Does anybody know what this weed is that is taking over my flower beds?
 

I just moved into this house in August, and the previous owners did not care for the lawn and gardens at all. Now I have a huge flower bed in the back yard that is just filled with this invasive weed. It has a long taproot, so even though we've had a lot of rain and the ground is soft, I can't just pull it. I'm considering going full scorched earth on that flower bed and drenching it in Roundup (even though I hate Monsanto and I hate pumping chemicals into the environment. There's not a single good plant in the flower bed that i want to keep. It all needs to go and I need to just start over from nothing.

But does anybody know what this, or how i might get rid of it? I live in the DFW region of Texas (Grand Prairie, specifically), if that helps at all.

Does it smells like parsley?

i would not go chemical...do you have a spiked ho or even better a gas tiller?

if you till the ground in the bed down about 6-10 inches, just enough to break apart the topsoil and (i assume) clay

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[/COLOR]And yes it smells vaguely of parsley.

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Yes, I have a gas tiller. And yes, the soil is very heavy clay soil. Once I get the weeds under control, i'm going to till in some good garden soil and compost to kind of lighten it up a little.

DC, if she breaks the roots up, they may resprout from the pieces. JScott, I know that weed. However, my mind isn't working right now. I'll get right back to you...

Ok. I was right. It's Cow Parsley.

Anthriscus sylvestris

Yes! Cow parsley is it! I actually did till one end of the flower bed, hoping that I could just chop it up and kill it. After I tilled, I raked away all the pieces that I could, but the taproots are so deep, it was just a few days before it was coming back up, even more plentiful than before. I think I'm going to have go the herbicide route, as much as I hate to. Do you know if this cow parsley is actually in the parsley family? Will the swallowtail caterpillars eat it? If they will, I will definitely leave some for them, but I did a quick search and couldn't find any information one way or the other about whether it's a host plant for swallowtail larvae.

Thanks for everybody's help!

good thinking...i opt to try that first but i think it may be a pandora's box as you suggest.

could be a dumb idea but would a good layer of mulch or newspaper kill it?

When i was prepping the ground for my raised beds i laid cardboard down and staked it so it stayed put for a week and all the grass and weeds were both quite dead underneath...

Oh yeah, I've heard of people doing that, but never tried it myself, but I hear that it works well. That's a good plan, maybe I'll try that first before I resort to chemicals.

The cardboard works well, we even killed some ivy with it once. Double layer, no gaps.

I think we called that weed Wild Carrot. It would be the same family as Cow Parsley, though. Very persistent!!!

Thanks so much for all the great ideas. You regular posters always have good ideas. I just love you guys, as much as you can possibly love strangers you only ever talk to on the internet haha. But thanks, you've given me some great ideas that may help me avoid poisoning the earth while enriching those awful people at Monsanto. If you haven't noticed yet, I really have a thing about Monsanto. I have enough beef with Monsanto to solve world hunger.

If it we're just a regular weed, the newspaper, black plastic sterilization would work. I'm not so sure since you have tap roots. I used to use an organic product called Burn Out. It was a cinnamon based product and it worked well. I haven't seen it for sale in awhile but, you might check online. The only problems I had were that it took two applications for perennial weeds and it "ate" my sprayers.

Bonide BurnOut Weed and Grass Killer

Is it that?

Yes, that's it. They used to carry it here at Big R and I used to get it wholesale for an "all natural" client. Buy a special sprayer for it. I used a 1 gallon trigger sprayer because it just corroded the gaskets in my tank sprayer. You'll probably have to make two applications, but I think you'll like it.

i echo all the above comment Jscott, about the love and the hate of Monsanto

Monsanto makes such a useful, effective product, which I would love to use (sparingly, of course. Don't want to be pumping too many chemicals into the environment), and I don't even care about genetically modified crops. Some of them have been a great improvement. Genetic engineering saved the Papaya from extinction, but Monsanto is pure evil, and I don't want to give them my money. They take other people's farms all the time. If I have a small farm and I'm growing non-gmo corn, but my neighbor is growing Monsanto's Roundup ready corn, since corn is pollinated by wind, some of the pollen from that Roundup ready corn is going to make its way to my field, and then my corn is going to carry that gene. That's not a huge problem, except that Monsanto doesn't allow farmers to keep seed from their current crop to plant next year's crop. They have to buy seeds from Monsanto every year. But I'm not growing Roundup ready corn. I'm growing non-gmo corn. I don't have to worry about that. I can save my own seeds for next year's crop, right? Except that pollen from the Monsanto farm mixes with my non-gmo corn, and then my corn carries that Roundup ready gene. When Monsanto tests my corn, and they find the roundup ready gene in my corn, they accuse me of violating their horticultural patent and growing Roundup ready corn without paying them. Then there's a legal battle. Monsanto has unlimited resources to fight legal battles, Small farmers don't. The small farmer loses because he simply cannot afford the legal battle, and Monsanto takes his farm. That farmer has done nothing illegal. This is the result of an act of God based on the nature of the way corn is pollinated. Monsanto is pure evil, and they will not stop until they own the whole world. But Roundup is such an effective product hahahahahaha

JScott, I've been pondering this reply. I'm a very conservative girl. I've read the same info on Monsato as you have, and more. They have gmo in the pipe line that chills my bones. There are a great many companies that rankle me, for various reasons. I've tried my best to boycott them all. However, corporate America has come to the point where most of them disagree with me. I've had to make peace with the fact that I need Roundup, or a product like it, to tame the ranch. I have significantly cut back on my usage because of the pollinators. But it's still a necessary evil. It's a love/hate relationship, like Starbucks😉 Please don't hate me, I'm just doing my best to make the world a better place too.

