Dallisgrass, the dainty weed of the south, the un-invited guest at your lawn party that won’t leave. Dallisgrass came to the US in the early 1800’s by way of Uruguay and Argentina and took a liking to our southern climate. A.T. Dallis was a big supporter of the hardy grass around the turn of the century and promoted it’s use in America. His efforts awarded him the honor of having the pesky weed named after him.
How to identify Dallisgrass:
Dallisgrass grows in bright green circular clumps in your clay or sandy soil with a fast growing blades and a tall spike shooting from the center. The spike has several spikelets that carry rows of seed spreading this annoying weed by means of wind, pets and mowers. This grass grows twice as fast as regular turf and the circular patches can extend up two feet in diameter.
Dallisgrass Weed Control
How to eradicate Dallisgrass:
A turf fertilization program is your best defense. A program that consists of pre-emergent and post-emergents herbicides as well as turf fertilization to promote a thick healthy lawn creates an uninviting scene for the lawn party crasher.
Dallisgrass usually invades an empty spot in your lawn. Now you may be thinking, I have a turf fertilization. Why do I still have weeds? Dallisgrass is closely related to the turf grasses you want to keep in your yard, so your selective herbicide that is formulated to kill certain broadleaf weeds, but not your fescue or zoyzia may not be potent enough to kill off the dallisgrass, especially if the weed was already prominent in your yard. So, if you already have this invasive weed popping up throughout your lawn, here are few options to get rid of it.
- Pull the weed, root and all. The remaining bare spot will be the perfect home for more dallisgrass so reseeding the spot with your desired turfgrass will help prevent that.
- Use a post-emergent herbicide that is formulated for crabgrass and dallisgrass. It usually takes several application about 2 weeks apart.
- Use a non-selective herbicide for spot treatment. Non-selective herbicides kill all plant life it comes in contact with so be careful to avoid the turf and any shrubs surrounding the dallisgrass.
- Start fresh. If your yard is overrun with weeds of all varieties, make a clean sweep of your lawn. In late summer use a non-selective herbicide to kill off the entire lawn. Wait three weeks and till early fall (September) and have the yard aerated,seeded and fertilized. In about two weeks, you’ll see lush green carpeting your yard. Get on a turf fertilization program to keep the weeds out from the start.
Get your lawn cleaned up with our “dallisgrass weed control” service at Southern Exposure.
