LawnSuite guide: Winter grass (Poa annua) in lawns: how to spot it and when to act
Use this LawnSuite guide to recognise the problem before deciding what to do. Winter grass is the bright-green tufty grass that pops up through winter and then dies off in late spring, leaving gaps behind. Most of the work happens before you ever see it.
How to spot it
Winter grass (Poa annua) is a bright-green, tufty grass that appears through winter. It dies off in late spring, which can leave bare patches.
When it shows up
It germinates as the soil cools in autumn. That's why the preventive window is autumn, ahead of germination. Acting in autumn beats fighting it in July.
Your grass type
Buffalo, couch, kikuyu, zoysia and cool-season lawns all have an autumn window for winter weeds.
Lawn care that keeps it out
Hand-pull winter grass before its seed heads set seed. A well-fed, dense lawn is the best long-term weed control, because most weeds are opportunists in thin turf.
If you use a product
Use a selective herbicide whose label lists your turf type and winter grass, and follow the label. If you plan to oversow, check the label's reseeding restrictions first, because a pre-emergent can stop your new seed from coming up too.
Keep reading
Not sure it's winter grass?
Create a free LawnSuite account in your browser and photograph the patch. Photo diagnosis uses Google Gemini vision to identify the likely weed, pest or disease and shows a confidence score for each result, so you can match it to the signs on this page before you treat.