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Having a great looking lawn is one of those things that almost everyone strives for. One of the major setbacks from that goal comes in the form of broadleaf lawn weeds. You know the ones that poke out like a sore thumb ruining your otherwise perfect lawn. Weeds by nature are pestering because they have found a way to survive and thrive in conditions that exist in our lawns. If you would like to have a great looking lawn staying on top of your broadleaf weed and grassy weed problem is essential. Often the best method for taking care of your weeds is to prevent further ones from forming. As the old saying goes a little effort now prevents a lot of work later.
3 sub categories that broad leaf weeds divide into; they are Monocot, Dicot and Herbaceous.
Ways To Get Rid Of Broadleaf Weeds-
-Chemical
– Spot Control
– Preemergents
– Postemergents
2,4-D; MCPP (mecoprop); and dicamba (Banvel
-Organic
– Hand Pulling
– Corn Gluten Meal
– Clove Oil
– Vinegar Spot Spraying
– Preventative Measures
– Healthy Soil and Lawn
Types Of Broadleaf Weeds
– Spotted Burclover – Looks very much like the iconic luck charm clover but has a black “spot” in the center of the each of the three leaves of its prostrate stem.
Scientfic Name:Medicago Arabica (L.) Huds.
Family:Fabacea
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduces By: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in?
How To Control: You will want to control this annual with preemergents for the broadleaf weed seeds and will want to control the plants that have sprouted with a good postemergent.
– Common Dandelion
Scientific Name: Taraxacum officinale
Family: Compositae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction:
What kind of lawn is it found in?
How To Control: Produces by seed for reproduction but can also reproduce new plants from a piece of taproot. If you are trying to hand pull these broadleaf weeds then make sure to get as much of the main taproot as possible.
– Kudzu
Scientific Name: Pueraria Montana (Lour.) Merr.
Family: Fabaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction:
What kind of lawn is it found in?
How To Control:
– Chamberbitter, Gripeweed, Leaf Flower or Little Mimosa
Scientific Name: Phyllanthus urinaria L.
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Life Cycle: Summer Annual
Reproduction:
What kind of lawn is it found in?
How To Control: Reproduces by seeds. This specific broadleaf weed can be a real pain if it is not kept under tight control. You will want to implore a number of different methods to get rid of this aggressive spreader. Try to pull all the mature weeds that you see, spray the new ones that come up with a postemergent as soon as you see them and put down multiple rounds of preemergent to keep the weed seeds germination rate.
– Carpetweed
Scientific Name: Mollugo verticillata L.
Family: Molluginaceae
Life Cycle: Summer Annual
Reproduction: Tiny red seeds
What kind of lawn is it found in? Newly formed lawns.
How To Control: Carpetweed should be controlled with the use of a preemergent.
– Red Clover
Scientific Name: Trifolium pretense L.
Family: Fabaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Lawns that are low in Nitrogen.
How To Control: Red clover is a prolific spreader and can be very hard to eradicate at times. Red clover weed also has a built in protection system in the plant that makes it hard for herbicides to penetrate its cell walls. A surfactant is often needed to help the herbicide kill the clover. This is one of those weeds that if it is covering a large amount of your lawn it is probably best to call a lawn care professional “Georgia Lawn” to come take care of the problem.
– Common Mallow – This is one hardy weed. Often confused with Dichondra, you can tell the two apart by the way that the leaves of the common mallow weed are smoother looking than the rigid leaf pattern of the Dichondra.
Scientific Name: Malva neglecta
Family: Malvaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual or Biennial
Reproduction: Seeds
What kind of lawn is it found in? Lawns that have weak stands of turf grass.
How To Control: Do not bother trying to spray “Roundup” on these plants, as nothing will happen except wasted money and frustration. This is also the case with most postemergents. The best way to control this broadleaf weed is to pull it up and to make sure that you get the taproot or call Georgia Lawn.
– Broadleaf Dock – Native to Europe, Has large leaves with red leaf stems on the lower portions of the plant.
Scientific Name: Rumex obtusifolius L. Don
Family: Polygonaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Soils with poor drainage and poor stands of turf grass, also found in lawns that have high Nitrogen and low potassium.
How To Control: You can remove broad-leaved dock by pulling it making sure to get as much as the sometimes 5 foot long taproot as possible. Other methods for eradicating bluntleaf dock is to amend the soil by aerating the soil for better drainage and to give the turf grass a better chance at crowding out and reducing the flowering chances of broadleaf dock.
– Small Hop Clover – Looks much like the Large Hop Flower only the flowers are smaller and so are the leaves.
Scientific Name: Trifolium dubium Sibth.
Family: Fabaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? This type of clover is often found in vacant areas or where the ground has been disturbed. This plant also like bare spots in the lawn and somewhat shady spots.
