Unwanted Guests

We’ve all been there. You’re looking forward to a quiet weekend after a long week and suddenly remember that your in-laws are coming to stay with you. If that elicited an inward groan, this post is for you. Today, we’re looking at our garden’s unwanted guests: weeds.

What constitutes a weed?

Nobody wants weeds in their garden, but what actually is a weed? I’m going to pull a high school essay move for a second….Merriam-Webster defines a weed as,

Weed:

1. a plant that is not valued where it is growing and is usually of vigorous growth. especially one that tends to overgrow or choke out more desirable plants

2. an obnoxious growth, thing, or person*

*maybe your in-law

Well put, M.W. And, good job, High School Adrian, you’re doing just fine. A weed is whatever pops up in your garden that you didn’t intentionally plant and grows from a seed. Sometimes, you’ll get what I call a “volunteer” which is a plant that unexpectedly grows that maybe you want! Tomatoes are high on my list of volunteer plants. Weeds can be large-scale invasive (like the mustard plant) or small (like clover). Their level of annoyance varies.

Wait, what’s the mustard plant?

Image by The Simple Hiker

So glad you asked. Black mustard is that plant you see alllllll over California coast. It’s a classic example of the power of invasive plants. There’s a great article about it here but to summarize, it was most likely brought by Spanish colonizers and therefore has been a part of the California landscape since the late 1700s. It’s height and prolific spread makes for one of the worst weeds in California.

What other invasive plants are the bane of your existence?

Feather grass (Pennisetum setaceum) and Mexican feather grass (stipa tenuissima). These are the two you see so often in a residential setting and they’re incredibly invasive. BUT not all Pennisetums are so invasive. Pennisetum spathiolatum (I have some in my own yard) and Pennisetum ‘Bunny Tales’ are just two examples of a-okay pennisetums. I guess neither feather grass or Mexican feather grass would technically qualify as weeds since they’re usually planted on purpose, but they do pop up uninvited. Invasive plants such as these choke out native plants, destroy ecosystems, and create fuel load for potential fires. Do not plant these. If you love a good list, here is a list from the National Parks Service of, wait for it, The EVIL 25.

How can you get rid of weeds?

Weeds only want to do one thing: Make more weeds. Survival is of the utmost importance and they’ve adapted to our environment. Some are wispy to be carried by the wind, others are low-growing and spread, and the rest have an obnoxious root system that can become hard to remove. You want them gone because they’ll come back next year and the next and the next... If you have existing weeds, the easiest is to hit it with a bit of Roundup. If you’re concerned about hitting other plants, take a coffee tin or large yogurt container and cut out the bottom: You can then place it over the weed and spray inside your vessel. Once it’s dry, it’s no longer dangerous for pets and people. So just keep everyone inside until you’re done. The best time to get rid of a weed is right after it blooms. If you’re pulling out your weeds, the best is to get them when they’re small so you don’t break your back. Also, sometimes you get TREE seeds germinating in your yard but it looks just like a cute little plant. Those are usually in the most inconvenient places (because they’re usually from bird poop and birds sit on fences, powerlines, and other places you don’t want a tree) DEFINITELY get rid of that ASAP. There’s a reason why your neighbor has a random carrotwood tree growing right next to their fence: they didn’t notice it until it was too late.

How can you prevent weeds?

Weed prevention is, in my opinion, much easier than remediation. There are a couple of things I recommend

1. Use PREEN. Not everyone believes this helps at all, but I think it’s easy and cheap enough to be worth it. During springtime, Costco carries a COSTCO SIZED container for very cheap that lasts me all year if not longer. It’s a pre-emergent which means it keeps weeds from germinating (aka if seeds land on your soil, it won’t grow into a plant). All you have to do is taking the provided scooper and sprinkle it around like you’re sugaring a giant cookie. It takes me about 10 minutes to do the whole backyard. The biggest downside is that this applies to ALL seeds including natives. So, if you want to grow California poppies, per se, you should plant an already growing one (you could even lazily just water a bag of seed and plant them once they pop open).

2. All plants need air, sun, and soil. So if you’re able to limit one of those necessities, you’re going to get less seeds. If most of your landscape is covered in other plants of your choosing, weeds won’t have the room to grow. Keeping a full landscape limits weeds.

3. One big no-no in your planting areas is use weed mat. It’s just a waste of labor and money. It does not keep weeds from germinating, can leach into your soil, and it can choke out happy healthy plants. The only time I install weed mat is under gravel/decomposed granite areas.

Anyways, that’s it for weeds today! May your garden and your home keep unwanted guests at bay!