Re-Weeding
The speed with which Bermuda grass clumps grow in our rose bed amazes me. It seems as if, in two or three weeks, the bed goes from clean to splotched with lush, dense, 12-inch-across crowns of this grass. The biggest crowns, moreover, invariably appear in the center of the bed or in among the canes of the roses. In either place, they are hard to reach without damaging the rose plants and getting scratched up.
Joined with the Bermuda grass are two weeds I haven't identified. One is bushy with leathery, dark-green leaves like jigsaw-puzzle pieces. It seems to come out readily. The other is our common low-growing weed, each of its round, dark-green leaves bearing in its center a dark brown spot. That one wants to snap off at ground level.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Weeding between Pavers
In previous summers, we've used Roundup to kill the weeds between the brick-sized pavers in our front walk. I've never been crazy about that method, however, both because I'm concerned about its possible effect on the toads, birds, and beneficial insects we'd like to see in the garden, and because we need to be very careful not to get any spray on the perennials that crowd much of the walk.
This year, I decided to try pulling the weeds by hand. It was not as bad as I would have expected. The entire task took about five hours. Most of the weeds came up with a good amount of root; it helped, I'm sure, that they were growing in sand rather than soil.
Not surprisingly, it's easier to bring up the root of some species than that of others. I would rate the weeds in our walk as follows, starting with the easiest to pull root-and-all and working up to the most difficult:
1. Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon) -- the trick with bermuda grass is to gather all the leaves of the plant into your hand before you start to pull; it also helps in some cases to shift your hand lower once the first sixteenth inch or so has come up.
2. Wood sorrel (Oxalis corniculata) -- wood sorrel is easy to grab, since it grows upright, but the stem will snap if you don't pull slowly and steadily.
3. Carpetweed (Mollugo verticillata)
4. A weed I haven't identified yet. It clings to the ground and spreads in all directions. The numerous leaves are almost round, medium to dark green, and each leaf has a brown spot in the center. We have a lot of it.
5. Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) -- I've found that the stem of purslane snaps readily when it's growing in anything other than mulch.
In previous summers, we've used Roundup to kill the weeds between the brick-sized pavers in our front walk. I've never been crazy about that method, however, both because I'm concerned about its possible effect on the toads, birds, and beneficial insects we'd like to see in the garden, and because we need to be very careful not to get any spray on the perennials that crowd much of the walk.
This year, I decided to try pulling the weeds by hand. It was not as bad as I would have expected. The entire task took about five hours. Most of the weeds came up with a good amount of root; it helped, I'm sure, that they were growing in sand rather than soil.
Not surprisingly, it's easier to bring up the root of some species than that of others. I would rate the weeds in our walk as follows, starting with the easiest to pull root-and-all and working up to the most difficult:
1. Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon) -- the trick with bermuda grass is to gather all the leaves of the plant into your hand before you start to pull; it also helps in some cases to shift your hand lower once the first sixteenth inch or so has come up.
2. Wood sorrel (Oxalis corniculata) -- wood sorrel is easy to grab, since it grows upright, but the stem will snap if you don't pull slowly and steadily.
3. Carpetweed (Mollugo verticillata)
4. A weed I haven't identified yet. It clings to the ground and spreads in all directions. The numerous leaves are almost round, medium to dark green, and each leaf has a brown spot in the center. We have a lot of it.
5. Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) -- I've found that the stem of purslane snaps readily when it's growing in anything other than mulch.
A Grand Day Out
Today was the first temperate, clear weekend day we've had in ages. It's not unbearably hot and humid, as the previous weekends have been. At the moment (2:30 pm), the sun is quite intense. But until about noon, we could work in the sun comfortably.
Kay took the time to deadhead her dahlias and hoop some that had begun to lean. She also helped me to pull trumpet vine that had worked its way among the perennials alongside the garage. I spent most of the morning pulling weeds in the front walk (managing to clear about half of it before lunch).
Today was the first temperate, clear weekend day we've had in ages. It's not unbearably hot and humid, as the previous weekends have been. At the moment (2:30 pm), the sun is quite intense. But until about noon, we could work in the sun comfortably.
Kay took the time to deadhead her dahlias and hoop some that had begun to lean. She also helped me to pull trumpet vine that had worked its way among the perennials alongside the garage. I spent most of the morning pulling weeds in the front walk (managing to clear about half of it before lunch).
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