Can you get rid of dollar weeds permanently? Yes, you can! Getting rid of dollar weeds fast and permanently involves a multi-pronged approach that tackles the weed itself and the conditions that allow it to thrive.
Dollar weeds, also known as pennywort, are a persistent and frustrating lawn weed. Their distinctive, rounded, scalloped leaves are a sure sign of trouble for many homeowners. If you’re asking, “What is dollar weed?” – it’s a low-growing perennial weed with broad, circular leaves that grow on stolons (runners) that spread across your lawn. These stolons can root at nodes, making them incredibly difficult to eradicate once established. Seeing those coin-sized leaves popping up is a signal that it’s time for serious lawn care dollar weeds intervention.
Many people wonder, “How do I control dollar weeds effectively?” The answer lies in a combination of mechanical removal, chemical treatments, and, most importantly, fostering a healthy, dense lawn that naturally outcompetes these unwelcome guests. Let’s dive into the best ways to tackle this lawn menace.
Identifying Your Enemy: What Makes Dollar Weeds Thrive?
Before we talk about how to get rid of dollar weeds, it’s crucial to understand why they like your lawn so much. Dollar weeds are opportunistic. They thrive in specific conditions that often indicate underlying issues with your turf. Fathoming these conditions is the first step towards effective dollar weed removal.
- Poorly Drained Soil: Dollar weeds love wet feet! Compacted soil that doesn’t drain well creates a perfect environment for them. If your lawn stays soggy for extended periods after rain or watering, this is a major contributor to dollar weed infestations.
- Low Mowing Height: Mowing your grass too short stresses the turf, making it vulnerable. Short grass also provides dollar weeds with direct access to sunlight, which they need to grow.
- Insufficient Sunlight: While dollar weeds can tolerate some shade, they often appear in areas where your desired turf grass is struggling due to lack of sun.
- Thin or Sparse Turf: A healthy, dense lawn is the best defense against weeds. If your grass is thin, patchy, or struggling, dollar weeds will quickly move in to fill the gaps.
- Compacted Soil: Soil compaction restricts root growth of your lawn grass while allowing the shallow, spreading roots of dollar weeds to flourish.
Tackling Dollar Weeds: A Comprehensive Strategy
Getting rid of dollar weeds fast and permanently requires a strategic and consistent effort. There isn’t a single magic bullet, but by combining different methods, you can achieve excellent results.
1. Manual Dollar Weed Removal: The Immediate Fix
For small infestations, manual dollar weed removal can be effective. This is the most direct approach to dollar weed removal and can provide immediate visual improvement.
- Tools: A trowel, a dandelion digger, or a specialized weed puller can be useful.
- Technique: The key is to get the entire root system. Dig around the weed, loosening the soil, and gently pull it up, ensuring you get as much of the stolon as possible.
- Timing: It’s best to pull weeds when the soil is moist, as this makes it easier to extract the entire root.
- Limitations: This method is labor-intensive and can be impractical for large areas. If you don’t remove the entire stolon, the weed will likely grow back.
2. Chemical Control: Targeting Dollar Weeds with Weed Killer
When manual removal isn’t enough, chemical treatments become a necessary part of your dollar weed treatment plan. Choosing the right weed killer for dollar weeds is crucial for effectiveness and to avoid damaging your desired grass.
Understanding Herbicide Types
- Pre-emergent Herbicides: These prevent weed seeds from germinating. They are less effective against established dollar weeds, which spread via stolons.
- Post-emergent Herbicides: These kill weeds that have already emerged. This is what you’ll need for active dollar weed infestations.
Post-emergent Options for Dollar Weeds
Several active ingredients are known to be effective against dollar weeds, particularly in warm-season grasses. For cool-season grasses, extreme caution is advised, as many effective dollar weed killers can damage fescue, bluegrass, and ryegrass.
- Atrazine: This is a selective herbicide commonly used for dollar weed control in certain turf types, especially warm-season grasses like Bermuda, St. Augustine, and Zoysia. It works by inhibiting photosynthesis. Important Note: Atrazine use is restricted in some areas and requires careful application according to label instructions. It can also injure or kill desirable turf if misapplied.
- Metsulfuron-methyl: Found in many broadleaf weed killers, this is effective against dollar weeds. It works by disrupting plant growth processes. It’s often effective in both cool and warm-season grasses, but always check the product label for specific grass tolerance.
- Dicamba: Another common ingredient in broadleaf weed killers, dicamba targets broadleaf weeds. It’s often combined with other herbicides for a broader spectrum of control.
