Pulling weeds can be hard work and leave holes in the lawn grass. And spot spraying weeds can leave dead spots that can take weeks or even a full season to recover.

To spot kill weeds without hurting the surrounding area, use a sponge with herbicide rather than a spray bottle.

Mix your herbicide (Roundup, Spectricide, etc.) in a bucket to the same label directions you would for spraying. Until you get familiar with how much you’ll use, just mix a little at a time.

Wear rubber gloves.

Fill your sponge with herbicide. Wring it out so that it doesn’t drip all over the lawn but still leave it well saturated.

Separate and lift the weed leaves from the lawn like in the first picture.

Then simply dab the tops of the leaves with solution. You don’t have to saturate the entire plant to get results. Just get as much as you can on the tops and a little on the undersides if you can.

Within a few days the weed will die without harming the surrounding lawn or leaving a hole.