This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.
What on earth is this weed??
tigerpug
Posts: 4
Hi everyone, I've just registered and this is my first post. We have moved to the country and now have a decent sized garden which I am slowly trying to get to grips with. Having come from London (and a tiny paved yard!) I am definitely a beginner but am really excited by getting started. It will certainly be a case of trial and error!
Could someone help me find out what this awful weed is that is slowly taking over our garden. The root structure is under everything and it is growing fast. I really appreciate your time - thanks
0
Posts
Thanks pansy face. Im not sur if it is, when we moved in last summer i dont recall is flowing anything but possible small purple flowers, it is mainly leaves. They are everywhere and I put some lining down to try and stop them but it has just spread along our garden borders. I keep trying to dig down but the roots are everywhere and so deep.
We do live by a stream, I'm not sure if that might give a clue? However, they are mostly growing at the other end of our garden i.e. away from the water.
I am getting nervous as they have started to grow in areas what I have planted with bulbs and so i dont want to go digging around too much.
It is ground ivy - glechoma hederacea. It producers runners and twining stems and creeps everywhere and gets entwined in roots of shrubs and perennials.
Easy enough to pull out though whenever you see it. Just make sure you let it dry out before you bung it on teh compost heap or it will spread in there too.
If the flowers were purple, it could be winter heliotrope:
http://www.ukwildflowers.com/Web_pages/petasites_fragrans_winter_heliotrope.htm
It could certainly be Winter Heliotrope, its looks very similar from the pics.
I googled pictures of glechoma hederacea, it dont think its that because the leaves seem different, ours have flat edges and are very large
It's not glechoma, the leaves and the growth style are wrong.
I think petasites is likely though I'm not familiar enough with the plant to be sure.
In the sticks near Peterborough
It is a job for Roundup or Tumbleweed weedkiller? Is there anything else I should be doing? Its actually given me a few sleepless nights, i keep imagining it growing out the brickwork of the house!!
Thanks for all your replies by the way
It's not celandine as that has small leaves, less than an inch. Judging by the ivy leaves at the base of that large shrub, the leaves in question are 3-4 times the size of those, so several inches across.
I'd agree with those who ID this as petasites, winter heliotrope. It grows alongside water and in damp soil.
The leaves look quite shiny which might make it more tricky to treat with glyphosate; maybe you could mix in a drop of washing up liquid in the sprayer, or use paint-on gel.