Weed Identification Guide
Browse 25 lawn weeds that invade turf in Middle Tennessee. Identify what's growing in your yard so we can target it with the right treatment.
🌾 Turf Weeds
Grassy weeds, broadleaf weeds, and sedges that invade lawns in Middle Tennessee. Each category requires different chemistry — identification drives the right treatment. 25 entries.
Orchardgrass
Dactylis glomerata
<p>Orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata) is a coarse perennial bunch grass that shows up in fescue lawns as lighter-green, fast-growing clumps that sit a ...
Little Barley
Hordeum pusillum
<p>Little barley (Hordeum pusillum) is a winter annual grass that germinates in fall, overwinters as small rosettes, bolts in early spring with distin...
Smooth Crabgrass
Digitaria ischaemum
<p>Smooth crabgrass (Digitaria ischaemum) is a summer annual grassy weed that germinates when soil temperatures reach the mid-50s Fahrenheit — which i...
Large Crabgrass
Digitaria sanguinalis
<p>Large crabgrass (Digitaria sanguinalis) is the coarser, more aggressive cousin of smooth crabgrass. It has wider leaf blades, hairy stems and sheat...
Dallisgrass
Paspalum dilatatum
<p>Dallisgrass (Paspalum dilatatum) is one of the most difficult perennial grassy weeds in Middle Tennessee fescue lawns, and almost every homeowner w...
Yellow Nutsedge
Cyperus esculentus
<p>Yellow nutsedge (Cyperus esculentus) is a perennial sedge — not a grass, not a broadleaf — and it is the single most common summer weed complaint a...
Purple Nutsedge
Cyperus rotundus
<p>Purple nutsedge (Cyperus rotundus) is the harder-to-kill cousin of yellow nutsedge, and in Middle Tennessee it has a very specific geographic footp...
Rough Bluegrass
Poa trivialis
<p>Rough bluegrass (Poa trivialis) is a cool-season perennial grass weed that stands out as lime-green patches in fescue lawns during spring. It thriv...
Annual Bluegrass
Poa annua
<p>Poa annua — annual bluegrass — is one of the only annual weeds that is genuinely hard to control in Middle Tennessee fescue lawns. Unlike most annu...
Henbit
Lamium amplexicaule
<p>Henbit (Lamium amplexicaule) is a winter annual broadleaf weed that turns Middle Tennessee lawns purple-pink every March. It is often confused with...
Chickweed
Stellaria media
<p>Chickweed (Stellaria media) is a winter annual broadleaf weed that shows up in Middle Tennessee lawns from fall through early spring. You will see ...
White Clover
Trifolium repens
<p>White clover (Trifolium repens) is technically a perennial — it lives for years and spreads by stolons — but it is most visible and most complained...
Dandelion
Taraxacum officinale
<p>Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is the most universally recognized weed in the world — everyone knows the yellow flower and the white seed puff. W...
Wild Violet
Viola sororia
<p>Wild violet (Viola sororia) is a perennial broadleaf weed that is concentrated in Franklin, Belle Meade, and older Brentwood neighborhoods — and is...
Ground Ivy
Glechoma hederacea
<p>Ground ivy (Glechoma hederacea), also called creeping Charlie, is a shade-tolerant perennial broadleaf weed that spreads by stolons and forms dense...
Spurge
Euphorbia maculata
<p>Spotted spurge (Euphorbia maculata) is a summer annual broadleaf weed that really gets going in Middle Tennessee toward the end of summer — late Au...
Plantain
Plantago major
<p>Broadleaf plantain (Plantago major) is a perennial broadleaf weed with wide, oval leaves that lie flat against the ground in a basal rosette. Its c...
Goosegrass
Eleusine indica
<p>Goosegrass (Eleusine indica) is a summer annual grassy weed that tends to pop up a little earlier than crabgrass in Middle Tennessee. It is identif...
Foxtail
Setaria viridis
<p>Green foxtail (Setaria viridis) is a summer annual grassy weed identifiable by its distinctive fuzzy, cylindrical seed head that resembles a fox ta...
Johnson Grass
Sorghum halepense
<p>Johnson grass (Sorghum halepense) is a tall, aggressive perennial grassy weed that shares the same origin story as dallisgrass in Middle Tennessee:...
Kyllinga
Kyllinga brevifolia
<p>Green kyllinga (Kyllinga brevifolia) is a sedge closely related to nutsedge, with a similar triangular stem cross-section and preference for moist,...
Virginia Buttonweed
Diodia virginiana
<p>Virginia buttonweed (Diodia virginiana) is one of the most adaptable and difficult perennial broadleaf weeds in Middle Tennessee fescue lawns. Its ...
Quack Grass
Elymus repens
<p>Quack grass (Elymus repens) is rare in Middle Tennessee but terrifying when it shows up — because there is no selective herbicide that can remove i...
Nimblewill
Muhlenbergia schreberi
<p>Nimblewill (Muhlenbergia schreberi) is the shade-dwelling doppelganger of Bermuda grass. It has a very similar fine-textured leaf pattern and grayi...
Wild Onion
Allium canadense
<p>Wild onion (Allium canadense) is a perennial cool-season weed that shows up in Middle Tennessee fescue lawns from late fall through spring. You spo...
Why Weed Identification Matters
Not all weeds respond to the same herbicides. Grassy weeds like crabgrass and dallisgrass require selective grass herbicides, while broadleaf weeds like dandelion and clover need broadleaf formulations. Sedges like nutsedge need sedge-specific chemistry entirely.
Applying the wrong product wastes money and can damage your turf. Accurate weed identification is the foundation of effective weed control — which is why our UT Certified horticulturist personally identifies what's growing in your lawn before recommending any treatment.
We serve Columbia, Thompson's Station, Spring Hill, and much of Middle Tennessee. Browse our library to learn what you're dealing with, then give us a call to eliminate it for good.
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