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Be prepared you will at some point, get weeds in your artificial grass! Don’t worry, the artificial grass hasn’t been poorly laid, weeds will grow anywhere, no matter what. The good news is, the weeds will be easy to kill permanently and they won’t ruin your artificial grass. In this article, we look at which is the best weedkiller for artificial grass and give you a few pro tips on how weeds might grow in your artificial lawn.
In a Hurry? Jump to The Best Weedkillers for Artificial Grass
Why has my Artificial Grass got Weeds?
Weeds will grow anywhere and they don’t necessarily need soil or compost to germinate (sprout). Don’t worry, your grass won’t become overrun by gigantic weeds!
Unfortunately, artificial grass can provide the perfect environment for weed seeds to germinate (sprout). Do you remember as a kid, growing cress on a damp paper towel? Fake grass is set into a backing mat and this acts just like a paper towel.
Weeds seeds are tiny and can blow from miles around in the wind. It is inevitable that some are going to fall in your garden and nestle between the blades of fake grass. The UK being the UK, it is most likely it will have rained recently and the backing mat will be damp. The sun comes out, warms the grass and backing mat and suddenly you’ve got the perfect environment to set a weed seed in motion.
How do Weeds grow in Artificial or Fake Grass?
A seed contains all the nutrients it needs for the first few days of its life but once the weed sends out roots, it then needs water. The roots then spread out, sideways in search of moisture.
Small weeds don’t need a lot of moisture to keep going but as the weather warms up, so does the moisture and the weed will struggle to survive. That said, they are pesky beasts and will put up a fight! However, they won’t grow into triffids.
How to Treat Weeds in Artificial Grass
There are two types of weeds, perennial and annual weeds. Perennial weeds have long roots and will return every year. Annual weeds grow from seed and when they die, will not regrow, just like the situation described above.
As there are two types of weed, there are two types of weedkillers:
- Contact Weedkillers
Contact weedkillers will destroy the green leafy part of the weed and works well on annual weeds. There are very few contact weedkillers available now. Vinegar works well as an organic contact weed killer.
- Systemic Weedkillers
When the leaves are sprayed with a systemic weedkiller, the weedkiller travels down through the weed to destroy the roots. Systemic weedkillers will kill ALL weeds and are used mainly for killing perennial weeds. Roundup is a good systemic weedkiller.
If you are unsure which weed you have in your artificial grass, use a Systemic Weed Killer.
Which WeedKillers can I use on Artificial Grass?
Any water-based weedkiller can be used on artificial or fake grass. This means, if you can mix the weedkiller with water, it is water-based. This includes ‘Ready to Use’ weedkillers like Roundup ‘Pump ‘N Go’
Glyphosate Free weedkillers like the RHS Weedkiller use acetic acid to kill weeds and can be used on artificial grass. Acetic acid is essentially vinegar. Acetic acid-based weedkillers often state that they kill the roots of weeds. However, they do not kill the roots of perennial, deep-rooted weeds and the weeds could regrow.
Tips and Info
Artificial and fake grass is made up of synthetic plastic fibres which makes them incredibly resilient. The only stuff artificial grass doesn’t like is oil. Weedkillers sold in garden centres and online are very weak in terms of the solution and we have not seen any oil-based weedkillers sold on the domestic market.
Some weedkillers use salts in their solutions and these can leave a chalky white deposit on the fake grass fibres. This is not permanent and will soon disappear in the next rain shower.
If you suspect you have perennial weeds growing up through the backing of your artificial grass, due to a failed or poor installation. It is quite safe to use a stronger weedkiller like Gallup which is a strong form of Round-Up. You can read more about killing weeds successfully here.
Always test a small area of artificial lawn before you use the weedkiller to ensure it doesn’t affect the fibres.
Never use Lawn Sand on artificial lawns. Lawn sand contains iron to kill moss and will stain your artificial lawn.