|
Is Your Lawn Plagued by Weeds?
Successful weed identification is a combination of timing
and user-friendly data. Timing in relation to the maturity of the plant
(the older, the easier) and user-friendly data, meaning an identification
guide that is designed to facilitate the identification process. Both
were considered in the design of this guide.
Timing: When identifying either monocot (grassy) weeds or dicot (broadleaf)
weeds, studying a mature or flowering sample is very important. All of
the most easily identifiable traits - flowers, seeds, leaves and roots
- are present then, so take some time to find a mature specimen to examine.
User-friendly data: For ease of use, this guide concentrates on those
plant characteristics that differentiate one species from another rather
than those traits each has in common. These differences are represented
visually with added text to refine the distinctions between similar plants.
Understanding the terms used in this guide
Understanding the parts of a grass plant are essential to accurately identify
monocot weeds. In the example shown, pay particular attention to the seedhead,
the ligule and the collar. They are the plant parts which have the most
differentiating traits.
Abbreviations
aka = "also known as" (different common names are popular in different
parts of the U.S.)
Further help
The use of this guide was designed to help managers substantially reduce
the number of possible weed species identifications. However, variations
in a plant's vegetative characteristics or distribution may require that
managers forward samples to their local extension service for confirmation.
American Cyanamid's local technical representatives can also be contacted
for further help. Sources Information was compiled from the Scotts "Guide
to the Identification of Grasses," the Southern Weed Science Society's
"Weed Identification Guide," A.S. Hitchcock's "Manual of the Grasses of
the United States" and the extension department at Cornell University.
|
