Dandelion in lawn

Weeds in my lawn. Now what?


Since 01/01/2019, the sale of selective herbicides in the lawn or on driveways and paths is prohibited. There are acids, such as pelargonic acid, which 'burn' the leaves, the grass and the weeds. Personally, we are not in favour of this because it does not kill the root, and the weeds will therefore immediately start growing again. What does work, is to act preventively. Below you can find a three-step plan for avoiding weeds in the lawn 👇

1. Maintain your lawn! 🌿

In a well-maintained lawn, there are no bare spots where weeds can nestle. So the most important preventive measure is to maintain your existing beautiful lawn well!

You can do this by regularly fertilising the lawn and liming it if necessary. Do not lime just like that but ideally in the winter period so that it can be slowly absorbed by the soil. First of all, find out whether you need to lime at all by measuring the pH value of your soil. You can do this yourself with a pH meter or use a soil analysis test kit.

When fertilising, it is important not to just spread fertiliser, but to use a lawn fertiliser suited to each season:

  • In spring, you use a fertiliser with a higher nitrogen value so that the lawn gets a boost and can grow well.
  • In autumn, the lawn is just coming into rest and we want to cultivate a strong root system so that it is not susceptible to (fungal) diseases during the winter. For this, we need an autumn fertiliser with potassium.

Do you need help choosing the perfect fertiliser for your lawn? Then read this article.

2. Remove emerging weeds immediately! ☘️

Has the damage already been done and do you see the first weeds emerging? Remove them immediately to prevent them from spreading and the roots from multiplying underground. The sooner you get there, the easier it is to remove the weeds (including the root!). A handy tool for this is a traditional weed cutter but you can also use an asparagus cutter (multi-purpose 😉 ).

A weed burner is also an option, but we are not in favour of this. This may be easy, but you really need a high temperature to burn the roots as well, and this is usually achieved with a professional device but not with the devices that are offered for sale to private persons.

Do you have problems with clover in your lawn?

Then the product Clever off can help. It can also help combat light weeds and moss in the lawn. It is a selective product that consists of an amino acid and fertiliser. At a normal dosage, you can treat clover but by locally over-dosing, you can also locally treat light weeds (such as dandelions). However, this product is not effective on strong weeds (such as nettles). Always make sure that you avoid the grass during the treatment. Did you spray a part of the lawn anyway? Then use water immediately so that the product washes away.

You will see immediate results with the Clever off. The leaves of the clovers will close and after three hours the clovers and weeds will turn brown. After four hours, treat with water. Repeat the treatment several times a year to exhaust the root system of the weeds. Use Clever off at a sunny moment when rain is ideally predicted for the next day, or irrigate the day after. This product works best in combination with a nitrogen-rich fertiliser, so the day after you can spread a fertiliser such as Lawn Booster.

3. Re-seed bald spots! 🌱

Any damage in your lawn (e.g. bare spots) is a potential germination place for weed seeds and street grass. These damages can be caused by the removal of weeds or extreme dryness such as the summers of recent years.

Street grass (Poa annua) is an annoying weak grass plant that can also be considered a weed. Often dropped into your garden by birds, street grass grows much faster than regular grass and makes your lawn look less attractive. Don't do anything about it? Then it will spread at an alarming rate. Street grass dies of drought or severe frost much quicker than regular grass. The problem, however, is that the street grass has often already produced new seed for the coming year. The existing paving grass may die off, but it will cause a lot of trouble the next year. This creates new bare spots where weeds and street grass can germinate, grow and flower.


Marcel

Tip from Marcel

Do you want to fertilise after sowing? Then take care not to burn the young lawn! Use a lawn fertiliser with a low nitrogen value, such as Recovery fertiliser.

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So the task is to avoid the battle with street grass and weed growth. You do this by sowing in all the bare spots as soon as possible with a fast-germinating grass mixture. Street grass germinates from 8°C and then grows very quickly. There is, however, grass seed that germinates at 4°C so that your lawn will grow nicely dense, thereby displacing the street grass. This is grass seed with SOS technology (Super Over Seeding).

This product is well established in the football world and is sown throughout the winter after every football match.

Our conclusion:

Do you want a beautiful and green lawn? Then from this year onwards, you will have to put in a lot of time and energy. If not? Then weeds and street grasses will take over your lawn and a quick fix (the chemical method from before) is no longer possible.

Lawns that are full of street grass and weeds are therefore beyond repair. In this case, you can choose to "live with it" or have a garden contractor lay it out again. Attention: Do you want to lay out a new lawn? Then choose a grass mixture that suits your soil well.

  • Do you have a sandy soil? Then add bentonite when replanting, and use grass seed especially for drought-prone areas, such as Water Saver.
  • Do you have to make do with a clay soil, and does water remain? Then work lava dust and basalt meal into the soil when replanting so that the clay granules stick less to each other and you get better water penetration. Use a strong-rooting lawn such as Bar power RPR.
  • Is your lawn in the shade? Then there are special grass seed mixtures that perform better in the shade, and thus prevent the growth of moss.

The grass is always greener at Hermie, and so it will be for you too with our tips! 👇

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