Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteers of Buncombe County

Weeds

What’s There to Like about Weeding? Top 10 Reasons.

Pulling weeds may be one of the most universally disliked garden chores.  But a recent survey of Buncombe County Extension Master Gardeners uncovered some good reasons to appreciate (if not actually like) the job.

But before we reveal these Top 10 reasons, why is weeding important?  Weeds not only make a garden look messy, they compete for water, nutrients, and light that your plants need.  Weeds can harbor insect and disease pests that may spread to cultivated flowers, shrubs, and vegetables.  And ignored, weeds multiply rapidly to overwhelm your garden and make any extraction session more and more difficult.

Buncombe County Extension Agent, Alison Arnold, shares tips to help you win the battle against weeds in this April 21, 2022, article published in Better Homes & Gardens, “7 of the Worst Weeding Mistakes That Make Gardening Much Harder,” by Rita Pelczar.  https://www.bhg.com/gardening/yard/garden-care/weeding-mistakes-to-avoid/?did=779004-20220512&cmp=bhggetgrowing_051222&utm_campaign=bhg-get-growing_newsletter&utm_source=bhg.com&utm_medium=email&utm_content=051222&cid=779004&mid=87090528438&lctg=39823821

And now, a countdown of 10 Reasons to like pulling weeds.

  1. EXERCISE. Believe it or not, I find pulling weeds to be good exercise!  Lunges and squats give my glutes a workout; hinging at the hips to bend over stretches my calves and hamstrings; and, navigating a steep slope while carefully stepping between plants improves my balance.
  1. AVOIDANCE. Weeding gets me out of the house while [fill in the blank] someone else cooks dinner!
  1. PERSONAL TIME. Weeding is my time to think and plan with no phone and no distractions.  It’s my personal, quiet time—just me and the singing birds.
  1. DISCOVERY. With my nose close to the ground, I discover emerging plants that are not weeds and become garden treasures.  Some of these volunteers that now thrive in my garden are native flame azaleas, downy rattlesnake plantain, blue-eyed grass, Solomon’s seal, and a ten-foot-tall American holly that I discovered when it was only a one-inch seedling.
  1. NEXT STEPS. The slow pace of weeding lets me identify other garden needs for my “to do” list–diseased plants, bad insects, future pruning or transplanting jobs.
  1. INTERACTIVE. Weeding lets me get up close and personal with my plants.  I find that I appreciate them more and am ready to tackle more weeds the next day.
  1. CARETAKING. I like knowing that all the water and nutrients that my garden needs will now be going to help the plants I love, and not the weeds.
  1. NATURE. I like to weed because it gives me quiet time in the sunshine when I can really listen to what is going on in the garden—bees humming, birds chirping, the wind blowing through the leaves. It’s a win-win to enjoy nature while tidying up the garden.
  1. ACCOMPLISHMENT. I have a feeling of accomplishment when the weeding’s done.  I’m a bit compulsive and this fills a need to tackle and complete a job.
  1. APPEARANCE. I especially like how nice everything looks after the weeding is done.  Weeding is like washing and putting away dishes and wiping down the counters.  It helps things look tidy and the things that really matter can shine and be seen.

Now that you’re feeling slightly more enthusiastic about weeding, do approach it wisely.  Tolerate some weedy growth as beneficial to the survival of pollinators, honeybees, and ultimately our food crops.  Flowering weeds, like clover, dandelion, henbit, and hairy fleabane, provide food sources for pollinators in early spring.  Protect bees and other pollinators by avoiding insecticides.  Reduce lawn size and opt for pollinator-friendly, native plants instead.  Designate a small area of your landscape where weeds like goldenrod, bee balm, Joe pye, and milkweed can flourish.  Be weed-wise for the bees.

Want to learn more about how to identify and effectively manage weeds in your garden?  Check out these resources:

From NC State Extension:

From other Extension services:

Thanks to the following Master Gardener volunteers for their weedy musings:  Carol Brown, Nancy Good, Catherine Pawlik, and Carol Anne Reynolds.  And also to our Extension Agent, Alison Arnold.

Article written by Beth Leonard, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer.

Weeds Overwhelming? How to Cope!

Warm, wet weather equals a wealth of weeds. Despite many of us being home more of the time this summer, we can’t seem to keep up with the weeds! Fortunately, there are weed scientists who can help!

 

 

Weeds compete with your vegetable garden crops


Why care about weeds?
Maybe you are hoping to just peacefully coexist with your weeds, but according to Kira Sims, a Ph. D. candidate and graduate teaching and research assistant in the North Carolina State University Horticultural Science program, weeds:

  • Compete for resources—such, as nutrients, space and sunlight—with more desirable plants.
  • Can reduce crop yields.
  • Adversely affect human health—some weeds such as ragweed and poison ivy can cause allergic reactions.
  • Alter ecosystems—weeds can crowd out native plants or even make soil less hospitable to natives through altering pH, for example.

