Find Your Ask the Expert: what kind of weed is this?
My dad has a garden that has been growing an invasive ground cover weed that has clover shaped leaves with tiny white “flowers”. He has sprayed with all sorts of weed killers and nothing seems to work. It seems to stay only in the garden and has not crept onto the grass. It’s very viney like.. grows like a carpet. Has been tilled repeatedly.. he left the garden area unplanted for a year to see if that would help get rid of it but it keeps coming back. They seem to grow from the root. When pulled from the garden they always seem wet even when there has been no moisture applied to the garden at all. He suspects that it started in a small area and was spread by use of the tiller. They grow very close to the ground only.. max of 2″ inches tall. He has tried to pull them many times and when he does the base of the weed (green) will pull off from a white, slippery, more solid structure. I do not have a photo available at this time but if you are not able to identify it I can post a picture soon for you to see. Any suggestions are welcome! Thank you for your time! Please let me know if a picutre is needed. My poor dad, an avid gardner, is completely stumped! I hope you can help! Thank you! Misty McCollough
Plant Expert Reply:
It is difficult to make an identification just from the description you have given. So I found some pictures of plants that could possibly be your dad’s problem. Please take a look at them and let me know which you think look the most like his. Once we idenitify the plant, I will help figure a way to get rid of the problem.
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- Virginia Buttonweed
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- Oxalis
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- Mountain Sandwort
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- Heartleaf Sandmat
Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you. I do appreciate your prompt reply. I am uploading a picture of the weed in question, however, my dad had pulled it out of the ground for the picture fearing frost and so have no other picture other than that of it pulled up. I hope you will know what it is!
Attached Image: crazy weeds.jpg
What your dad has is either chickweed or mouse ear. In the yard he can spray 2-4-D and in the bed he will need a contact killer like round-up or killZall. He will need to be careful in the beds since contact killers will kill anything they make contact with. The best way to get rid of this weed is to keep it from coming up by using a pre-emerge herbicide like Amreican’s Herbicide Granules Containing Treflan Weed & Grass Stopper.
Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you with this picture! Here is this weed! It had been pulled out of the ground but I hope that you can still identify it? Good luck to you!
Attached Image: crazy weeds.jpg
This is the genus Stellaria. See the row of hairs down one side of the stem. The plant is Stellaria media, Common Chickweed.