Time spent on weed control in the spring pays dividends as the season progresses.
Left unchecked, common Colorado weeds including thistle, mallow, dandelion, bindweed, and annual grasses like crabgrass, foxtail, barnyard grass and Goose grass encroach on garden plants all summer and go into a seeding frenzy in the fall that will cause more weed problems the following season.
Identifying the weeds is important because different weeds require different handling in the garden. Some respond well to cultivation such as hoeing, but some of the most difficult weeds simply regenerate from their long tap root if you remove their greenery at soil level.
A long-pronged weed digger is probably the best tool to use to eradicate weeds with a long tap root like thistle, mallow and dandelion.
Although bindweed responds in spring and fall to some broadleaf weed killers, pulling is largely ineffective because any tiny fragment of its deep root system will reroot. Scraping the plant off at soil level with a hoe will, over time, weaken the plant and starve the roots.
Many annual grasses have already germinated due to the warm weather in the past few weeks, so it is likely too late for pre-emergent herbicides. Instead, try post-emergent annual-grass herbicides, called organic arsenicals, apply when air temperatures reach 70 degrees or above, and reapply in 4-7 days.
Remember that mowing frequently in the spring and following good turf-management practices encourages healthy, dense turf that is less susceptible to these annual grasses.
Weeds in the vegetable garden and perennial beds should be dealt with in a different manner than weeds in turf. Do not use broadleaf herbicides in the vegetable garden or perennial bed, it can damage perennials and possibly render vegetables unsafe to eat.
Garden beds and turf are rarely weed-free. The best weed-management plan includes growing healthy plants that can starve out the weeds and doing your best to pull weeds in the spring to prevent a massive infestation later in the season.
