Hi everyone,
We just had a new sod lawn installed at my house in Southeastern Massachusetts about 2 months ago, and we are having an invasion of some sort of crab grass, which is lighter in color and thicker than the standard grass. We don't know what to do, and it seems to keep spreading all over the place. One part of our lawn doesn't have this problem at all. However, both parts of the lawn have an equal amount of heavy sunlight during the day.
Can someone shed light on what exactly this is, and how it should be treated to be eliminated?
Thank you so much in advance!
Dave
Pics of lawn can be found at:
http://web.mac.com/dyoken/IMGP1427.JPG
http://web.mac.com/dyoken/IMGP1428.JPG
2006-07-07 13:21:35 · 7 answers · asked by daveinma12 1 in Home & Garden ➔ Garden & Landscape
It seems to me that the other grasses coming through is some sort of Rye grass. The sod was most likely a majority of Kentucky Blue grass and that seems to have taken quite well. However there are a couple of different reasons as to why this other grass is coming through the way it is.....possibly it was seeds mixed in with the topsoil that you spread prior to laying sod or it was already mixed in with the sod. Unfortunately sod is not the same all over, its made by sowing seeds on a thin layer of soil on long thin mats and if that soil is not pure or the seed mixture is not pure the result on the lawn is not a quality product. Unfortunately there is not much you can do at this point except starting over which is a pain, but a regular maintenance routine of fall aerations and overseeding with Kentucky Blue grass only will over time improve your lawn.
2006-07-07 13:35:25 · answer #1 · answered by Brutal honesty is best 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
As a landscaper, I will give you my best thoughts.
Looking at your pictures, it does not appear to be crabgrass. Crabgrass is much darker and low growing (hence the name "crab" - creeping more outwards than upwards) My first thought when seeing the picture would be to ask: did you put grass seed on top of, or underneath the sod? New grass seed often grows very tall and appears very light colored when it first starts growing. Or perhaps, there was seed in the soil that you did not know about, which would explain it being in one part of the lawn, and not the other.
If there is new seed in that area, it will soon blend in with sod as it matures.
If you are certain that there is no new seed in the area, it is probably the type of grass that was growing in the area prior to it being sodded. Whether it is desirable or not, I can't tell from the pictures.
I would suggest that you call a lawn treatment company in your area, like Lawn Doctor, Greenlawn, or Chemlawn. They SHOULD offer a free consultation. GOOD LUCK!
2006-07-07 14:27:35 · answer #2 · answered by Sharon 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think Robert D's speculation about Nutsedge is right. I would bet dollars to donuts that it is your problem. I've dealt with this pest a few times, and it has been a real pain. It fits your description, as it is light green, upright, and thicker than normal grass (because it is actually a sedge).
The easiest way for you to confirm if it is Nutsedge or not is to pull up a few of the weeds. If they have a little tuber, you're probably looking at Nutsedge. Be careful when you pull the weed up though, because the tubers tear off very easily.
In the source field below I included some info about Nutsedge. You can find all sorts of info by running Google searches.
I beat my Nutsedge problem by carefully hand weeding for 2 consecutive growing seasons.
Good Luck!
2006-07-08 05:06:05 · answer #3 · answered by bkhoo99 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Consult a professional for a positive i.d. of what the weed is. You may want to switch your camera to macro and take a pic of the plant close up. It's not crabgrass, due to its upright growth. It may be nutsedge. This is easy to control with a specialty herbicide called Manage which gets mixed in a backpack style sprayer with a spray adjuvant like methylated seed oil added to it. It works great but is somewhat spendy.
2006-07-07 17:27:49 · answer #4 · answered by Robert D 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
not easy to find a post emergent herbicide for grassy weeds like you mentioned. these weed need to be controlled before they germinate early spring with barricade, pre m. acclaim will kill these weeds now but its resticted and costly. consult a pro for advice, aerate and overseed in september and make sure you put down a preemergent control in march next year
2006-07-07 15:26:21 · answer #5 · answered by resortlawns 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Gey ahold of the people who sold you the sod. and let them figure it out.
2006-07-21 10:27:45 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
dont get ti
2006-07-16 10:31:22 · answer #7 · answered by avanindra s 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