First off, what is Nutsedge?
Nutsedge, is a very aggressive, tough sedge that can be found in your lawn, your flower garden and even the cracks of your sidewalks and driveways. It takes a well executed integrated pest management plan in order to control this annoying plant. Nutsedge is technically not a grass, nor a weed, it is classified as a sedge. As in the name, nutsedge has a nutlet under the ground that it grows from.
Lifespan and Identification
As it begins to mature, nutsedge emerges from the ground as a lime green looking grass that grows twice the speed of normal cool-season grass. At full maturity, nutsedge has a tall skinny blade of grass that fountains over and has a little yellow flower located at the top. Nutsedge is actually an attractive plant that usually isn’t too much of an eye sore, however, it grows in random places and often does not blend well with the normal seed blends found in your cool-season lawn. Typically nutsedge prefers areas of low-lying ground where it has access to sources of water. This is why it has been given its nickname of “water grass”. Even though nutsedge prefers areas that have standing water, it is extremely hardy and can grow about anywhere. When most folks find nutsedge, it typically grows in groups and patches. You will have a centralized group of nutsedge plants that is more dense that goes outward and then fades. At first glance, it looks like nutsedge should easily come out with some elbow grease, but take caution, nutsedge actually thrives when it is pulled.
Control and Suppression
Many people find nutsedge in the lawn, and begin to do what we call the “nutsedge crawl”. Determined to pull out every last blade of nutsedge, homeowners will crawl along the ground pulling nutsedge, only to wake up two days later with more nutsedge than they started with, why is this??
As we discussed previously, nutsedge has nutlets under the ground, and when pulled, the nutlets will stay under the ground and spread, even though you were able to pull out the stem. Pulling nutsedge is actually an encourager for growth. So how are we going to control this pesky little plant?
Nutsedge is actually never fully eradicated. We know, that isn’t the answer you were wanting. However, nutsedge can be suppressed to a point that is manageable and almost unnoticeable. At Warren Lawn, we have a professional grade product that can go to work on nutsedge to suppress, but this product requires a little effort and planning from you the home owner.
When nutsedge is identified in the lawn, it is important to actually let the nutsedge grow out a little bit, we recommend letting it grow to about 5-6 inches. At this stage, we will come out and spray the nutsedge with our powerful product. At this point, you want to wait about 2 days to allow the nutsedge to soak in the herbicide down into the roots. On day 3, we encourage the homeowner to mow off the nutsedge down to the same level as the lawn. From here, we wait to see what nutsedge decides to come back. Many times, only 1 or 2 applications are necessary to begin suppressing the nutsedge plant.
Whats the best part? With Warren Lawn, we have a nutsedge package that you can easily acquire for a one time fee, in order to get season long control. If you have an issue with nutsedge in your lawn, feel free to reach out to us, we would be happy to come out and address any issue you are having with nutsedge and other weeds!
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