How To Control: The best thing that you can do to get rid of this weed is pull it up. If there is an abundance of it either hoe it or spray a postemergent weed killer on it. The best time to control small hop flower is when it is young and not yet able to have gained a good root system.
– Creeping Beggarweed
Scientific Name: Desmodium incanum DC.
Family: Fabaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seeds, stolons and rhizomes and pieces of severed taproot.
What kind of lawn is it found in? Disturbed areas of the lawn such as where kickball has been played or where a dog has dug up an area.
How To Control: Due to the multiple ways that this weed spreads it is very hard for the homeowner to control. The best thing that you can do is to give your lawn the best conditions you can so that it can choke out this pesky weed, otherwise a call to a lawn care company such as Georgia Lawn is going to be your best bet.
– Birdsfoot Trefoil – Often used as a forage crop where alfalfa hay does not grow well. Forms a mat that chokes out many other types of plants (turf grass).
Scientific Name: Lotus corniculatus L.
Family: Fabaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Lawns with low pH and poor drainage.
How To Control: Mowing less than 2 inches can help to reduce the effectiveness that the Birds foot trefoil weed has on your lawn by continually stressing it out. Once again a surfactant needs to be added to your postemergent to help kill this weed.
– Catchweed Bedstraw – These are the sticky seeds that get stuck on you or your pet while playing in the yard.
Scientific Name: Galium aparine L.
Family: Rubiaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seeds
What kind of lawn is it found in?
How To Control: Pulling the mature plants before they go to seed is effective followed by use of a preemergent and use of post emergent on young existing plants.
– Dichondra
Scientific Name: Dichondra carolinensis Michx.
Family: Convolvulaceae
Life Cycle: Warm season perennial
Reproduction:
What kind of lawn is it found in? This broadleaf weed is the result of over fertilizing and over watering your lawn. This “weed” is sometimes used instead of grass for lawns in some parts of the country. It is not very popular though because of its high requirements for water and nutrient.
How To Control: Cutting back on the watering and fertilization is the first step followed by proper lawn care practices such as proper mowing, aeration and correct watering and fertilization should allow for the grass to overtake the Dichondra. If you would like immediate results pulling or using a postemergent weed control product will provide good results.
– Dollarweed – Pennywort – Often confused with Dichondra because of the highly similar characteristics of the two plants. The way to tell the difference between the two plants is to look at where the leaf is placed on the stem. Dollar weed has the stem in the middle of the leaf like a lily while the Dichonda has the stem on the edge of the leaf like the gingko leaf.
Scientific Name: Hydrocotyle umbellate L.
Family: Apiaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction:
What kind of lawn is it found in? Lawns that are heavily irrigated too frequently with weak grass
How To Control: The first step to controlling dollar weed is to cut your irrigation way back, which will make pennywort die back naturally. Giving your lawn a deep watering one to two times a week equaling around an inch of water is all that it needs, any more than this is just wasting your time and money. Postemergent weed killers work well for this weed if you need faster acting results.
– Common Venus Looking Glass, Common Venuslookingglass – Can stand erect
Scientific Name: Triodanis perfoliata (L.) Nieuwl
Family: Campanulaceae
Life Cycle: Summer Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Gravely or sandy lawns and surrounding areas.
How To Control: Postemergent weed control or hand pulling.
– Curly Dock – Same as broadleaf dock excecpt that the leaves are larger and are wavy or “curly
Scientific Name: Rumex crispus L.
Family: Polygonaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Poor drainage and high levels of Nitrogen with low levels of Potassium
How To Control: Can be hand pulled or controlled with pre and post emergent when the plant is young.
– Common Mullein, Wooly Mullein
Scientific Name: Verbascum Thapsus L.
Family: Scrophulariaceae
Life Cycle: Biennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Bare places in the lawn or where there is bare disturbed dirt.
How To Control: A unique biological control of the Mullein broadleaf weed is the larvae of the mullein seed-eating weevil (Gymnetron tetrum) and the mullein moth (Cucullia verbasci). Postemeregents with the aid of a surfactant work as well on this plant, as does hand pulling below the root crown of the plant.
– Common Lespedeza, Japanese Clover
Scientific Name: Lespedeza striata
Family: Leguminosae
Life Cycle: Summer Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Bare spots in the lawn.
How To Control: This can be a hardy weed to control but repeat treatments with a 2 or 3 way postemergent should result in effective control. Preemergents
Other Facts: This weed is often confused with Black Medic. The way to tell the difference is to look at the flowers of the plant if possible. Black Medic has yellow flowers while the Japanese Clover Weed has pink/purple flowers.
– Field Bindweed, Creeping Jenny
Scientific Name: Convolvulus arvensis L.
Family: Convolvulaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Lawns that have not been taken care of and mowed infrequently.
