Fleabane Control: How to Get Rid of Fleabane

This article is a general DIY guide for controlling fleabane in your lawn. Follow the recommended steps and products, and we guarantee 100% control of fleabane.

Fleabane is a summer annual weed that closely resembles daisies and belongs to the Aster family. It makes itself at home in poorly maintained lawns in the northern portion of the United States and sometimes in the western half. This weed goes by several other names, including annual fleabane, common fleabane, daisy fleabane, and rough fleabane.

Fleabane can easily be mistaken as a beneficial plant due to its tiny daisy-like flowers when, in reality, it is a broadleaf weed. This misconception further stems from the belief of how this weed received its name. Fleabane received its name from the superstition that its aroma would repel fleas when dried. While this myth holds some truth, it is also relevant for pet owners to know that fleabane is poisonous to cats and dogs if ingested.

Beneficial to pollinators, this wildflower is considered a broadleaf weed due to its ability to outcompete other plants in the area for water and space to grow. Fleabane has become especially problematic to homeowners as this weed is resistant to glyphosate, a widely used material in herbicides. In our DIY guide, you will learn how to remove and prevent fleabane in your property by following the recommended steps and products.

Identification

Before moving forward with a treatment program, you must properly identify fleabane by knowing what it looks like. Careless misidentification can lead you to use the wrong herbicides, costing you time and money. Refer to the characteristics listed below to identify fleabane correctly.

• Fleabane resembles the flower daisy with its composite flower head, flat disk, and white coloration of petals. However, fleabane will have several rows of narrow ray-like petals, whereas daisies have a single layer.
• These flower heads begin as white and may turn pink or lavender over time. Some species of fleabane have yellow or orange petals instead. Fleabane's ray-shaped petals surround a bright yellow center that pollinators feed from.
• The stems and leaves of fleabane contain coarse, stiff hairs. The leaves on the base of fleabane are more lance-shaped, with pointed tips and toothed edges. They can grow up to 5 inches long, with newer, younger leaves growing shorter and narrower. 
• Young fleabane plants form a tight, circular-shaped rosette cluster of oblong leaves that are light to medium green in coloration.
• Fleabane has a white-brownish colored fibrous root system that can develop into a taproot system if left for long periods.

Use the description and image above to help you properly identify the fleabane on your property. If unsure, contact us with a photo of your weed through email or in person at one of our stores to help you determine the weed and suggest treatment options.

Inspection

Once you are confirmed that you are dealing with fleabane, you can move on to inspection. During this phase, you will locate areas where fleabane is thriving and observe the conditions that allow it to thrive. This information will help you know where to focus your herbicide application.

Where to Inspect

Fleabane thrives in soils containing consistent moisture or nutrients, which is commonly found in lawns, crops, and ditch edges.

It can also be found within the cracks of driveways, sidewalks, near fences, and other locations with full exposure to sunlight and moderately wet soil.

What to Look For

Although fleabane emerges in turfs from late spring to summer, they usually bloom in May. The flowers of this weed form into loose clusters at the top of its multiple branched stems. Its branches often grow taller than the main body of the plant.

While fleabane is a summer weed, it can bloom until fall if conditions are ideal. There is no official dormancy for fleabane, as it can sometimes be found year-round in lawns. It can be semi-dormant during the winter if there is not enough sunlight or heat.

Treatment

Before using any herbicide products, you will need to wear the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) such as gloves, mask, long-sleeve shirt, long-sleeve pants, safety goggles, apron or coveralls, Tyvek suit, and closed-toe shoes with socks.

Due to its glyphosate resistance, fleabane is best treated when young rather than when mature (past one month), as it is more difficult to control.

We recommend using post-emergent herbicides containing 2,4-D, MCDA, picloram, dicamba, quinclorac, fluroxypyr, isoxaben, or triclopyr on new or established fleabane infestations. Unfortunately, this weed must also adjust cultural methods to control it fully.

Step 1: Prepare Post-Emergent Herbicide

Begin by calculating the square footage of the treatment area to determine how much herbicide material to use.

