It’s Time to Apply Crabgrass Preventer!

Now is the time to apply crabgrass preventer and start a Greenkeeper Program for a healthier lawn this year! The first step to improving your lawn is with a green up fertilizer with crabgrass preventer.  Crabgrass preventer controls crabgrass both before and after it germinates, creating a barrier to fight off crabgrass for up to 16 weeks. The product’s active ingredient, Dimension^®, allows for crabgrass control up to the plant’s three leaf stage; a fully mature crabgrass plant has 7 leaves. In most areas this allows an application until late spring, and will control crabgrass all season long. It is important to note that the majority of the other crabgrass controls on the market today will only control crabgrass before it germinates, and for only about 8 weeks!  Call Metzger Landscaping today for a free quote for your lawn at 260-982-4282.

If we experience a cool, wet spring, crabgrass germination will be delayed, and therefore your application for control should be as well. A good indicator of warming soil temperatures, and to help recognize the correct time to apply your crabgrass control, is when the forsythia bushes bloom their yellow flowers. Otherwise, if you have a soil thermometer you can place it in your lawn, at a minimum of 10 feet away from your house’s foundation. If you apply a crabgrass control product too early, when the ground is still cold, you will be putting some of the product’s control weeks to use even before there is any crabgrass to control. This is the beauty of using a fertilizer with crabgrass preventer, you don’t have to worry about applying too late or too early. Even after the crabgrass breaks the surface, you will still have complete coverage because Dimension^® will work to control the crabgrass both before and after you see the crabgrass plant, up to the 3-leaf stage.

It is of importance to note that new grass cannot be seeded the same season that the crabgrass preventer is applied.   Do not seed for 3 months after applying this product. Crabgrass preventer doesn’t just target dormant crabgrass seeds, it kills all grass seeds and grass-like weeds in the lawn and does so for up to 16 weeks.

If crabgrass appears during the late summer months, ask your lawncare applicator about suggesting a spot spray product to control it.

There are many traditional products to help control crabgrass, but the underlying problem of weeds and disease come from the health of your lawn and the soil it is grown in. A thick and healthy lawn will help ward off problems before they start! A good way to strengthen your lawn’s resistance to weeds is by having your lawn treated regularly with a greenkeeper lawncare program by a professional.  An ongoing GreenKeeper Program is important to creating a healthy lawn because there is continued pressure throughout the season from tough weeds.  An ongoing greenkeeper maintenance program by a professional is the best way to obtain long-term results.  One or two applications to control Creeping Charlie, dandelions and other tough weeds is not going to yield long-term results.  Choose wisely when choosing a lawn care professional.  Most national companies send an inexperienced applicator to your home that gives everyone the same rates of chemicals and fertilizers regardless of your lawn’s needs.  Metzger Landscaping is a local company based in North Manchester and serves the Wabash County and surrounding areas.  Metzger Landscaping offers both traditional and organic lawn programs for your specific lawn care needs.