- 2,4-D and Triclopyr: These are standard broadleaf weed killers that can help suppress dollar weeds, especially when used in combination.
Application Tips for Weed Killers
- Read the Label: This is the most critical step. The product label will specify which grasses it is safe to use on, the correct application rates, and the timing of application.
- Spot Treatment: For smaller areas, spot treating the dollar weeds is more economical and reduces the risk of harming your lawn.
- Timing: Apply herbicides when dollar weeds are actively growing. Avoid application during extreme heat, drought, or when rain is expected within 24 hours.
- Follow-up: You may need multiple applications spaced a few weeks apart to completely eliminate established dollar weeds.
3. Natural Dollar Weed Control: Eco-Friendly Approaches
For those who prefer to avoid chemicals, natural dollar weed control methods are available, though they often require more persistence and are best suited for preventing outbreaks or managing minor issues.
- Vinegar: Household vinegar (acetic acid) can burn the leaves of dollar weeds. However, it’s non-selective, meaning it can also harm your grass. It’s best used as a spot treatment on hot, sunny days. You’ll need to apply it repeatedly.
- Boiling Water: Similar to vinegar, boiling water can kill dollar weeds on contact. Be extremely careful not to scald your lawn grass. This is a very localized treatment.
- Corn Gluten Meal: Applied as a pre-emergent, corn gluten meal inhibits root formation in germinating seeds. While it can help prevent new dollar weeds from establishing, it won’t kill existing plants. It also needs to be applied at the right time, before weed seeds germinate.
4. Cultural Practices: The Foundation of a Weed-Free Lawn
The best way to remove dollar weeds and prevent them from returning is to create a lawn that they simply don’t like. This involves good lawn care practices that promote a thick, healthy turf.
Mowing High:
- The Rule: Aim to mow your lawn at the higher end of the recommended height for your grass type. For most cool-season grasses, this is around 3-3.5 inches. For warm-season grasses, 1-2.5 inches is typical, but still avoid cutting too short.
- The Why: Taller grass shades the soil, which inhibits weed seed germination and makes it harder for dollar weeds to establish. It also encourages deeper root growth in your lawn grass, making it more resilient.
Proper Watering:
- The Rule: Water deeply and infrequently. This encourages deep root growth in your turf grass, making it more drought-tolerant and better able to compete.
- The Why: Dollar weeds thrive in consistently moist, shallow soil. Infrequent, deep watering helps to dry out the surface layer, which is less hospitable to dollar weeds. Avoid leaving your lawn constantly damp.
Aeration:
- The Rule: Aerate your lawn annually, or at least every other year, especially if you have clay soil or notice compaction.
- The Why: Aeration creates small holes in the soil, relieving compaction and improving air, water, and nutrient penetration to the grass roots. This strengthens your lawn and makes it harder for dollar weeds to gain a foothold.
Fertilization:
- The Rule: Fertilize your lawn according to a schedule that suits your grass type and local climate. Use a balanced fertilizer and avoid over-fertilizing, which can encourage weak, rapid growth susceptible to disease and weeds.
- The Why: Proper nutrition keeps your lawn healthy and dense, allowing it to outcompete weeds.
Overseeding (Cool-Season Grasses):
- The Rule: In the fall, overseed thin areas of your cool-season lawn with a quality grass seed blend.
- The Why: Filling in bare spots with healthy grass is one of the most effective ways to prevent weeds like dollar weeds from taking over.
Preventing Dollar Weeds: The Long-Term Solution
To permanently eliminate dollar weeds, prevention is key. Once you’ve managed to get rid of them, implementing these practices will help prevent their return.
1. Maintain a Healthy Lawn Ecosystem
- Dense Turf: The goal is a thick carpet of grass that leaves no room for weeds.
- Strong Roots: Deep roots make your grass more resilient to drought and competition.
2. Address Soil Issues Promptly
- Drainage: If poor drainage is a problem, consider amending your soil with organic matter over time. For severe issues, you might need to explore more extensive drainage solutions.
- Compaction: Regular aeration is your best friend against soil compaction.
3. Smart Mowing and Watering Habits
- High Mowing: Stick to the higher mowing heights recommended for your grass.
- Deep Watering: Water deeply once or twice a week, allowing the soil surface to dry out between waterings.
4. Monitor and Spot Treat Early
- Vigilance: Keep an eye on your lawn for any new dollar weed sprouts.
