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Grassy Weed · Perennial · Aggressive Rhizome Spreader

Quackgrass Control Guide

Elymus repens

Purdue's turfgrass program says there are no selective controls labeled for quackgrass, and the product labels agree for residential cool-season lawns. Purdue's working program is 3-4 glyphosate applications spaced 3-4 weeks apart, then reseeding in early August. That math puts the first spray in May, months earlier than most people start. The alternative is living with the patches, which is also a defensible choice.

Quackgrass patch in a Kentucky bluegrass lawn, narrow blue-green blades standing taller than surrounding turf with coarser texture
Quackgrass patch in residential KBG, the blue-green blades stand visibly above the surrounding turf.
Anton Schwarz, Resident Lawn Types Expert

★ Author

Anton Schwarz, Resident Lawn Types Expert

"August 28th, 2024, I assessed a Kentucky bluegrass lawn in Eden Prairie where the homeowner had told me he'd spent about $340 over 18 months on Drive XLR8 trying to kill quackgrass patches. Drive is a crabgrass product. It was never going to fix quackgrass. The patches had grown the whole time. We spot-treated nine patches with 41% glyphosate in a foam wand on September 5th and overseeded the kill rings with KBG on September 22nd. By June 2025, eight of nine patches were dead. The ninth came back, which is why Purdue's program calls for 3-4 applications, not one. The product matters. The species matters. So does the number of passes."

Quick Stats

Control difficulty:
Very Hard
Primary control:
Glyphosate spot-treatment (kills surrounding grass too, so plan to reseed)
Secondary control:
No selective herbicide is labeled for quackgrass in residential cool-season lawns (see the label check below)
Program:
Purdue: 3-4 glyphosate applications spaced 3-4 weeks apart, then reseed
Rhizomes:
Rhizomes can reach up to 11 feet long (UMN Extension)

How to Identify Quackgrass

Quackgrass plant lifted from soil showing the thick segmented white aggressive rhizome system and clasping auricles at the leaf base
Quackgrass field ID: white, sharp-pointed rhizomes extending sideways, the reason hand-pulling rarely gets it all.

If you are not sure which grassy weed you have, start with our crabgrass vs quackgrass guide. Quackgrass has three signature features that separate it from crabgrass and desirable cool-season grasses:

  • Narrow blue-green to gray-green blades, typically standing more upright than surrounding turf. The color is noticeably bluer or grayer than Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass or tall fescue growing alongside.
  • Clasping auricles at the leaf base. UMN Extension describes a claw-like appendage at the base of the leaf that wraps around the stem. Crabgrass has no auricles.
  • White rhizomes with sharp points. UMN Extension says they can reach up to 11 feet long, with fibrous roots at the nodes. Dig around a plant and you will find them.

Growth pattern: quackgrass spreads outward in patches from its rhizomes. UVM Extension says rhizomes may grow more than an inch per day and extend 10 feet or more from the mother plant. We have not found a published per-year patch expansion rate for home lawns, so we do not give one.

Why Selective Herbicides Don't Work: The Label Check

We checked the labels of the grassy-weed products people usually try. None gives a homeowner a selective, labeled quackgrass option in a cool-season lawn.

  • Quinclorac (Drive XLR8): sold for crabgrass and other listed weeds. Purdue's statement that no selective control is labeled for quackgrass covers it.
  • Fenoxaprop (Acclaim Extra): the label's controlled weeds are annual grasses such as crabgrass, goosegrass and foxtails. Quackgrass is not on the list.
  • Sulfosulfuron (Certainty): the label lists quackgrass for suppression or partial control only, in Kentucky bluegrass. The cool-season section states it is not intended for use in residential turf. Purdue research found at least short-term selective control, but that is not a residential label use.
  • Foramsulfuron (Revolver): labeled for bermudagrass, zoysiagrass and buffalograss. The label says cool-season turfgrasses are not tolerant, and quackgrass is not listed.

You may have read that Certainty is labeled for warm-season lawns only. It is not. The label has a Kentucky bluegrass section, but that section excludes residential turf, so the practical answer for a home lawn is the same.

The Glyphosate-Plus-Reseed Protocol

Glyphosate is non-selective. It kills any plant whose leaves receive enough of it. Purdue says herbicides do not move well through quackgrass's deep rhizomes, which is why one pass is rarely enough. Three application methods limit damage to surrounding turf:

  1. Foam wand or wiper applicator: puts herbicide directly on target leaves with little drift. Best for scattered patches.
  2. Glove method: a chemical-resistant glove over a cotton glove, dipped in glyphosate solution, wiped on each quackgrass leaf. Precise but tedious.
  3. Cardboard shield with a pump sprayer: hold cardboard between the quackgrass and the turf and spray at the label rate. Expect a ring of surrounding grass to die.

