Ground elder

Sublime_2

I had that at one of my old houses. It had these huge flowerbeds covered in the stuff. Its a pest. The way I managed it, was just to keep pulling it out with as much of the root I could find. I used to get a hoe to slash up any tough bits of root I couldn't pull out. Persevere, and it should get manageable, although is almost impossible to irradicate completely. As soon as you see any of the tiny shoots (look a bit like cress) pull them out. I don't envy you.

Fay

valentina wrote: »

I think the "other" plant in the picture might be Japanese anemone - RAS suggested this in post number 2

Thank you, these are actually all over the garden too and the pics are of different patches. You can see that whoever planted the garden liked the same plants all over!

kazschow

My older chow girl is obsessed with ground elder, she'll drag me to patches of it to munch it... maybe I could rent her out to you, she'll have it cleared in a flash, it's second only to her obsession with doc leafs, she really should have been a rabbit I think hehehehe

beebuzz168

I've already learned some good tips on dealing with ground elder here, thank you.

Have got a slightly different question though - what is the best / quickest / easiest way to deal with it when it covers a massive area and there is nothing else there that we want to save.

It currently covers pretty much the whole of our back garden (c. 6m x 6m) and I'm a bit daunted about where to start - I have roundup but surely it will take ages to spray such a large area, can anything be bought with a larger spray? Or do I just need to stop thinking about it and get out there and do some spraying?!

splodger_seedswapper

spraying it will knock it back - but i doubt it will get rid of it completely - purely because established ground elder will have such a mass of roots below the ground and weedkiller just won't get into that network of roots - so once sprayed - you will probably have to just continue spaying every time it comes back

don't buy weedkiller (like roundup) in a liquid form - buy it in powder form (much cheaper) and make up a stronger mixture than recommended on the packet.

get a large pump sprayer from a discount store like wilkos or something - and only use that sprayer for weedkiller

spray on a dry day - when they is no wind and when the sun is really strong - this will all help you kill of that initial mass of weed

don't let kids or pets out in the garden after spraying

Mojisola

splodger_seedswapper wrote: »

spraying it will knock it back - but i doubt it will get rid of it completely - purely because established ground elder will have such a mass of roots below the ground and weedkiller just won't get into that network of roots - so once sprayed - you will probably have to just continue spaying every time it comes back

splodger's right. One application won't get rid of it. Look on it as a summer project!

We had a similar situation in this garden - an area about 3x3m was solid ground elder. We sprayed it off and covered the area with an old carpet. Covering it brings the roots to the surface. When the carpet was pulled back, there was a network of roots lying along the surface of the soil. It was quite easy to remove most of the roots.

Every tiny piece of root left in the ground makes a new plant so the carpet was followed up with a quick spray of weedkiller as soon as any leaves opened.

pollypenny

I have that blasted weed , but didn't know its name. I dig it up where I can, but have painted the leaves with Roundup in awkward places - where it's amongst other plants.

DaftyDuck

With weeds like ground elder and bindweed, there's a very satisfying variation on spraying... dunking! Get a few small jamjars (the tiny B&B breakfast kind are ideal, as are 35mm film cannisters), carefully excavate a few growing tips that are close together, so you've got a few inches free. Do not break them off from the main root. Poke them into the pot, ensuring it is held stably by the small hole you've just excavated, and top up with glyphosate liquid. After an hour or so, move pot on to next fresh shoot. A surgical rubber glove helps (Boots, Wilko, or use Marigold gloves ). If you are clever and extremely cruel (:D ), you can get different species dunked simultaneously. (Wilko seem to be cheapest High Street seller of glyphosate).
The happy little weeds cart the systemic weedkiller deep down to the mother root... heh, heh, heh... poor !!!!!!! doesn't know what it's drinking... you just sit back and drink a cold beer (wash your hands carefully first!) - and no back ache! Don't be surprised if there is no visible effect for four or five days; it takes a while to act. What is so completely satisfying about this technique is that, if the roots are undisturbed, the plant will cart the weedkiller all over its own root... I've seen bindweed keeling over several feet from the treated area, and a couple of weeks after treatment. For this to be extremely effective, you need to do it BFORE you get digging with a spade, as ity relies on the connection of the roots to spread the poison.

There may well be small individual bits that will require digging, or individual spraying, but it doesn't half get rid of the majority!

pollypenny

Brilliant, Dafty! I have a self-seeded holly growing in a hydrangea! Have painted the leaves twice, but of course, they are shiny and pretty well impenetrable.

Will try your tip.

Mojisola

With plants that have shiny leaves like holly and ivy, you need to damage the leaves before applying the weedkiller and it will take a few more applications than other plants.