Zoysia Grass – Right Time To Apply Weed Preventer

Q: In late October, I had my backyard sodded with zoysia. It has taken root and seems to be doing well. When is the right time to apply weed preventer?

A: In my experience zoysia grass is slow to make many deep roots when laid in the fall of the year, because the soil is relatively cool. For that reason I would not apply pre-emergent now because most pre-emergent chemicals inhibit root formation. I’d rather you wait to put out weed preventer until the grass is at least 90% green in late April. If you care for zoysia correctly, it does a good job controlling weeds by itself.