulling each sprig of crabgrass individually by hand, which is not a happy solution. The Best Defense for Lawns? Proper Preparation. So, what to do? Many things, but all are in anticipation of the problem and not a cure. In lawns, the most important preventative is something you should be doing anyway: establish a proper lawn fertilizing regimen. One application in the early fall and three times in the spring, starting early, is a good start. Also use slow-release fertilizer every six weeks. This will thicken the grass so that the crabgrass seeds will not germinate. This works wonders even with a distressed lawn. Go back and over-seed or sod the bare areas of the yard in the fall or spring. In addition, you can use fertilizer that has crabgrass-preventer added to it. This is a substance that interferes with seed germination. It cannot be used if you are also reseeding your lawn. The "Weed and Feed" fertilizers WILL NOT WORK. They are only for broad-leaf weeds in the lawn. What About Flowerbeds and Non-Lawn Areas? In flowerbeds, and other non-lawn areas, you can use Preen® (or a similar product) that prevents the germination of seeds including crabgrass. It works well, but you have to put it down before the crabgrass starts growing, and it cannot be used in areas where you are trying to start anything else from seed. The use of Preen in strawberry beds is a godsend. Strawberry beds seem to attract crabgrass more than anything else, because the strawberry plants are spaced apart and their foliage is not dense enough to prevent germination. As a result, crabgrass spans the gaps between the plants and steals away valuable nutrients while devastating the bed. Preen virtually eliminates the frequent weeding that is necessary if you plan on having a bountiful strawberry harvest. One last thought. If it looks like you'll have no other effective options other than physically removing crabgrass by hand, do it now while it's young. If you wait until the crabgrass gets well established in the soil, not only will it be harder to remove, it will also slow the growth of other plants around it, not to mention causing a large mess after it is removed. By Neal Caldwell, Founder, Dalen Products |
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