- Early Intervention: The sooner you spot and remove a new weed, the easier it is to control before it spreads via its stolons.
Combining Approaches for Best Results: The Integrated Method
The most effective way to get rid of dollar weeds fast and permanently is to use an integrated approach that combines several strategies. This is often referred to as Integrated Pest Management (IPM) when applied to lawns.
Scenario: You have a moderate infestation of dollar weeds in your Bermuda grass lawn.
Integrated Plan:
- Immediate Action (Manual Removal): Go out on a slightly damp morning and pull as many dollar weeds as you can, focusing on getting the entire root and stolon.
- Chemical Treatment (Post-emergent): Within a week or two, apply a selective herbicide known to be effective for dollar weeds in Bermuda grass. Choose a product that lists Atrazine or another suitable active ingredient. Read the label carefully for application rates and instructions.
- Cultural Practices (Ongoing):
- Mowing: Ensure you are mowing your Bermuda grass at the appropriate height (around 1-2 inches).
- Watering: Adjust your watering to water deeply when the grass shows signs of needing it, rather than on a fixed schedule.
- Fertilization: Follow a proper fertilization schedule for Bermuda grass to keep it healthy and dense.
- Follow-up: Monitor your lawn for returning dollar weeds. You may need a second herbicide application 3-4 weeks after the first, depending on the product and the severity of the infestation.
- Prevention: Continue with the cultural practices to maintain a healthy, dense lawn that naturally suppresses weeds.
This layered approach ensures that you’re not just treating the symptoms but also addressing the underlying causes and building a more resilient lawn for the future.
Common Dollar Weed Removal Challenges and Solutions
| Challenge | Why it’s Difficult | Solutions |
|---|---|---|
| Spreading Stolons | Dollar weeds spread rapidly underground and above ground via runners (stolons). | Vigorous manual removal, ensuring you get the entire stolon. Use herbicides that are systemic and can kill the entire plant, including the roots and stolons. Improve soil health to encourage turf root growth. |
| Wet Soil Conditions | Dollar weeds thrive in moist, poorly drained areas. | Improve soil drainage through aeration and topdressing with compost. Adjust watering habits to allow the soil surface to dry out between waterings. |
| Thin Turf | Bare or thin patches in your lawn provide ideal entry points for dollar weeds. | Overseed bare areas with appropriate grass seed. Maintain a high mowing height to encourage dense turf growth. |
| Herbicide Resistance | Repeated use of the same herbicide can lead to resistance in weeds. | Rotate the types of herbicides you use, focusing on different active ingredients. Always use products labeled for your specific grass type to avoid damage. |
| Cool-Season Grass Issues | Many effective dollar weed treatments can damage or kill cool-season grasses. | Use selective herbicides specifically labeled for cool-season turf. Consider manual removal or improving cultural practices as primary strategies. Spot-treat very carefully. |
Frequently Asked Questions About Dollar Weeds
Q: How quickly can I get rid of dollar weeds?
A: You can see immediate results with manual removal, but complete eradication, especially for established infestations, can take several weeks to a few months and consistent effort, especially if you’re relying on natural methods or avoiding strong chemicals.
Q: Will a general weed killer kill dollar weeds?
A: It depends on the active ingredients in the weed killer. Many general weed killers are designed for common broadleaf weeds but may not be effective against dollar weeds. Always check the product label to ensure it specifically targets dollar weeds or is effective against them.
Q: Can I treat dollar weeds in my St. Augustine grass?
A: Yes, St. Augustine grass is a warm-season grass that is generally tolerant of herbicides like Atrazine, which are effective against dollar weeds. Always confirm the specific product is labeled for St. Augustine grass and follow application instructions precisely.
Q: Is there a best time of year to treat dollar weeds?
A: The best time to treat dollar weeds is when they are actively growing and before they go to seed. For many regions, this means spring and early summer. However, follow-up treatments may be needed in late summer or early fall.
Q: My lawn has dollar weeds, but it’s mostly bare dirt. What should I do?
A: If your lawn is mostly bare, your priority should be establishing healthy turf grass. Amend the soil, reseed or resod, and then focus on maintaining a dense lawn. While you’re establishing new grass, you can manually remove any dollar weeds that appear. Once your turf is established, you can begin more targeted control methods.
By understanding the nature of dollar weeds and implementing a consistent, multi-faceted approach, you can effectively control and, with persistence, eliminate them from your lawn, enjoying a healthier and more beautiful turf.