How to Identify Texas Lawn Weeds
- 1). Identify lawn burweed--also known as spurweed, and a major pest in Texas lawns--by looking for a low-growing weed that forms dense mats about 2 inches high. The narrow, almost feathery-looking leaves are positioned opposite to each other on the stems; the seeds are spiny, and sharp enough to pierce skin. If you notice the weed emerging in the fall, and you are in the coastal plains region of Texas, it is more likely that the weed is burweed.
- 2). To identify cheat grass, or downy brome, look for long stems and drooping leaves with a soft, downy appearance, and seeds of a purple hue. Cheat grass, which infests thin or sparse turf, dries out over the summer, and can become a fire hazard.
- 3). Look for seed heads containing three to six spikes to identify Dallisgrass, a warm-season light green perennial weed that grows into bushy clumps. Since Dallisgrass only grows where soil temperature is above 60 to 65 degrees, warm weather makes a diagnosis of Dallisgrass more likely.
- 4). Recognize crabgrass by looking for a distinctive crablike-appearance, as well as a bluish-gray color. This warm-season annual grass sends out tough, fibrous runners, and seems to crawl over lawns. If the weed growing in your lawn in full sun, in the heat of summer, this makes it more probable that it is crabgrass.
- 5). Identify Johnson grass by looking for flat, broad dark green leaves that resemble those of corn. But instead of corn, this grass produces seeds that are blush, dark red or purple when mature. If uncontrolled, Johnson grass can grow to seven feet tall.
- 6). Identify Russian knapweed by looking for lobed, blue-green leaves that are covered in fine hairs, giving the plant a powdery appearance. Each branch of this weed produces one to three pink or purple flowers. To confirm that the plant is Russian knapweed, pull it out--the taproot will be black. This noxious weed is toxic to horses.
- 7). Recognize sandbur by looking for its bright green shiny blades, as well as the presence of burs on long stems. This weed can have an attractive appearance, until it starts producing the sharp, spiny seeds that attach themselves relentlessly to clothing, pet fur and skin.
- 8). Identify dollarweed--also called pennywort--by looking for glossy green round leaves about an inch in diameter. Dollarweed spreads into dense patches very quickly in damp areas.
- 9). Identify chickweed--a very prolific spring weed in Texas--by looking for a spreading, creeping bright green weed that forms into dense patches. Hairy stems and tiny white flowers are another indication of chickweed.
- 10
To recognize hairy beggartick, a warm-season annual weed, look for flowers with white rays and yellow centers, displayed on smooth long stems. - 11
To identify bull thistle, look for a rugged-looking plant growing in a rosette shape, with gray-green spiny leaves. In its second year, bull thistle displays a fluffy flower that is dark pink to purple.
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