Weeds - Spurweed
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  (February) When is the best time to put on spurweed killer or is it too late? Also, what is the best thing to use? We have something bright green, growing in the back yard. It looks like moss, but feels like a miniature evergreen. It doesn't have a big root so we can just pull it up. What is this stuff called and what can we put on it to kill the stuff?

  Glad you asked. Most people wait until the first time they walk barefooted through the lawn to question when to kill that nasty sticker weed called spurweed. Spurweed is a winter annual that should have germinated by now. It will lie fairly close to the ground, and its cut-out foliage resembles parsley--in miniature. Now would be an ideal time to kill it, while it is young, and before it blooms and sets seeds--or stickers. A product containing 2,4-D or Trimec will do the trick. Be sure to read and follow the label instructions as to what grass you are growing. The bright green stuff growing in your backyard may be moss (-there are numerous kinds), which I think makes a fabulous groundcover. I would not want to kill it. Chances are, if you have moss, you wouldn't have grass anyway.

  (April) I got half of my yard sprayed for spurweed this winter; but I did not get the other half sprayed. What can I spray now that will kill the spurweed but not damage the Bermuda grass that is greening up? Will a 2-4D Amine be good? Will it also kill the other weeds?

  Spurweed is a winter annual that will be dying as warm weather advances. Unfortunately, what it leaves behind, is what you don't want--the stickers--they are the seeds. The time to worry about killing spurweed is in January and February, when it is small and prior to bloom. It is easily killed with any 2,4-D weed killer, but spraying now, won't do much good. The same applies to other annual winter weeds, but 2,4-D will still be fine for dandelions and wild onions. The Bermuda should be fully green now, and as long as it is listed on the label of the product you purchase, should work fine.

  (May) My problem has to do with lawn spurweed that keeps getting worse every year. I bought some poison that was suppose to be good for it, but the Bermuda grass never really went dormant in my yard. I didn't want to kill that. The spurweed is so bad that my dog cannot go out the door without getting hurt with the sticker. I have noticed that where I burned some brush that the spurweed did not return and the Bermuda grass is really growing well. Can I use a tiller and turn under the spurweed and help kill it out, or will I just make it worse?

  Spurweed is a winter annual-it germinated last fall, grew during the winter, then bloomed this spring, set the stickers and died. The stickers that are on there now are the weed seeds. Fertilize your lawn to help get the grass up and growing so you can buffer the stickers. Using a sturdy lawn rake can loosen the stickers enough that you could then use a bag attachment and hopefully suck up some of the stickers. If you can find a pre-emergent herbicide apply it in the fall -- mid October through November. Or use 2,4-D (a broadleaf weed killer) in January or February. These can be safely applied to Bermuda lawns, whether they are dormant or not. The key is to kill the weed before it blooms and sets the stickers next year. Tilling would help to buffer the stickers now, but will not prevent them from growing next fall.

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