LawnLogIQ Today - It's Dandelion Season!
- LawnLogIQ
- Apr 16
- 3 min read
Dandelion season is in full swing, and as expected, calls are coming in from customers and prospects alike.
In this message, we'll break down the hardy lifecycle of the dandelion and let you know how we can work together to handle this early-season weed.
Quick Facts About the Dandelion
Dandelions are hardy perennials, living 2-10 years
Dandelions have a deep tap root that, if not fully removed, will re-emerge
Soil temperatures of a sustained 55 degrees trigger above-ground growth and blooms
Each flower head produces 150-200 seeds
Each winter, the dandelion retreats underground, and only after soil temperatures hit a sustained 50 degrees will it awaken and begin its cycle again
Here's a great website with terrific information if you want to deep dive into the dandelion:
What Does LawnLogIQ Do About Dandelions and Other Winter Weeds?
It depends on where you are in our cycle of care.
1st Year Customers and Customers That Started With Us Mid-Last Year
You might be seeing an influx of dandelions and weeds right about now. That's normal. While we applied your first pre-emergent treatment in March/early April and plan to apply your 2nd pre-emergent treatment around May, pre-emergent does not stop existing weeds from growing. It stops weed seeds from germinating. This is the first step in stopping the weed lifecycle.
Until about 4 days ago, the soil temperature (and occasionally the air temperature) was not warm enough to spray herbicide on these weeds. Weeds must be actively growing to "accept" an herbicide sprayed on their leaves or to take it up through their roots. We have now entered this window and can spray herbicide until the air temperature reaches and remains at 80 degrees, at which point we cannot spray again until air temperatures drop in late summer.
On a case-by-case basis, we will blanket-spray lawns with a powerful herbicide to quickly kill established weeds, giving your grass room to grow and thicken into fall, thereby naturally resisting future weed pressure. This is the 2nd step in stopping the weed lifecycle.
Returning Customers From Past Full Season Treatments
You should be experiencing a nearly weed-free lawn at this point. Of course, nature doesn't stop trying, and a few dandelions or weeds might pop up, usually around driveways, in mulch, or in thin areas. Some of you find it fun to see a couple of yellow dots against your green lawn, while others want it out ASAP.
Rather than blanket-spraying your entire lawn, which can harm the environment, your soil profile, and beneficial insect life, we'll spot-spray them and/or pull them by the taproot when we see them during your visits.
If you are experiencing a weed outbreak (dozens of dandelions, usually clustered in one section of the yard), contact us, and we'll check it out. We'll need to investigate the potential causes and remedy this as appropriate.
All Customers
At LawnLogIQ, we're not fans of blanket spraying yards with herbicides year-round, as other companies do. It is quite harmful, wasteful, and stunts grass growth, especially when done incorrectly, but it can be necessary, especially when attempting to control and establish the yard in the first and possibly the second year.
Our goal is to, over the year and into future seasons, build your yard into a thick carpet that naturally blocks weeds from taking hold while using less damaging chemicals, like pre-emergents, to control undesirable growth. This is the 3rd and final step in stopping the weed lifecycle.
We follow ethical and environmentally friendly lawn care practices promoted by the University of Illinois, the University of Iowa, and other agricultural groups, and doing so supports appropriate decisions about herbicide use and when blanket spraying vs. spot spraying is necessary.
Hopefully this information is useful and we'll see you out in your yard again soon! Please get in touch with me with questions.
Paul
LawnLogIQ
847-220-4680
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