Weed Control
Weeds compete with turfgrasses for available resources: water, nutrients, light, available ground cover and rootzone volume. Making the lawn or sports surface as suitable as possible for the desired turfgrass species will help to ensure a more competitive turfgrass is produced: This can then hopefully outcompete any potential weeds.
Weed Eradication
The control of existing weeds by reducing their coverage and ultimately total, or nearly total, elimination of weeds from a grass sward.
Weed Grasses
Undesirable grasses within a turf sward. The main weed grass is Annual Meadow Grass, along with Yorkshire Fog. Perennial Ryegrass is an occasional weed grass of very fine turfgrass surfaces, such as golf or bowling greens, and fine ornamental lawns.
Weed Inhibition
The prevention of weeds invading a grass sward which is currently free, or relatively so, of weeds.
Weed Management
Managing weeds is just one of many aspects to turf management. Weeds may, or may not, be a particular problem; it is often a matter of degree, or scale, of weed infestation which determines if it is a problem, or not.
A few weed instances here and there over a grass surface are unlikely to affect the safe use of a sports surface, whilst visually this would be a minor blemish at most.
Weed Seed Spread
Weed seeds can be spread by various methods, including:
• being imported in unsterilized top-dressings;
• wind;
• water courses, or by flooded areas;
• animal, including bird, dung, i.e. after being eaten;
• adhering to the fur of animals;
• in clippings where they are not boxed off, especially annual meadow grass;
• contamination of machinery that isn't cleaned after use as well as footwear/clothes;
• pieces of cut or torn root;
• by vegetative means ¯ rhizomes and stolons.
White Clover
A very common weed of turf surfaces. Its scientific name is Trifolium repens. It is a Perennial and spreads by narrow stolons; and has leaves which are oval, fine serrated edges, hairless, with 3 leaves per leaf stalk, and also having a white 'V' pattern on the leaf. A typical leaflet size might be 6mm-15mm in more intensively maintained turfgrass situations, with leaflets being to 30mm in lesser maintained situations. The main flowering period for the white-headed globular flowers, often tinged with pink, is May to September, and these are much loved by bumble bees. It has also been known as Dutch Clover.
Yarrow
A common perennial weed of turf surfaces. It spreads by creeping rhizomes. Its leaves are feathery, with a leathery feel, typically 5cm-15cm in length, and divided several times into smaller sections; this also makes the plant relatively drought resistant. In a drought stressed lawn it can often be one of the few plants which retain a green colour. It flowers from May to August, having white to pinkish coloured flowers, with each flower head being about 5mm in diameter.
Yellow Sorrel
An uncommon, but distinctive, perennial weed. It is mainly confined to growing in cracks in paths, and in borders, although it could spread onto the edge of some neglected lawn areas, or those which have been recently reseeded. The three leaves are deeply notched in the middle, often a purplish colour, but also green coloured, with sparse hairs. It flowers from June to September, with yellow flowers, having 5 petals, with the flower head being about 10mm in diameter.
Yellow Suckling Clover