How To Control: This is a very hardy plant that will usually not die with one application of herbicide. Apply multiple rounds of both post and preemergents in their respective times. Frequent mowing of your turf will slow down the bindweed if it is young enough.
– Cats ear Dandelion
Scientific Name: Hypochoeris radicata L.
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Week stands of grass.
How To Control: Use a 2, 3 or 4 way herbicide to effectively control the cat’s ear dandelion.
– Common Purslane
Scientific Name: Portulaca oleracea L.
Family: Portulacaceae
Life Cycle: Summer Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Lawns that have not been maintained.
How To Control: Purslane Sawfly, pre and post emergents. The best way to control this weed like most other broad leaf weeds is to have a healthy established lawn.
– Bristly Mallow
Scientific Name: Modiola caroliniana (L.) G. Don
Family: Malvaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed, and nodes
What kind of lawn is it found in? Broken soil, disturbed areas of the lawn.
How To Control: Pull up mature plants before they go to seed. Make sure to get the root system of this weed as well or else you will have new plants growing from the old root. Preemergents and postemergents work somewhat on this plant when used at their proper times.
– Field Madder
Scientific Name: Sheradia arvensis L.
Family: Rubiaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Weak turf
How To Control: A good place to start with this weed is to pull mature plants and get your lawn back on track with a good mowing, fertilization and watering program. Use postemergent when plant is young to get best results.
– Annual Ragweed
Scientific Name: Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Summer Annual
Reproduction:
What kind of lawn is it found in? Disturbed areas.
How To Control: Call a professional like Georgia Lawn, as this is a very hard weed to control and stronger herbicides must be used on this weed. If you decide to pull this weed by hand be careful as it may cause a bad case of Hay Fever.
– Parsley Piert
Scientific Name: Aphanes mircroarpa boiss rhothm.
Family: Rosaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Poor soil
How To Control: Postemergents will work but all that you really have to do with this weed is pull it and take better care of your lawn.
– Henbit
Scientific Name: Lamium amplexicaule L.
Family: Lamiaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Shady, damp lawns.
How To Control: Aerate the soil, take down some branches, and spray with a good postemergent.
– Mugwort
Scientific Name: Artemisia vulgaris L.
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed, Rhizomes.
What kind of lawn is it found in? Un kept lawns.
How To Control: Postemergents work with multiple apps.
Other Facts: This is a really hard weed to control due to the aggressive rhizome spreading activity.
– Wild Garlic
Scientific Name: Allium vineale L.
Family: Lillaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seeds and bulbs
What kind of lawn is it found in? Lawns that have been neglected from a proper weed control program.
How To Control: Dig up plants or use a postemgerent such as 2,4-D.
-Spotted Spurge
Scientific Name: Chamaesyce maculate L.
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Life Cycle: Summer Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Sparse areas in turf and weak stands of turf.
How To Control: Preemergents, Postemergents, Hand pulling (Caution when hand pulling use gloves as milky sap is a skin and eye irritant.
– Common Chickweed
Scientific Name: Stellaria media L. Vill.
Family: Caryophyllaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Heavily watered areas
How To Control: Hand pulling, post and preemergents.
– Common Groundsel
Scientific Name: Senecio vulgaris L.
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? This weed likes lawns that are irrigated and fertilized.
How To Control: Hand pulling or hoeing, preemergents and post emergents.
– Cutleaf Evening Primrose
Scientific Name: Oenothera laciniata Hill
Family: Onagraceae
Life Cycle: Biennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Low maintenance lawns
How To Control: Hand pulling can be a pain with this weed, use post and preemergents on this weed.
– Pink Purslane
Scientific Name: Portulaca pilosa L.
Family: Portulacaceae
Life Cycle: Summer Annual
Reproduction:
What kind of lawn is it found in? Fertile and moist soil.
How To Control: hand pulling, pre and post emergents.
– Rabbitfoot Clover
Scientific Name: Triflium arvense L.
Family: Fabaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Low maintenance lawns.
How To Control: Postemergents
– Purslane Speedwell
Scientific Name: Veronica peregrine L.
Family: Scrophulariaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed and Rhizomes
What kind of lawn is it found in? Rich fertile lawns.
How To Control: Postemegents
– Swinecress
Scientific Name: Coronopus didymus L.
Family: Brassicaeae
Life Cycle: Annual Or Biennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Stressed and weak turf
How To Control: Resistant to some postemergents be sure to get one that is specified to control this certain weed.
– Virginia Buttonweed
Scientific Name: Diodia virginiana L.
Family: Rubiaceae
Life Cycle: Warm season Perennial
Reproduction: Seed and root fragments
What kind of lawn is it found in? Weak thin turf
How To Control: Repeat applications of postemergents are needed to control this stubborn weed.
– Florida Betony
Scientific Name: Stachys floridana Shuttlw.
