I had a new bluegrass lawn put in last year, and I started using Scotts products.  I've been happy with the results, despite a bout of brown patch that hit me (and a few others in my town).

When should I do my spring application?  I'll be using Scotts Turf Builder with Halts Crabgrass Preventer.  

Any worries if I put it down in the next two weeks and we get another snowfall?  What has worked well for you?

I'm near Grand Island, if that matters.

I know the Scotts stuff isn't the cheapest, but it's easy, it works, and I only have about 1k sq ft to deal with out front.

Here's some info............................


from this site

When To Apply Crabgrass Preventer For Early and Best Control

Crabgrass seeds can germinate each year when nighttime soil temperatures reach over 50 degrees for 3 days. This “wakes up” the seed, and starts it on its process of growing up to be your worst nightmare.

Note, the seed “can” germinate at that point. So common thinking is to have the preemergent applied no later than this. That could mean a December application in Southern California, but April in Ohio.

So you can diligently observe soil temperatures, either through your own monitoring, or a local source. Perhaps the newspaper in your area provides such information, or the county agricultural department. State universities may provide this information on a website as a guideline for when to apply crabgrass preventer and other products.

But, how much of the current crabgrass seed lurking in your yard will germinate this early?

The earlier that you apply the preemergent, the sooner it will lose effectiveness. The duration of effective control depends on the type of product, and how heavy of a concentration you apply.

The control could last 2 to 3 months, or longer than 4 months, depending on several factors. So the date chosen as when to apply crabgrass preventer could determine if you need to do it one or two additional times.


Is Early Application The Best Time Or The Only Time?

Crabgrass seed doesn’t line up at the germination window like holiday shoppers do at stores on the morning after Thanksgiving. Some are late sleepers.

Researchers at the University of Maryland determined that the minimum daytime soil temperature to observe the initial emergence of crabgrass was 54 degrees.

The major emergence of crabgrass, however, did not appear until soil temperatures were at least in the range of 60 to 70 degrees.

This explains something that you have probably observed. There seems to be no end to the appearance of new crabgrass throughout the warm months of the year. Individual seed specimens will vary by size, maturity, and depth in the ground, as to when they are ready to germinate.

Soil temperatures will vary throughout your yard. How much is the soil shaded during the day? The thickness and height of your grass can affect this. So can trees, shrubs and buildings nearby, as well as cloudy days. The amount of moisture present, wind, and more, can also affect temperatures.

The end result is, these pesky weeds will pop up consistently over an extremely long growing season. Will the late bloomers be met with preemergent, or will it have worn off already? So there really is not one small window that is fitting for when to apply crabgrass preventer

What if you miss the early date for applying the preemergent? You watch crabgrass sprouting for a month because you don‘t have a chance to get to yard chores. Does that doom you to allowing the remaining seeds to have their way the rest of the growing season? Certainly not!

Take the necessary steps to kill crabgrass plants that showed up early. But why not be in control for the rest of the season? Don’t despair because of what all the experts say about the limitations of when to apply crabgrass preventer. Get it down as soon as possible, yes. Get it down as late as possible also.

The only thing you have working against you is that most preemergents will lose their effectiveness in extreme heat, when temperatures get over 90 degrees. By this time most of the weeds will have sprouted anyways. But a single short heat wave may not fit that condition.

You may have a chance to reduce the crabgrass population by 50 percent or even by just one-third, with a late application. That could translate into less trouble trying to kill mature weeds later on, and especially next year. Let the answer to 'when to apply crabgrass preventer' be mindful of next year's benefits as well as providing some help this season.

Good read, thanks.

The forecast is calling for 50s and 60s this week, and of course, the local hardware store didn't have any.  Looks like the next few weeks should work though.