District of Columbia · 1 cities · spring 2026
When to apply crabgrass preventer in District of Columbia
Last spring the soil reached 50°F aroundMar 23Median of 1 cities; crabgrass temperatures (55°F) followed around Apr 13. Earliest: Washington Mar 23; latest: Washington Mar 23.
Today
Season over
1 of 1 cities
Window last spring
21 days
median gap from 50°F to 55°F
Soil today
59°F
median, 0–4 in
Never below 50°F
0
cities with no spring window
Every District of Columbia city
Spring 2026 dates and today's verdict.
| City | Held 50°F (2026) | Held 55°F (2026) | Soil today | Today |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington, DC | Mar 23 | Apr 13 | 59°F | Season over |
Crabgrass seeds start to germinate once the top 2 to 4 inches of soil stay near 55°F for several days. A pre-emergent works as a barrier in the soil, so it has to be down and watered in before that: the usual advice is to apply it while the soil holds 50 to 55°F. The dates here are when the modelled soil began to hold each temperature last spring; this year's window will move with the weather, which is why each city page shows today's reading and the 7-day forecast.
Questions
- When should I put down crabgrass preventer in District of Columbia?
- When the soil holds 50 to 55°F. Last spring that was around Mar 23 to Apr 13 across 1 District of Columbia cities, earlier in the south and in cities.
- Is it too late to apply pre-emergent?
- Once the soil has held 55°F for a week or more, crabgrass is germinating and a pre-emergent will not stop the seedlings already up. Each city page says which side of that line it is on today.
Data: Global Forecast System (GFS) 0.25°, soil temperature 0–10 cm (TSOIL) (NOAA National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP)); GeoNames gazetteer (cities15000) (GeoNames).