Family: Lamiaceae
Life Cycle: Warm Season Perennial
Reproduction: Tubers
What kind of lawn is it found in? Un kept lawns
How To Control: Have fun trying to control this hard to get rid of weed. This broadleaf perennial weed will keep coming back and back if you are not careful. A complete weed control program will definitely have to be implored here. Digging up the plant will provide some control just make sure to get the complete root system or else you will have new plants where the left over root system was left. Repeated applications of both preemergents and postemergents will provide a decent amount of control.
– Hairy Bittercress
Scientific Name: Cardamine hirsute L.
Family: Brassicaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Moist shady lawns.
How To Control: This weed is easily controlled by the use of postemergent herbicides.
– Horseweed
Scientific Name: Conyza Canadensis L. Cronquist Rock
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Summer Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Undisturbed areas
How To Control: Effective control by postemergents
– Broadleaf Plantain
Scientific Name: Plantago major L.
Family: Plantaginaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Regularly watered compacted lawns that get full sun
How To Control: Pull established weeds and apply post and preemergents in multiple apps to get the best results
– Yellow Toadflax
Scientific Name: Linaria vulgaris Mill.
Family: Scrophulariaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Disturbed areas of the lawn
How To Control: This is a hard weed to handle with just one weed management strategy.
– Purple Deadnettle
Scientific Name: Lamium purpureum L.
Family: Lamiaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Thin, weak, shady, moist, lawns.
How To Control: Preemegents in fall and postemergents when the plant is young.
Other Facts: This weed is very close in resemblance to the broadleaf weed Henbit. The only differences with these two plants are that the deadnettle had leaf stems and pointed leaf tips.
– Dogfennel
Scientific Name: Eupatorium capillifolium Lam.
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed and Root
What kind of lawn is it found in? Low maintenance lawns
How To Control: Hand pulling, post and preemergents
– White Clover
Scientific Name: Trifolium repens L.
Family: Fabaceae
Life Cycle: Cool Season Perennial
Reproduction: Rhizomes and Stolons, seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Low Nitrogen lawns
How To Control: Do not hand pull this weed, it will only cause more clover to pop up in its place. Postemergents are going to be the best way control this weed. Apply when plants are young and not flowering if possible.
– Purple Cudweed
Scientific Name: Gnaphalium purpureum L.
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Annual or Biennial
Reproduction:
What kind of lawn is it found in? Low maintenance lawns and undisturbed areas.
How To Control: Pulling and having a healthy stand of turf are your best bet to controlling this weed. If there is a large infestation of cudweed in your lawn then a good postemergent followed by a good fertilization and proper lawn care program will take care of this weed.
– Knawel
Scientific Name: Scleranthus annuus. L.
Family: Caryophyllaceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Moist lawns with weak turf
How To Control: Postemeregent
– Lawn Burweed Or Spurweed
Scientific Name: Soliva sessilis Ruiz & Pav.
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Winter Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Weak turf
How To Control: Postemergent herbicides. Trying to control this weed with preemergent herbicides may result in an actual growth in this weed.
– Prickly Lettuce
Scientific Name: Lactuca serriola L.
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Biennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Moist, low maintenance lawns.
How To Control: Pull or use pre and postemergents.
– Red Sorrel
Scientific Name: Rumex acetosella L.
Family: Polygonaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction:
What kind of lawn is it found in? Lawns with low amounts of Nitrogen and poor drainage and weak stands of turf.
How To Control: Postemergent hericides, strong turf and hand pulling.
– Bitter Sneezeweed
Scientific Name: Helenium amarum Raf. H. Rock
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Summer Annual
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Disturbed areas
How To Control: Pre and postemergent herbicides
– Yellow Woodsorrel
Scientific Name: Oxalis stricta L.
Family: Oxalidaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Bare spots in the lawn
How To Control: Hand pull or hoe, pre and post emergents. The best way to get rid of this weed is to keep a good stand of turf.
– Shiny Cudweed
Scientific Name: Gnaphalium spicatum Lam.
Family: Asteraceae
Life Cycle: Annual or Biennial
Reproduction: seed
What kind of lawn is it found in? Disturbed areas in a weak lawn.
How To Control: Had broadleaf to control due to the “Shiny” leaves prohibiting herbicides from penetrating the plant. Multiple applications with preemergent and postemergent herbicides at their respective times with surfactant added should help control this weed.
– Cypress Spurge
Scientific Name: Euphorbia cyparissias L.
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Life Cycle: Perennial
Reproduction: Seeds
What kind of lawn is it found in? Moist undisturbed lawns
How To Control: Post and preemergents.
– Black Medic
Scientific Name: Medicago lupulina
Life Cycle: Annual
Reproduction: Seeds
What kind of lawn is it found in? Compacted lawns,
How To Control: Postemergent and hand pulling