Can I mow my grass yet?

[Caveman]

Here it is early March in northern AL (yes, people wear shoes here; in fact, there's more PhDs per capita here than anywhere in the world)...

Anyway, its warmed to 75-80 degrees a few times already but its *possible* that it may still get below freezing at night. I have Bermuda grass that's loaded with weeds. How do I get these things under control? I've heard that cutting the grass very short in early spring is a good strategy since the grass is more hearty than the weeds and will "outlive" the weeds when cut short.

Anyone know much about landscaping?

 

[Gravity]

You need a pre-emergent to kill these spring weeds and to kill the ones that have yet to come out. Go to your local nursery/lawn supply store and tell them what you have. You have about one more week to apply it then it's too late and your summer will be full of weeds. Don't cut your grass too short yet. That's not the answer!

 

[fumbduck]

Covering your lawn in motor oil is probably your best option. It doesn't affect the grass at all, but it directly targets the weeds and eliminates them, leaving a plush green lawn behind.

 

[Caveman]

Hey FumDuck, I'll assume your post is a joke... Got a chuckle out of that one. Incidently, there are folks who swear the best way to do Bermuda is to light it up and burn their yards in prep for winter each fall.

Thanks for the tip, Gravity, I'll be doing some pre-emergence fertilizing today. I've already got loads of those purple thistle-like flowers that have viney roots that gow like crazy and choke out the healthy grass.

 

[dirtboy]

If you already have weeds, it's a little late for preemergence, but I'd get it on there anyways.

 

[allisolm]

You might find this article of interest: Don't fertilize the lawn just yet.

 

[BlueWeasel]

Where at in Northern AL? I'm not far to the west in Tupelo, MS =)

 

[allisolm]

Where at in Northern AL?

Gotta be Huntsville - the entire rest of north AL can only boast of 2 PhDs.

Just kidding all you folks in Madison, Guntersville, Decatur, etc. My parents and siblings live in Huntsville and I used to.

 

[Desslok]

If you do have the blade sharp. The clean cuts of a sharp blade help the grass heal faster and thus you will have a healthier lawn.

*Worked on a lawn crew in college*

 

[Savij]

If you've got bermuda, make sure that lawn gets the right amount of water. Once we put in the sprinkler system, the bermuda really started to thrive (i think the lawn was getting an inch of water a day). I also remember adding bermuda seeds to the pre-emergent stuff that my parents put on their lawn. Once you get the right growing conditions, the bermuda will choke off anything else that tries to grow on your lawn. I know that one of our neighbors in Huntsville gave up after our bermuda started to kick the crap out of his fescue.

"Bermuda is sometimes called "Devil Grass" because it spreads very aggressively. If you have flower beds/gardens, they will need to be protected by underground barriers. Fescues and ryegrasses are not invasive. "

 

[Caveman]

Thanks for all the input! Yes, I live in Huntsville...

 

[Caveman]

Thanks for all the input! Yes, I live in Huntsville...