As fall approaches, many people are thinking of lawn maintenance required to prepare for the cooler temperatures – leaf removal, final mowing before dormancy of warm season grasses, equipment repairs and maintenance and other end of season tasks. But as any turfgrass manager knows, fall is the time to get ahead of spring weeds.
Pre-emergent herbicides are a great option in the fall as many spring weeds are germinating (dandelion, henbit, chickweed), and the ever-troublesome annual bluegrass is best controlled with a pre-emergent in the fall and a repeat application in the spring.
It is always key to identify your lawn weeds, understand when germination occurs, and use only products that are labelled for use on the turfgrass variety you are treating. When all of those factors are in line, an early attack can be the best line of defense with stubborn lawn weeds.
Proper cultural practices are also important year-round in the fight against weeds. Be sure your mowing, irrigation, fertilization and cultivation are always properly executed to help alleviate weed pressure.