Winter is mostly over and spring is arriving. That means all the plants are preparing for their “time in the sun” and growth spurts. Unfortunately, “all the plants” includes weeds.

The best method of preventing or reducing weed growth is to maintain a thick, healthy lawn and a quarterly weed control program.

Freshly cut St. Augustine grass.

Professionals at Petty’s Irrigation, Landscape and Pest Control know effective weed control is all about timing and the combination of products used. Your best bet at keeping unwanted weeds out of your yard requires thinking about weeds before (pre-emergent) and after (post-emergent) you actually spot them in your yard.

Pre-emergent herbicides control weeds by forming a barrier that prevents the seed from germinating. However, pre-emergent herbicides are not effective against weeds that are already growing.

Lawn maintenance plans from Petty’s often combine fertilization with treatments of insecticide and fungicide. But that’s where it helps to have a team of professionals handling it for you, because not all treatments work for all lawns or all types of weeds.

A basic understanding of the types of weeds commonly found in turf is very helpful in identification and herbicide selection. Herbicides are often particularly effective on one or more groups. However, it is important to be able to identify specific weeds within a group (down to the genus and species level), because many herbicides only control certain species.

Dandelion Weed

Only materials recommended for St Augustine grass and Centipede should be used on these lawns, as the turf might be damaged by some chemicals that are safe for Bermuda grass. On the other hand, while insecticide and fungicide treatments are helpful for many lawns, they aren’t very effective for maintaining a healthy lawn if you have Bermuda grass — since it doesn’t have the same types of issues many other grasses do.

In addition, some pre-emergents can’t be used on Bermuda grass. And some post-emergents and pre-emergents only work with certain ground temperatures — or they won’t be effective.

Bermuda Grass

So, in order to know that your lawn is receiving the correct treatments to control weeds, fungi and insects – applied at the correct time and in the correct manner — you need a customized approach to maintaining your lawn.

Petty’s offers quotes for lawn maintenance on a yard-by-yard basis — because what your yard needs isn’t necessarily what your neighbor’s yard needs. And now is the time to start treating for weeds and more.

Contact Petty’s Irrigation and Landscape through at pettysirrigationandlandscape.com , or in the office at 14200 Rhones Quarter Rd., Tyler, TX 75707 , or by phone at 1-800-258-9184 .