Crabgrass

This summer annual weed germinates in the spring months (when crabapple and forsythia blooms, that's when the air temperature is warm enough to promote crabgrass seed germination), lives during the summer and matures in the fall. You can identify it by its tufted or prostrate growth habit, hairy stems, broad leaves, and flower spikes with two to nine finger-like branches. This weed appears in disturbed areas, weak or thin turf areas, and in edges of the lawn next to sidewalks and drives. Crabgrass reproduces by seed.

Control: Handpulling is a simple practical approach for small areas. Improve the health and density of the lawn by fertilizing at the right time and with the correct amount; maintaining an appropriate soil pH; mowing at the recommended height; and watering properly. Apply a two- to three-inch layer of mulch to ornamental bed areas to suppress germinating weed seeds. Preemergent and postemergent herbicides are available depending on the kind of turfgrass in your lawn.