Weeds are springing to life in your yard. Here's how to kill them.

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Ah, a little sunshine, a little warmth to the temperatures. That’s more like it, right? A few flowers are blooming and that’s what we were waiting for! Wait, are those weeds? How are there so many weeds already?

The weeds that are cheerfully growing in our yards right now are ones that thrive in cool weather. Many are easy to cope with. For instance, the Asiatic hawksbeard has a rosette of leaves and sends up a single stalk with yellow flowers on top. This weed isn’t too hard to pull. In a few minutes every few days, you can remove a bunch of them. Every weed with a flower or bud on it that you remove will save you an abundance of work in the next few years. When a weed goes to seed, the seeds are little bombs that can germinate for years. Some weeds can produce thousands of seeds. Each weed you prevent from going to seed is a major accomplishment!

Chickweed, which forms a bright green mat over the top of the ground has sticky seeds. It can be gathered up and pulled pretty easily. With those sticky seeds, you want to get it out of there and all of the seeds with it.

Another frequent seed producer is Phyllanthus. In addition to its awkward name, this is a plant that produces seeds quickly, so rapid removal is a good idea. It grows upright, with seeds appearing along the side branches. It is related to the chamber bitter which will show up when the temperatures are a little warmer and look similar but has thicker leaves and stems.

One of the weeds that won’t be easy to pull is catbriar, or smilax. It has shiny heart-shaped leaves and a twining stem with thorns. It seems talented at coming up in the middle of shrubs or under trees because birds usually plant the seeds. You may feel satisfaction as the stem snaps off, but you are leaving a tuber underground. Sometimes you have the wonderful victory of pulling up the tuber. That is a pat-yourself-on-the-back moment.

The wood sorrels are showing up. Whether their flowers are yellow or brown, you want them to be gone. You can’t pull them. The stems will snap right off. You can dig the nut-like tuber right out and solve the problem. Since it is March, you could pretend they are clovers, while you are pulling them up, but none of them will have 4 leaves.

Weed killers can kill more than just weeds

You might be thinking, why can’t I just throw some herbicide (weed killer) out there and be done with it? For the weeds that are easily pulled, it is a waste of money. But you should also give some thought to the effects of herbicides.

Some herbicides can be applied and stay with the plant they are applied to. Those are called contact, non-selective herbicides. Glyphosate (Roundup) is an example. When you apply it, it is absorbed into the plant it touches, translocated throughout the plant, interferes with the function of the plant, and causes death. That can take a couple of weeks. When it contacts soil or other non-plant material, it begins to decompose.

People sometimes think they prefer a faster “death.” So, they apply a home concoction that may permanently change the pH of their soil (making it impossible for their plants to absorb nutrients), or change the salinity of their soil, making it impossible for plants to grow there. How is that helping the garden?

Or, as happened to two different people I know, they apply an herbicide to kill weeds and forget their trees are growing there too. Several trees in each yard died. It is very expensive to remove 5 or 6 mature trees from a yard and it’s a loss that takes years to replace.

Where herbicides are concerned, caution is necessary.

Read the package. Follow the directions carefully. Wear protective gear. Watch out for hot temperatures. High temperatures can cause damage to your lawn. Wash up and wash your clothes after application. Take the chemicals seriously.

Does your herbicide move with water? That can move it beyond your control to neighbors’ yards, killing their plants and making you liable for their losses.

When to apply preemergent weed killer

If you had a lot of summer weeds that went to seed and you want to prevent them from germinating, this is the time to apply a preemergent. Scott’s makes a Weedex Preventative containing Halts crabgrass preventer, and Bonide makes ProZone with Weed Beater Complete. Check to make sure the product is right for your type of turf.

For Sedges, you need Bonide Sedge Ender or Image. Sedges can be identified by their triangular stems. Dogs love to eat sedges. It is not safe for them to eat them after they are sprayed. Sedges are treated when the temperatures are warm.

Application to a lawn when the temperatures are too high can damage or even kill a lawn. Take care as our temperatures rise to make sure you are not cutting your lawn too short and stressing it because a stressed lawn and herbicide stress won’t combine well.

You are the only one who can protect your property from misuse of chemicals. With your care, all the macro and microorganisms that share your property can live together in good health.

Becky Wern is a Master Gardener Volunteer with the Duval County Extension Service and the University of Florida/IFAS. For gardening questions, call the Duval County Extension Office at (904) 255-7450 from 9 a.m. to noon and 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. Monday-Friday and ask for a Master Gardener Volunteer.