To find this, measure the length and width of the treatment area in feet and multiply (length X width = square footage). For acreage, divide the square footage by one acre (square footage / 43,560 sq. ft. = acre).

To get rid of fleabane in cool-seasoned turf, we recommend 2,4-D Amine Selective Post-Emergent Herbicide.

For spot treatments, apply 1/4 pint of 2,4-D Amine Selective Post-Emergent Herbicide in 3 gallons of water.

To get rid of fleabane in warm-seasoned turf, it would be best to use Fahrenheit Herbicide.

For spot applications, use 0.2 oz. of Fahrenheit Herbicide in 1 gallon of water per 1,000 sq. ft. To cover larger areas, apply 3 to 4 oz. of product in 20 to 80 gallons of water per acre.

For better penetration and success with fleabane, a surfactant like Nanotek Surfactant can be used. Add 1 fl. oz. of Nanotek Surfactant per 1 gallon of solution.

You will need to use a handheld pump sprayer to better control drift with either herbicide application.

Add half of the water to the handheld pump sprayer, then measure the amount of product material and pour in the remaining half of the water. Close the sprayer tank lid and shake to ensure even agitation.

Step 2: Apply Herbicide to the Fleabane

Adjust the nozzle to a fan-spray setting to lightly coat the top and bottom of fleabane leaves until wet, but not to the point of run-off.

The ideal time to spray this product is during the early fall and early spring when fleabane is weaker and beginning to grow.

Reapplication rates vary between 21 to 30 days with 2,4-D Amine Selective Post Emergent Herbicide applications.

Reapply Fahrenheit Herbicide when 4 to 6 weeks have passed after application.

Prevention

After successfully eliminating fleabane from your lawn, you will want to ensure this noxious weed does not return. Unfortunately, fleabane will need a combination of cultural methods and herbicide applications to remove it completely. Here are some preventative methods to follow to cease growing activity completely.

• Make sure you are mowing your turf when it reaches a height of 3 inches. This action will help to cease seed activity and growth.
• Rake the yard at least once a week during the fall and early spring to prevent seeds from reaching the soil. Fleabane is known for its prolific seeding and will quickly germinate within 2 to 4 weeks.
• Till the soil of undisturbed earth during the fall, spring, and summer to eliminate sites of growing activity.
• When weeds are under 12 inches in height or have not reached a month in growth, you may hand-pull them with a glove-covered hand.
• To avoid resistance, rotate herbicide products with another herbicide solution containing a different active ingredient. Spot treat any weeds that emerge with 2,4-D Amine Selective Post-Emergent Herbicide or Fahrenheit Herbicide.
• Water once a week with an inch of irrigation in the early morning to lessen the moisture in the soil.
• Apply Solutions 15-5-10 Weed & Feed Fertilizer with Trimec in the early spring to increase turf growth rate and fight against weeds like fleabane. Use 3.2 to 4.0 lbs of product per 1,000 sq. ft. of treatment area. Spread the product with a push or broadcast spreader by starting at the outer edge of the treatment area. Be sure to walk in an even space. Next, cover the space in the middle in one pass. Activate the granules with an inch of irrigation when 1 to 2 days have passed after application.

Key Takeaways

What is Fleabane?

• Fleabane is a summer annual weed often confused with daisies due to the tiny white flowers across the top of its stems.

How to Get Rid of Fleabane

• We recommend rotating herbicide applications containing 2,4-D or MCDA to prevent fleabane from becoming resistant to the products being used. Products such as Fahrenheit Herbicide or 2,4-D Amine Selective Post Emergent Herbicide can treat emerged fleabane. 

Preventing Fleabane

• Fleabane can easily overtake grassy areas due to the numerous seeds it produces, its short germination period, and its ability to resist certain herbicide products. The best way to prevent fleabane is to eliminate it when first observed on turf with the appropriate herbicide and thicken it with Solutions 15-5-10 Weed & Feed Fertilizer with Trimec so it cannot grow easily.