Lawn Care – Coarse Fescue

Coarse Fescue Control

 

TODAY’S VISIT

Your lawn has a weed grass called COARSE FESCUE growing in it.  Although it is often mistaken for crabgrass, THIS IS NOT CRABGRASS.

 

What is Coarse Fescue?

Coarse Fescue is a perennial weed grass.  Since it is a perennial plant, it lives from year to year (unlike Crabgrass which is an annual plant and dies each winter) and is not controlled by the material that controls crabgrass and other annual weed grasses.

 

What does Coarse Fescue look like?

It has: Thick blades which generally grow faster than more desirable turfgrasses / Dark Green Color / It is clump-forming / Blades grow at a 45 degree angle to the ground.

 

How did it get here???

Coarse Fescue grass grows from seed and the clumps enlarge by “tillering”  (the production of more blades). So, how did the seeds get here?  The seeds may have blown into your lawn, they may have been imported with topsoil that was brought to the property, birds may have “deposited” them on your property.  Or, possibly the Coarse Fescue seeds were in a poor quality grass seed that you or someone else used.  Unfortunately, Coarse Fescue seed is often found for sale at retail stores.

 

What can be done about it???

This is the frustrating part—there is no ‘selective’ control for Coarse Fescue (meaning a product that could be sprayed which would eliminate the coarse fescue and not hurt the good grass).  The only way to eliminate the coarse fescue is to physically remove it and replace it with a desirable grass type.

 

All of our programs are based on the principles of  Integrated Pest Management (IPM) which is an environmentally friendly and effective approach to controlling damaging insects, diseases and invasive plants. For more information about IPM click here.

 

If you would like information on the best method to remove this weed grass from your lawn, please contact us.