Don’t we all love our lawns or gardens when it is filled with beautiful flowers or trees? But, then we have certain undesirable plants who we would love to have out of our lawns forever: Weeds.
Although some weeds can be beneficial and beautiful, most of them are deemed troublesome. The major con of weeds is that they fight with plants that we actually want in our landscape. All in all, they compete with our more desirable plants, for space, water, and nutrition. But, they can be easily controlled by using the right weed killer. In this article, we will list out some of the most common weeds in your landscape.
Crabgrass
Crabgrass germinates throughout the season and can grow to be around 18 inches tall and 20 inches wide. It is an annual summer grass that can be controlled with non-selective, post-emergent herbicide as a spot treatment. You can also use pre-emergent herbicide or simply pull it out by your hands. Nevertheless, these difficult weeds can grow as soon as their stem makes contact with the soil, so it’s important to keep them under control.
Oxalis
Oxalis weeds are one of the more beautiful looking weeds in your lawn. They have heart-shaped leaflets with cup-shaped yellow flowers. This weed’s stems are hairy and erect and they can actually grow up to 20 inches tall. All this makes them easily distinguishable. Oxalis is one of the most common broadleaf perennials as well. During the spring or fall, just spray post-emergent herbicide to prevent its growth.
Quackgrass
This is one of those long, wide-leafed grass weeds. Quackgrass has needle-like grass blades with thick, deep roots that are white in color. Furthermore, their roots are easily breakable but if any root pieces are left in the soil, these weeds will regrow very quickly from the pieces. Quackgrass can be controlled by using non-selective herbicides that have glysophate as an active ingredient or pre-emergent herbicides.
Dandelion
Probably the most common weed on this list, dandelions are easily recognizable. These have a puffball seed head with a dense taproot. They can grow to be 12 inches tall and up to 16 inches wide. Dandelions are broadleaf perennials that germinate all year round and are very common in most landscapes.
Plantain
Plantains are broadleaf perennials that have erect flower spikes and broad leaves. The specialty of these leaves is that five prominent veins emerge from its base. They have hairy and shallow roots with a winged stalk that makes them easily recognizable. These weeds can spread through their seeds but can be controlled by using weed killers.
White Leaf Clover
White leaf clovers have three-lobed leaves and have a cluster of circular white flowers growing in them. A broadleaf perennial, these weeds can grow up to 9 inches tall and 12 inches wide. You can find them growing and persisting in your landscape. Try using post-emergent herbicide or directly pull these by your hand to prevent their growth.
Thistle
Thistles are famous for their thorn-like exterior and can very well grow up to 5 to 8 feet tall if they’re mature! They are broadleaf weeds that can be of the annual or perennial variety. These weds can grow either from their seeds or their roots. They can be removed by cutting through the horizontal root of the weed or by simply using herbicides.
Velvetleaf
Velvetleaf is very aptly named as they have heart-shaped leaves with a velvet-like exterior. These weeds can grow up to 6 feet tall and 3 feet wide. They are more prone to grow in fertile soil. Velvetleaf growth can be controlled by using pre-emergent or post-emergent herbicide depending on the season.
Nutsedge
Commonly found growing in lawns and gardens, this weed is a grassy perennial that can grow up to 2 feet tall and 1 foot wide. They have nut-like tubers on their roots with grass-like, crossed leaves. You can control a nutsedge by spraying post-emergence herbicide that contains MSMA as an active ingredient.
Bindweed
Bindweeds are the most difficult and obnoxious weed on this list. Depending on the weed type, they can spread through their seeds or roots. Field bindweed especially can be really difficult to control as they have a dense root system that can grow up to 30 feet deep. If these weeds find support like a ladder or a tree, they can grow on it just like vines. It is due to all these reasons that you should immediately remove bindweed. If it is not mature, you can pull them by your hand otherwise spray herbicide directly on their roots.
Purslane
This weed is around 6 inches tall and can be 2 feet wide. You can recognize them through their thick, succulent-like leaves and branching stems. Sometimes, small yellow flowers grow on them too. An annual broadleaf, purslane can be easily found in gardens or lawns with sunny and dry weather. Purslane weeds spread through their seeds or stem pieces and can be controlled by spot treatment using a non-selective, post-emergent herbicide.
Creeping Charlie
One of the most difficult weeds, Creeping Charlie is a low-growing weed with creeping stems. Thus, the name. They spread by rooting at the nodes. If they form a root system in your lawn, it can be really difficult to remove them. Hence, it is better to use a weed killer that has a mixture of dicamba, 2-4-D, and MCPP/MCPA. Or, you can pull them by hand.
So, there you go! These were some of the most common types of weeds that can be found growing in your garden. We can’t stress enough on the importance of a good weed killer for keeping your garden weed-free. So, pay careful attention to the type of weed killer you use to control their growth as some might not work in the case of certain weeds.
Resource— ReviewThis, Pennington