What can you do about weeds? IWM!
Integrated Weed Management is “Science-based, socially acceptable, environmentally responsible and economically practical crop protection against pests” says Sims, using all of the tools in your toolbox!

What’s in the toolbox?
Sims advocates the PAMS approach:

  • Prevention tools include:
    • Using clean (weed-free) compost, mulch, seeds, topsoil, transplants.
    • Don’t let weeds reproduce—by setting seed, suckering and so on.
    • Water desirable plants not weeds.
    • Clean equipment that might transport weeds
    • Remember you and your pets can transport weed seeds!
  • Avoidance tools include:
    • Clearly define where you want to exclude weeds
    • Help your desirable plants outcompete the weeds by:
    • Choosing appropriate plants
    • Plant at the correct time
    • Fertilize appropriately
    • Rotate crops
  • Monitoring tools:
    • Scout for weeds regularly
    • Keep records of crops and the weeds that cause problems
    • Test soil to determine appropriate fertilization
  • Suppression tools for when you can’t prevent or avoid all weeds:
    • Reduce tilling—which brings up weed seeds
    • Use narrow row spacing to shade out weeds
    • Use cover crops and/or mulch over bare soil
    • Manage irrigation

                                    

                                          Article by Buncombe County Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteers

For more information:

Weed publications from NCSU, including specific links on managing crabgrass, Japanese stiltgrass, and ragweed:

https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/catalog/?keywords=weed-management

 

 

 

 

 

OUCH! “Thorny” Weeds

You know when you touch a thorny weed because it hurts! But technically, botanists identify those “thorns” on weeds as spines or prickles. They not only give gardeners pause, but also help protect plants from animal damage. Thorns, spines, and prickles appear on different plant parts and can help with identification.

Honey locust tree_Gleditsia triacanthos_Dane Larsen_CC BY-NC 2.0_Flickr
Thorns on honey locust tree
  • Spines are modified leaves, leaflets, petioles, or stipules. Think cactus or thistles.
  • Prickles are modified epidural (outer) cells found on blackberry, raspberry, and rose stems.
  • True thorns are modified stems or branches—like those on honey locust trees (Gleditsia triacanthos)—that are long, wicked-looking things, capable of serious damage.

To gardeners who get their fingers stuck while weeding, it matters not if that weed has spines, prickles, or thorns.  It still hurts!

Weeds that stick and prick
Common cocklebur (Xanthium strumarium) is a native summer annual. It has alternate, triangular leaves and the stems have spots ranging from maroon to black. The oval shaped fruit (bur) is covered with spines. Burs start out green and turn brown in the fall. Each bur has two seeds—one growing the first year, with the second seed growing the next year. Cockleburs are spread by the burs hitching rides on animals and humans. They can be found in fields, roadsides, and wasteland.

Burrweed or spurweed (Soliva sessilis) is an annual winter weed found in lawns, mostly along the coast and in Piedmont N.C. It has low ferny foliage and sharp, spiny seed pods that ripen in spring and hurt your feet if you step on them barefoot. It is an early source of food for honey bees and other pollinators.

Spiny sowthistle (Sonchus asper) is a summer annual weed with deeply notched and wavy leaves with sharp spines on leaf margins. The young plant is a basal rosette (leaves radiating from the base of the stem and usually close to the ground). Older plants have an upright flowering stem (yellow flowers). It flowers in late spring into summer. It has alternately arranged oval leaves. Crushed leaves or stems produce a milky white latex. It is found in lawns, waste areas, and roadsides.

Perennial catbrier or greenbrier vines (Smilax) include some of the “ouchiest” of weeds you may face here in Western North Carolina. These are native vines that are desirable wildlife food—rabbits eat the new shoot, deer browse the leaves, and birds eat the fruits—but may not be welcome in your garden.

Thistles (Cirsium) are members of the Asteraceae (aster) family and are native to North America, Europe, and Western Asia. The European invasive bull thistle (Cirsium vulgare) is found throughout the United States and Canada. 

Bull thistle_Cirsium vulgare_Suzanne Caldwell_CC BY-NC 2.0
Bull thistle

What to do?
While these weeds mostly show up in pastures, agricultural fields, and roadsides, they can invade the garden. When dealing with any of these “ouchy” plants, it is best to wear thick gloves and approach with caution. Control vines by digging the tubers or rhizomes. Repeated cutting back and applying a drop of herbicide to the cut stem are also effective. Maintain a layer of mulch in the garden to retard weed growth. Scout for and manually pull weeds when they are small and especially when the ground is soft after a rain.

Article written by Kay Green, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer.

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Buncombe County Extension Office
49 Mount Carmel Road
Asheville, NC 28806
Helpline 828-255-5522

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