Blog

July 18, 2011

Broadleaf weed control

Now is the time to start the yearly battle against the Broadleaf weeds that appear in your lawn during Winter and Spring. (Look at our weed identification page to see the weeds this term includes.)

Timing is critical to rid your lawn of this year’s crop as effectively as possible, in turn reducing the seedbed for next year’s crop. Once a weed flowers (for example, the daisy-like flower on Capeweed), it is getting a good foothold for not just the current year but for years to come.

SPRAYING TOO EARLY

An application of broadleaf herbicide in May/June will give you a lovely clean lawn surface throughout Winter, but may run out before the end of the weed season in late Spring. This is fine if your budget allows two sprays annually. I prefer to spray from July onwards, so only one application is necessary. While your lawn will have some weeds during early Winter, a single application can only be good for your budget and the environment.
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May 11, 2011

What did African Black Beetle ever do to anyone anyway?

“Can you spray the African Black Beetle out of my lawn?”

If I have heard it once over the past twenty years I have heard it a thousand times.
My answer is “Of course I can but is it really a big enough problem to warrant spraying?”

Every hot season will see some Beetle go from its larval stages to adulthood and yes you will see some, but are they swarming enough to do any damage?

For some reason I hardly ever hear people asking me to spray out their Armyworm, Webworm, Cutworm or Spider Mite. These are seldom seen in the home lawn but their damage is a lot more dramatic than our old friend, the African Black Beetle.

If you observe 50 –100 beetles wandering across your lawn don’t panic. It’s time to panic only when there is more beetle than lawn visible. This is an extremely rare occurrence.
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June 22, 2010

Wintergrass control

Wintergrass is a significant weed problem in many areas, and control is essential for the following reasons:
Wintergrass is a prolific seeder that will eventually overtake the lawn in winter.
It seeds in Autumn, Winter and Spring and dies off throughout prolonged hot periods in the Summer. This leaves a weakened lawn that will become infected with even more Wintergrass the following cool season.
It sets seed even at very low cutting heights.

Control & Management

The key to controlling Wintergrass lies in its management using both chemical and cultural practices. Good cultural practices means keeping the lawn well maintained by regular mowing and fertilising, and not allowing bare patches to develop which will offer an ideal seed bed for Wintergrass germination.
Light infestations of seedlings may be easily hand weeded as Wintergrass has a very shallow root system.

Chemical Management

There are two main ways of approaching the management of winter grass with chemicals… pre-emergent control, which means spraying the lawn before the weeds emerge, or selective post-emergent control once the weeds have already germinated.

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June 3, 2009

Lawn Mowing Tips

Lawns that are properly cut are healthier and more attractive. A properly mowed lawn is thicker and has deeper roots, making it more durable and better equipped to combat weeds, insects, and diseases.

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