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It’s often said that a weed is an unwanted plant. Another definition of a weed is a plant that has encountered an unhappy gardener. A weed can be a desirable plant that’s in the wrong place or an undesirable plant that’s anywhere. No matter what the plant, dealing with weeds can be the most time-consuming and expensive part of gardening.
There are two wars that we will never win: the war on bugs and the war on weeds. No matter how much herbicide you use (which isn’t always good), or how much time you spend pulling them up, the weeds will always be with you. That being said, it’s best to determine where your threshold of tolerance is and how much time and money you are willing to spend to maintain it.
Year-round weeds
Weed control
There are two ways to control weeds: chemically or manually. Chemical control involves the use of pre-emergent weed preventers and post-emergent herbicides. There are dozens of homeowner-approved herbicides, some of them synthetic and others considered organic. Manual control involves the good old-fashioned method of simply pulling the weeds you encounter.
Pre-emergents work on annual and perennial weeds by inhibiting germination of the seeds. Some work on grassy weeds, some on broadleaf weeds, and some products deal with both. Unfortunately, these products don’t distinguish between the seeds of weeds and the seeds of desirable plants, such as turf or flowers. If you plan to overseed a lawn or have flowers that germinate from seed, you may have to skip applying pre-emergents at certain times of the year. Pre-emergents do not kill established perennial weeds (or flowers) and annuals that have already germinated.
The timing of pre-emergent application is important. Apply too late and the weeds will have already germinated. It’s recommended that pre-emergents be applied to turf and perennial flowerbeds twice a year, in early March and mid-September. However, you might have better success applying them three times a year, in mid-February, early June and mid-September. For those who wish to try an organic pre-emergent, corn gluten is a suitable alternative.
Post-emergent herbicides target weeds that have already germinated and basically fall into two categories: selective and non-selective. Selective herbicides, such as Weed-B-Gone, target certain types of plants (broadleaf weeds in this case) but not grassy weeds. This usually makes these products safe to use on lawns. But like pre-emergents, a broadleaf weed killer can’t distinguish a dandelion from a black-eyed Susan. Be careful when you apply these products.
Nonselective herbicides, such as Roundup, will severely harm or kill almost all plants with which they come into contact. Herbicides such as these are useful to kill grassy and broadleaf weeds that can be sprayed without having the products drift onto desirable plants. If you want to go natural, there are some organic herbicides that contain compounds from plants or vinegar.
Remember, it’s always critical to read the labels to know the proper use, timing and application rate of any product you decide to use.
From annoying to destructive
Most of the weeds we encounter in our gardens are simply an annoyance. However, we have an ever-growing list of weeds that are actually destroying the environment and costing Americans billions of dollars each year. Some are still sold as landscape plants. In Georgia, the worst offenders still found in nurseries are Chinese Privet, Elaeagnus and English Ivy. It’s advisable to remove these plants from your landscape to protect both your yard and the environment.
However you decide to deal with the unwelcome weeds that turn up in your yard, be careful not to harm the plants you want to keep. Before you know it, your landscape will be wonderfully weed-free.
Because we live in a mild climate, we have weeds practically year-round. Weeds often are referred to as winter or summer weeds and can be annual or perennial in either season. Adding to this, we have broadleaf weeds and grassy weeds that can be annual or perennial in summer or winter. It’s no wonder weed control can be a nightmare. This makes it important to identify your enemy so you know the proper course to take.
Annual weeds live only one season (either summer or winter) and will complete an entire life cycle during that time. Germination, blooming, setting seed and finally dying all occur within several months. From a control standpoint, these often are the easiest to tackle.
Perennial weeds will die back to the ground, usually in winter, but return the following spring from the existing roots. Control of perennial weeds may take a bit more persistence.
Grassy weeds (annual or perennial) are just that—they’re grasses or related plants like rushes or sedges. It’s harder to find selective herbicides that target grassy weeds, and post-emergent chemical control in a lawn situation may be very difficult. Table 1 lists some of the grassy weeds you may encounter.
Broadleaf weeds (annual or perennial) are weeds with round or broad leaves. Although there are a few broadleaf weeds that resemble grasses, this simple definition covers most of the ones you will see. Broadleaf weeds can be controlled easily with selective herbicides that target them but don’t harm grasses. In a lawn situation, broadleaf weeds are the ones you hope for. In a flowerbed where desirable plants are also broadleaf, chemical control becomes problematic. Table 2 lists some of the commonly seen broadleaf weeds. |
