Product Reviews
Best Crabgrass Killer: Count the Tillers First
Penn State names four postemergence actives, and the one on every shelf may not fully control crabgrass with 2, 3 or 4 tillers. Count the plant before you buy.
Topic collection
Herbicide Selection
Which weed killer is safe for my grass type?
The right herbicide depends on your turf species as much as on the weed: a product that is routine on Bermuda will scorch St. Augustine. These guides compare active ingredients, label safety and cost per thousand square feet.
21 guides in this collection ·All Product Reviews
Weed Control
Do You Need a License to Spray Your Own Lawn?
A pesticide applicator license turns on who holds the sprayer, not what is in it. What EPA restricts, and which state agency decides the rest.
Weed Control
Best Weed Killer for Centipede: The Sensitive One
NC State says it plainly: centipedegrass is sensitive to 2,4-D. It also wants no lime and almost no nitrogen — so the standard Southern routine is wrong three ways.
Weed Control
Best Weed Killer for St. Augustine: The Cultivar Decides
Common cannot take 2,4-D. Floratam cannot take atrazine. Bitterblue is weak on both. There is no St. Augustine answer until you know which one you have.
Weed Control
Best Weed Killer for Zoysia: Tolerance Is Not the Problem
Zoysia takes almost everything the other Southern grasses cannot. Its real limits are temperature, mowing gap and growth — and it recovers slowly when you miss them.
Weed Control
Fluazifop vs Clethodim: Same Group, Different Labels
Both kill grass and spare broadleaves, and both are Group 1 — so swapping them is not rotation. What separates them is which sites their labels allow.
Weed Control
Triclopyr Ester vs Amine: Same Active, Different Risk
Both bottles say triclopyr. The words after it decide whether the spray stays where you put it — MSU measured ester drift injury at 50, amine under 20.
Product Reviews
Prodiamine vs Dithiopyr: One of Them Forgives Being Late
SDSU: once crabgrass emerges, prodiamine is no longer effective. Dithiopyr still is — but the limit extension sets is tillering, not the four weeks on the bag.
Weed Control
Can You Mix Herbicides in One Tank? The Order Matters
NDSU: most broadleaf herbicides tank mixed with grass herbicides reduce grass control. The fix is sequence — grass herbicide one day before, or seven days after.
Weed Control
Herbicide Carryover in Compost: A Lab Test Can Miss It
Oregon State: chemical lab testing might not indicate herbicide contamination. Three actives survive an animal's gut and composting, sometimes for years.
Weed Control
Herbicide Surfactant vs Crop Oil: The Label Decides
Crop oil concentrate is 80–85% oil with only 15–20% surfactant in it. Not a stronger surfactant — a different product, and substituting can break the label.
Weed Control
Why Didn't My Weed Killer Work? Six Causes, One Is the Product
Six causes, and five of them cost nothing to fix. Start from what you saw on the lawn rather than the brand on the bottle — one of them is in your tap water.
Product Reviews
Battery vs Manual Backpack Sprayer: Wrong Question
NC State: constant pressure must be maintained for a consistent application rate. Both types can deliver it. The nozzle decides more than the pump does.
Weed Control
How Long After Spraying Weed Killer Can I Mow? 3–4 Days
Iowa State gives two waits: 3 to 4 days after spraying, and 2 to 3 days before it — the half nobody asks about. Mow inside either and the dose misses.
Weed Control
How to Read a Pesticide Label: The Registration Number First
One EPA registration can carry eleven brand names. And a third set of digits means the label in your hand may be a narrowed version of the same product.
Weed Control
Spraying Weed Killer in Hot Weather — and in Cold
Nebraska: best performance at 60–75°F, and avoid glyphosate below 40°F. Purdue: hot dry weather thickens the leaf cuticle, so the plant physically resists uptake.
Weed Control
Will Rain Wash Away Weed Killer? The Weed, Not the Brand
Purdue: 30 minutes can be enough on a small weed, several hours on a big one. Iowa State asks 24 hours on lawns. The weed sets the window, not the brand.
Weed Control
Pet Safe Weed Killer: What That Label Actually Promises
"Pet safe" is not a regulated claim, and most products sold under it kill grass as fast as weeds. The promise that is real: keep pets off until it dries.
Product Reviews
Best Weed Killer for Lawns: Match It to the Weed
There is no best weed killer for lawns, only the right one for your weed: the seven chemistries that matter, what each kills, and the one that kills grass too.
Product Reviews
Organic Weed Killer for Lawns: The One That Works
The organic weed killer that works on lawns is iron — it burns broadleaf weeds and moss in hours without harming grass. What it won't do: kill the roots.
Product Reviews
Best Weed Killer for Bermuda Grass: What Each Misses
The best weed killer for Bermuda grass depends on the weed — and Bermuda tolerates chemistries that would scorch St. Augustine. What each option misses.
Related collections
Other Product Reviews topics worth reading next.
Lawn Health Newsletter
Seasonal lawn reminders, on time
Pre-emergent windows, disease alerts and fertilization schedules for your region — one short email, right when your lawn needs it.
Free forever. Unsubscribe anytime. US lawns only (for now). This season's companion: the printable fall checklist.