Do Weeds Come Back Every Year? Yes, We’re Afraid They Do

Maybe this is only your first or second summer in a new home. Or maybe you have simply been blessed with a relatively weed-free lawn. But that changed this summer.

It typically starts small. Maybe a handful of dandelions or a patch of crabgrass. But now you’re seeing things encroach further into your beautiful, healthy grass. You’re wondering if it’s time to look at weed control. But these weeds showed up for seemingly no reason. Is it possible they will disappear just as inexplicably?

We wish we could tell you that they will go away by themselves. We also wish we could tell you that they won’t be back next year, but the odds are very good that they will, and they won’t stop until you intervene.

Here is why…

Why Do Weeds Keep Coming Back?

You may hear a lot of people talk about a stubborn weed problem. In our experience, we’re not sure there’s such a thing as a non-stubborn weed.

The problem is that most weeds will continue to come back because:

• Weeds thrive in thin or unhealthy lawns

• Weed seeds can travel

• Weed seeds can remain in the soil

• Perennial weeds can regrow from their roots

Some form of weed control or intervention is almost always required. And over-the-counter sprays and hand-pulling your weeds aren’t sustainable solutions.

Weeds Thrive in Thin or Unhealthy Lawns

Many weeds, like dandelions, are opportunistic. They will find the thin or unhealthy areas of your lawn and move in.

Once they take over a space, they don’t need as much sunlight or water as your healthy turf grass, so they will often thrive and grow while the rest of your lawn struggles.

Let’s keep that from happening. We often say that the best defense against weeds is a thick and healthy lawn. And the good news is that you are very much in the driver's seat to control that.

The best things you can do include:

• Setting your lawn up to succeed by fertilizing your lawn the right way and with the right product

• Making sure you’re not sabotaging your success by mowing your lawn too short or at a less-than-ideal time

• Ensuring that your soil can properly absorb water and nutrients with a professional aeration once or twice a year

If you can lock in on these three crucial and beneficial cultural practices, you’re going to greatly reduce the odds of a weed infestation.

Weed Seeds Can Travel

But how did these weeds even get to my yard in the first place? Unfortunately, weed seeds are fairly durable and resistant, which means they can travel.

A given weed’s seeds may have arrived in your yard in several ways:

• They can creep in from a neighbor's yard

• Seeds can be airborne and can settle in the soil on your lawn

• Carried in by birds or animals

• Even borrowed lawn equipment like lawn mowers

Once these uninvited guests show up, they tend to overstay their welcome.

Weed Seeds Can Remain in the Soil

This is one of the reasons that we say hand-pulling weeds is often ineffective.

You might solve the temporary aesthetic problem by removing the weeds that you see today (even though you will leave a few unsightly holes in your lawn), but the problem very literally remains below the surface.

Even if you’re incredibly diligent, it’s almost impossible to know if you got the entire plant. And lingering roots can grow a new weed. It’s also very possible to spread new seeds through disturbing the soil when hand-pulling.

In either case, the weeds will almost certainly be back, and probably in greater numbers.

This is why it’s best to talk to an experienced weed control specialist right from the very start. They can advise you on a full strategy to get rid of these weeds and keep them away.

Perennial Weeds Can Regrow From Their Roots

Dandelions are the classic example of a perennial weed that can show up suddenly and stick around indefinitely.

As we said in the previous section, even the most skillful hand-pulling will probably leave behind a part of the taproot.

A lot of people don’t know it doesn’t have to be this way. They simply make seasonal or regular weed pulling part of their lawn care routine.

They don’t know that these weeds are preventable through proper treatment and care. And that can save them a lot of time, effort, and sweat every year.

How to Prevent Weeds From Coming Back

At Weed Man, you never hear us talk about killing weeds. Because that’s not what it’s about. It’s about controlling weeds. It’s about removing the conditions that allow weeds to thrive and take over your lawn.

This is never as simple as a point-and-shoot weed spray.

Is One Weed Control Treatment Enough?

You can see a noticeable difference in weeds after a single treatment, but the work isn’t quite done yet.

At Weed Man, we use a comprehensive weed control strategy that includes:

• Integrated Pest Management: This is an ecosystem-based strategy that helps both weed control and pest prevention. It usually involves a combination of biological control, habitat manipulation, modification of cultural practices, and the use of resistant grass varieties.

• Selective herbicides: As the name implies, these are selective in controlling weeds without harming the turf.

• Strategic treatments: Applying treatments in the optimal part of the growth cycle is just as important as using the right products.

• Ongoing lawn care: Our experts will coach you on the optimal way to water and mow your lawn.

• Follow-up visits: There is no such thing as set-it-and-forget-it in lawn care. It’s important to monitor progress and plan follow-up steps.

This integrated approach will help you get rid of the weeds that you see today, prevent them from coming back next year, and prevent any new species of weeds from thriving in your lawn.

Faq

Why did weeds suddenly appear in my lawn this summer?

This can happen for any number of reasons, and knowing the reason is crucial to controlling them.

Weed seeds can easily travel through the air or during water runoff, or they can be carried into your yard by birds, wildlife, or even lawn care equipment.

They thrive in thin or unhealthy lawns, and they don’t need a lot of sun or water to thrive and take over.

What is the difference between annual and perennial weeds?

The difference between annual and perennial weeds can be confusing, especially because both can easily show up again next year.

As the names imply, annual weeds usually complete their life cycle in one growing season. On the other hand, perennial weeds survive for multiple years.

However, even though an annual weed plant will eventually die, it produces seeds that can germinate and lead to a new generation of weeds next year. Chickweed and Spurge are good examples of annual weeds.

On the other hand, perennial weeds come back over multiple years because their taproots and other underground structures survive the winter.

Will weeds die during winter?

This depends on whether we’re talking about an annual weed or a perennial weed.

Annual weeds will usually die after the first frost. On the other hand, many perennial weeds simply go dormant above ground while their living roots remain alive beneath the soil during the winter.

When should lawn weeds be treated?

This is a crucial part. Where you are in your local growing cycle will dictate the treatments and tactics you should use.

This is why it’s best to speak to an experienced lawn care professional in the early stages and avoid wasting your time or damaging your lawn.

Let Us Help You Control Weeds… This Year and Next

At Weed Man, we don’t just kill weeds. We control them and keep them from coming back next year, and the year after that, and the year after that…

“Weed Man has been servicing our lawn for 3 years and we've been consistently impressed with their service. When we moved in, our lawn was covered in weeds, but now it looks better every year. Every team member we've spoken to has been excellent.” - A 5-Star Google Review.

Don’t wait for your weeds to spread! Reach out for a free lawn care quote right now and stop them.