How to Remove Crabgrass From Gardens

If crabgrass (Digitaria) makes an appearance in your garden, declare war against this noxious invader by pulling it out before it sets seed and multiplies!

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Gardening Gloves
• Hoes
• Shovels
• Watering Cans
• Weed Killers
• Water
• Weed Knife
• Water
• Shovels

1. Try to remove crabgrass when it first appears in early spring. Definitely remove crabgrass before it sets seed to prevent multiple problems in the future.

2. Water the area where the crabgrass is growing. Weeds will pull out from the soil much easier if the soil is damp.

3. Alternatively, use a weed knife. Slip the blade under the roots of the crabgrass. Lift with the knife as you pull on the foliage of the crabgrass. The crabgrass should slip easily from the soil - roots and all. For large clumps, use a shovel or a hoe instead of the weed knife.

4. Mulch the soil where you have removed the crabgrass to prevent new weeds from growing.

5. Use chemical controls only as a last resort. Non-selective herbicides such as Round-Up or Finale will kill crabgrass, but other plants are also susceptible to these herbicides.

Tips & Warnings

• Make sure to remove the entire root of this tenacious weed.
• Crabgrass is an annual summer weed that thrives in hot, damp areas. Seeds germinate in the early spring. The runners root wherever they touch the soil.
• Wear gloves to protect your hands while gardening.
• If you choose a chemical means of control, wear protective clothing, including neoprene gloves, a respirator, goggles, a long-sleeved shirt, pants and rubber boots.
• Never clean sprayers over a concrete area. Untreated chemicals may flow into storm drains that lead directly to creeks, rivers and waterways.

[gardenwife]

on 7/27/2009 For those who'd rather avoid using chemical pre-emergents, Corn gluten meal (a byproduct of the corn milling process_ is a natural pre-emergent. I do use chemicals such as Preen, but when I am out of it, I am going to switch to the corn gluten meal and see how it does. Friends use it and swear by it.

on 9/9/2006 Some have had success with using household baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) sprinkled on the moistened crabgrass leaves. It's important that the leaves be wet so as to allow the sodium bicarbonate chemical reaction to occur on the crabgrass leaf surface.

on 11/22/2005 The key? Kill the weed seeds so they don't sprout. If you want to improve your lawn, first remove as much of the weed by the root as possible, but it's going to die out over the winter anyway. In early autumn, scalp the grass close the ground and plant grass following the manufacturer's directions for a new lawn. The grass will sprout during the autumn and get fairly well established.
To kill the weed seeds: Sometime during early spring, spread Preen Garden Weed Preventer (about $12 per 2,500 square feet) and water profusely. This will sterilize the ground of all previous seeds (who cares, you've got a new crop of grass). Preen lasts 2-3 months for all seeds. Use it again whenever you need but never put it down until your grass seed is growing (or any other seed-starting plants you want to keep). This works in gardens as well.