Spring Flowering Weeds - April
Bulbous Buttercup
Mouse Ear Chickweed
Ribwort
Germander Speedwell
Slender Speedwell
- Verdone Lawn Weed Killer | Ready to Use
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Scotts Verdone Extra Weed Killer - Concentrate
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Vitax Lawn Clear Weed Killer – Concentrate
- Ferrous Sulphate
*The above Lawn Weed Control Products are available in the Lawnsmith Shop and discussed below:
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Black Medic Buttercup - Bulbous Mouse Ear Chickweed Ribwort Speedwell
Black Medic; Flowers April to August
Neither common nor a major lawn weed and usually signifies poor, dry and low quality soils. In the same family as clover and often confused with lesser trefoil a.k.a yellow suckling clover
- If this is in your lawn think about a full renovation as the chances are your lawn is poor quality
- Can spread from cuttings so always collect clippings
- Easily teased out with a comb or dinner fork
- Susceptible to Verdone weed killer* though may require repeat treatment
Buttercup - Bulbous; Flowers April to July
Buttercups; both bulbous and creeping buttercups are major lawn weeds and very common native grassland plants. They differ primarily in their habitat with the bulbous buttercup preferring sandy and chalky soils, whilst the creeping buttercup enjoys heavy and wet soils.
- Has a bulbous base making it distinctive from other buttercups
- Leaf tips rounded whereas creeping buttercup has pointed tips
- Very easy to dig out or kill with our recommended selective weed killers*
Mouse Ear Chickweed; Flowers April to September
A major lawn weed enjoying any soil and aspect.
- Grows in low, dense, creeping mats in lawns
- Can be severely checked by an early spring treatment with lawn sand or ferrous sulphate*
- Easily hand weeded and susceptible to all our recommended weed killers*
Ribwort; Flowers April to September
A member of the plantain family (not the banana like ones you fry for breakfast!). These plants a very common throughout the countryside in grassland, verges and scrub preferring neutral or alkaline soils.
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A major and very common lawn weed
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Flower is dark and more like a bobble on a slender stalk
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Easy to hand weed or kill with our recommended Weed Killers*
Speedwell; Flowers April to June
Though there are perhaps two dozen or more varieties of speedwell you are only likely to have Germander and Slender Speedwell in the lawn with the latter being a garden escapee; lovely!
Germander Speedwell: Bright blue flower with a white eye, also known as Bird's-eye Speedwell. Leaves have jagged or toothed edges. Becomes low growing and dense when in the lawn compared to a lanky growth habit in the borders.
Slender Speedwell: Tiny pink or mauve flower, also known as Round-leaved Speedwell. Has a similar growth habit to Germander Speedwell.
These plants spread from cuttings so most occurrences in the lawn are due to mulch mowing, raking, scarifying or mowing in general where some plant material is left behind. Therefore, removing all mowings and any plants from the borders is a very good idea.
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Present all year round in the lawn
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Very resistant to weed killers though you may have some success with Verdone* weedkiller
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Can be checked with ferrous sulphate* in spring but is unlikely to die
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Can be controlled by frequent raking or scarifying but collect ALL the debris
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Digging the plant out is the only sure way of removing it
*See the range of Lawnsmith Recommended Lawn Weed Killers
