Weed identification guide

Recognizing and removing garden weeds

Weeds are plants that are growing in the wrong place. By nature, they are generally strong and somewhat invasive, tending to take over ground space and choke out plants in the vicinity in their quest for survival. That's exactly why you don't want them growing in your yard or garden.

It's a rare garden that doesn't experience a weed invasion once in awhile. By learning how to recognize the weeds you see, you can learn how to take care of them once and for all without doing damage to the rest of your plants.

Types of weeds
Weed identification can be very difficult, particularly when it's early in the growing season. You might have trouble distinguishing the shoots of weeds from the rest of your garden. It's also hard to identify weeds based on short descriptions, and the fact that weeds vary greatly by region makes it even more complicated.

Your best bet in identifying your weeds may be taking a look at the surrounding environment. If your neighbor has crab grass, it won't be hard to figure out where all the crab grass in your own lawn came from. Bushes in your yard may be scattering seeds that are popping up as weeds in your vegetable garden.

If you don't see anything around that might have caused the problem, try doing an online search or visiting a library for a book that shows pictures of common weeds. It may be easiest to identify what you have by comparing photos. Once you've identified the weeds, you're well on the road to treating them.

The following is a brief list of the most common types of weeds. The area in parentheses indicates where the weed is most often found. If you've identified your weeds, this information should help you find the best way to remove and control them.

• Dandelions (US and Canada, except for southernmost states)
  Dandelions have distinctive lacy leaves and bright yellow flowers that bloom into white feathers in order to germinate. These perennials spread via invasive seeds and can flower at any time. To remove them, dig below the plant and take out the entire taproot, which can be very long. Keep the flowers from blooming and prevent more seeds from spreading by mowing often.

• Crab grass (US, except parts of northern mountain states)
  These thick, sometimes sharp blades of flat grass grow in patches and overtake regular grass and garden plants. Mowing does not kill crab grass! Dig out patches thoroughly, making sure to take out the entire root base. Mulch will help prevent this weed.

• Prickly lettuce (US, except southern tip of Florida)
  This weed starts as a multi-leaf seedling and develops prickly-edged, pointed leaves with yellow flowers on the stems. Prickly lettuce can attract helpful insects and so may be left around the borders of the garden if you desire. To remove it from inside the garden, cut the taproot and remove the entire plant while wearing gloves. Common weed killers aren't always strong enough, as this is a very hardy plant.

• Lamb's quarters (across US)
  These plants grow up to 6 feet tall and feature big, flat leaves, red-streaked stems, and greenish flowers that are made of small round seeds that often fall off when touched. Lamb's quarters, also called pigweed, needs to be hoed out of the garden and can be prevented with a heavy layer of mulch.

• Broadleaf plantain (across US)
  This plant starts out as a circular cluster of low, round leaves, and blooms into a large patch with tall stems of round seeded flowers. Try to remove this weed before the flowers occur. Weed killer can be sprayed directly onto the surfaces of the leaves to kill the plant.

 

When dealing with weeds in your lawn or garden, do your best not to damage the surrounding plants. In order to prevent residual harm, it's best to tackle weeds before they germinate. The sooner you can remove a weed, the smaller it is and the less disturbance there will be to the surrounding soil.

If you choose to use commercial weed killer, make sure to confine the poison to the weeds only. Don't spray on a windy day when chemicals may drift onto your desired plants. Spray the weeds close to the base and make sure the liquid stays on the leaves of the weed in order to be effective. Each year, remove all weeds (including tap roots) and cover the soil in a heavy layer of mulch to discourage the weeds from returning next season.