Schedule it backward from the seeding date

Purdue's program is 3-4 glyphosate applications spaced 3-4 weeks apart, followed by reseeding in early August. Three gaps of 3 to 4 weeks add up to 9 to 12 weeks. Count back from an early August seeding and the first spray lands between early May and late May. Start at the end of August instead and you get one or two applications before seeding, not four. The surviving rhizomes are what Purdue warns may resprout in future years. That is exactly what happened with the ninth patch in the Eden Prairie lawn above.

After the last application, rake out dead material. Purdue says do not till, because tilling brings up rhizomes that quickly sprout. Power rake or scarify for seed contact, seed a cool-season grass at the seed label rate, apply starter fertilizer, and keep the seedbed moist until germination.

The "Live With It" Option

Not every quackgrass patch demands eradication. The plant is green, mowable, traffic-tolerant and provides ground cover. For back yards, side yards and naturalized zones, tolerating it avoids months of herbicide and reseeding work.

The honest trade-offs:

  • Visual non-uniformity: blade texture and color differ visibly from the rest of the lawn.
  • Continuous spread: untreated patches keep expanding from rhizomes.
  • Seed heads: uncut quackgrass produces tall summer seed heads.

For front yards in HOA neighborhoods or formal landscapes, the glyphosate-plus-reseed program is usually worth the labor. For everything else, the choice is yours.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I tell quackgrass from crabgrass?

The fastest check is the leaf base and the roots. Quackgrass has clasping auricles that wrap around the stem and white, sharp-pointed rhizomes. Crabgrass has neither and dies each fall. Our crabgrass vs quackgrass guide covers the full side-by-side.

Why is there no selective herbicide for quackgrass in cool-season lawns?

Purdue turf specialist Zac Reicher put it plainly: there are no selective controls labeled for quackgrass. The labels bear that out. Revolver (foramsulfuron) is labeled for bermudagrass, zoysiagrass and buffalograss, and its label says cool-season turfgrasses are not tolerant. Certainty (sulfosulfuron) lists quackgrass for suppression or partial control only in Kentucky bluegrass, and its cool-season section states it is not intended for use in residential turf. Quackgrass is not on the Acclaim Extra weed list. In a home cool-season lawn, glyphosate spot-treatment with reseeding is the realistic chemical option.

Will pulling quackgrass kill it?

Rarely. UMN Extension says quackgrass rhizomes have sharp points and can reach up to 11 feet long, and that rhizomes make it difficult to remove completely without repeated attempts. Fragments left in the soil can sprout. For established patches, a herbicide that moves into the rhizomes is more reliable.

How do I use glyphosate without killing my entire lawn?

Three methods limit collateral damage. (1) Foam wand or wiper applicator, which puts herbicide on target leaves with little drift. (2) Glove method: a chemical-resistant glove over a cotton glove, dipped in glyphosate solution, wiped on each quackgrass leaf. (3) Cardboard shield between the quackgrass and the turf while you spray. Expect a small ring of surrounding grass to die, and plan to reseed.

When is the best time to spot-treat quackgrass with glyphosate?

Purdue recommends 3-4 glyphosate applications spaced 3-4 weeks apart, followed by reseeding in early August. Counting back from early August, three intervals of 3-4 weeks is 9 to 12 weeks, so the first spray goes down in May. Quackgrass must be actively growing to take up glyphosate. Start in late August instead and there is only time for one or two applications before the seeding window, which leaves more rhizomes alive. We have not found a published percentage for how much a single application misses, so we do not quote one.

Can I just live with quackgrass in my lawn?

Yes, and many lawn owners do. Quackgrass is green, mowable and tolerates traffic. The downsides are a coarser, differently colored patch that keeps expanding and summer seed heads. If uniformity is not your priority, ignoring it is a defensible choice.

How fast does quackgrass spread?

Mostly by rhizome. UMN Extension says rhizomes can reach up to 11 feet long, and UVM Extension says they may grow more than an inch per day and extend 10 feet or more from the mother plant. We have not found a published per-year patch growth rate for home lawns, so we do not give one. The practical point: a small patch is a spot-treatment, a large one is a renovation.

Can I till quackgrass out of a new lawn area?

Not by tilling alone. UMN Extension warns tilling can make quackgrass worse by spreading rhizomes. Purdue says not to till before seeding, because it brings up rhizomes that quickly sprout, and to power rake or scarify for seed contact instead. Purdue describes one aggressive alternative: spray glyphosate, till about seven days later, let quackgrass resprout from exposed rhizomes, and repeat 3 to 4 times.

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