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

 

 

 

 

 

Non-Native Invasive Plants: Oriental Bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus)

If you knew how awful it is, you would have nothing to do with oriental bittersweet! It is an aggressive, woody, deciduous, perennial vine capable of girdling stems and trunks of shrubs and trees, damaging their bark and underlying tissue. Despite its weedy behavior, oriental bittersweet is still sold and planted as an ornamental vine and should be avoided.

Oriental bittersweet vine chokes tree_photo by G. Merrill
Oriental bittersweet vine

Identification:

  • Leaves: Finely toothed, round glossy leaves are arranged alternately on the vine. They range from 2 to 5 inches long and 1.5 to 2 inches wide.

    Oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus)_Leonara Ellie Enking_CC BY-SA 2.0_Flickr
    Oriental bittersweet foliage
  • Flowers: Clusters of 2 to 7 blossoms where the leaf attaches to the stem (leaf axil). Each flower has 5 petals and 5 sepals.
  • Fruit: Green-to-yellow round fruits ripen in the fall. Upon ripening, the fruits split open revealing three red-orange, fleshy berries that remain on the vine through the winter. The many birds and small mammals that feed on the berries distribute seed far and wide. A single plant can produce almost 400 fruits!

    Oriental Bittersweet_berries_Katja Schulz_CC BY 2.0_Flickr
    Oriental bittersweet Fruit
  • Distribution: Oriental bittersweet’s distribution ranges from central Maine south to North Carolina and west to Illinois;
  • Ecology: It can grow in woodlands, fields, hedgerows, coastal areas, and salt marsh edges. It tolerates shade but prefers full sun.

Management Options:

  • Mechanical control: Pull light infestations by hand—before fruiting, if possible. If fruits are present, bag the vines to make sure the seeds do not contaminate the site. Cutting the vines at the base early in the season will prevent flowering and fruiting, but you must remove all of the roots so the bittersweet will not re-sprout. Frequent mowing will also exclude oriental bittersweet, but infrequent mowing—two to three times a year—can stimulate root suckering.
  • Chemical control: You can successfully manage heavy infestations of non-native bittersweet with herbicides containing the active ingredient Triclopyr. The chemical is most effective applied immediately to the cut stem surface of cut or mowed vines. Apply herbicides prior to the emergence of native plants or after the last killing frost to help avoid herbicide contact with desirable plants. As with any herbicide, carefully follow the label guidelines when handling and applying.

American bittersweet (Celastrus scandens) is native to the eastern United States and is easily confused with oriental bittersweet. Leaf shape is highly variable and not a good characteristic for identifying American vs. Oriental bittersweet. Watch for flowers and fruits to distinguish the two:

  • American bittersweet flowers and fruits are only found at the ends of stems, Oriental bittersweet flowers and fruits are found all along the stem at leaf axils.
  • American bittersweet has orange capsules around red fruits, Oriental bittersweet has yellow capsules around red fruits.

A HOLIDAY CAUTION: Do NOT use oriental bittersweet in outdoor decorations! If you have any decorations containing oriental bittersweet fruits, be sure to bag them and discard—Do not compost!

Article by Bob Wardwell, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer

For More Information:

 

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

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