Charlock or Praiseach Bhuí Problem

Seaniemac

Hi, I have a new lawn around my house and while we were building the house during the summer there was a lot of Charlock or Preaseach Bhuí around after we disturbed the soil. Now that the house is built and the lawn is set and growing the Weed is coming back. The grass is coming nicely at a lenght of 3 to 4 inches but the Weed is passing it out and is up to 7 or 8 inches in places also. It`s at the early stages of growth but there`s a few starting to flower. I`m debating, at the moment, wheather or not to Cut the lawn for the first time so that I might finish off the Weed also. This is the first time I`v ever had a lawn so I`m new to the whole lot. I would really appreciate some advice on what to do. Thanks in Advance.....

macraignil

Cutting the lawn does sound like a good idea. Grass is different than many weeds in that its growing point is at the base of the plant and cutting the lawn only trims the leaves for grass. Weeds with a growing tip further up the stem are damaged much more by the lawn mower. Each time you cut should help the grass outgrow the weeds.

I have read that the first few cuts of a new lawn should not be with a rotary drum type mower that could rip up some small grass plants. The ground may be a bit uneven in places so cutting on a high setting first might do less cutting into the soil where it is higher. Remove any loose stones from the lawn as well to avoid damaging your mower.