I totally understand. I bought some Roundup today. I felt like I was selling my soul to the devil, but it really is such an effective and useful product. I'll use it sparingly, only when all else fails, but I don't think there's anything wrong with keeping it on hand as a last resort. We shouldn't feel guilty. We will feel guilty anyway of course, but we shouldn't. Sometimes life make us make hard choices, and sometimes we have to choose to do things we'd rather not, but if we do our best to keep those hard choices to a minimum, I think we'll be okay. I just wish everybody else was as judicious about their use of herbicides and pesticides as we are.

And Dolly, you're another person on here I've interacted with quite a bit through the years, and I just want you to know that I think highly of you. You always offer well thought out responses and you seem grounded and reasonable.

And you can call me Jeff if you like.

TY, believe me, it wasn't always so. I'm in the helping profession also. My hope is to leave the people I help a little stronger, so they can carry the torch after me.

(Do try the Burn Out too. You'll like it. Good luck.)

I wanted to just add something to this conversation...

in corporate America the greatest efficacy we have is not with our vote (VOTE, this is not saying not to vote!) but it is with our dollars.

While it makes a minimal difference on an individual level, if EVERYONE purchased with their values, it would force companies to be more reflective of those values.


Now, huge disclaimer: COMPANIES should not have values. they are not people, they should not be able to vote or donate or have opinions. Taking a stand against a companies ownership is another thing all together.

when a company has a policy or behavior i do not like i try to avoid that company ( i don't shop at the butcher in my neighborhood who is racist) but as you guys said, it is increasingly hard to do this without really really hurting yourself or denying yourself more than is fair.


I think that the importance is in the balance but also in the discussion..to say, i prefer not to shop there to let other people know why so they can decide. or i wish there was an alternative to Monsanto because all those people are dying from using their products (janitors, landscapers etc)

it aint easy

It isn't easy. You also know the social stigma which follows standing for your convictions. What does one do when confronted with new knowledge (think Nike.) Our lives are a series of conscious decisions. Many do not want to live life so "intentionally."

To your point, DC: In all honesty, we were sent by the State for training on the use of chemicals. There are precautions to follow when even using products with the mildest warning labels (caution.) We made every effort to follow those.

You will never find us in shorts, flip flops, and a tank top spraying chemicals. Not to say there is no hazard, only to say we are aware of it. Stories of carelessness, and the resulting consequences abound, if one listens.

I believe we have hijacked JScotts thread. My apologies, JScott, I try very hard not to get on my soap box, and I have failed here.

maybe if we all just keep talking at the weeds they will die from the hot air :)

No, not at all, I'm enjoying this discourse. We are all raising some interesting points to talk about, and I'm enjoying the conversation. You and Coconuts are both the kind of people I enjoy talking to. And this thread is still at least tangentially related to the original post hahahaha

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Yesssssss that's the best idea we've had yet!

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And I did order the Burnout. I went to Home Depot, but they're only letting in a certain number of people at a time, and the line stretched all the way down to the end of the building and around the corner, and I thought screw this. I'll just order it online hahahhaa

for what it is worth, i did a pick up order from home depot and it was super fast and kind of hilarious

i ordered a bunch of sprinkler stuff, figuring id fix some broken ones and cap some that are in the wrong places etc...the stuff is all fungible no worries.

I also ordered two 3 gal Clusia (privacy shrub) and one elephant ear...well, these plants are NOT all the same.

the person who was bringing the order had this sheepish look on her face and as we were going over the materials she saw me looking sad faced at the plants and she burst out laughing and just said " i know right!! those plants are SORRY!! i was thinking that too. i don't know who chose those but no...."

she comes back with some BOSS plants and a sassy smile telling me how she told the person that people want Nice healthy plants and not garbage...


i told her i would have hugged her if this shit wasn't going on and she, like a boss, said, "if this wasn't going on you'da picked your own damn plants okay?" and gave me a great smile

so yeah, pick is better but don't get plants

I went to Home Depot yesterday to get some soil and compost and other gardening stuff I still need to get my big flower bed ready for planting. It was raining yesterday, so the line to get in was really short. I was trying to load like 10 bags of compost and 12 bags of garden soil, and the employees just stood there and watched. I think I'll try Lowes today. Home Depot only had compost in 1 cubic foot bags, and I was really wanting 10 2 cubit foot bags (I know i could have just bought 20, but that seemed like so much work loading 20 bags while the employees just watched.)

Home Depot is in a busy shopping district, but it's very close to my house, so I go there more often even though I prefer Lowes. The Lowes is kind of out of the way in the middle of nowhere with no other stores around it, so I'm thinking maybe things will be slower there and I won't have to wait to get in. And also, all the plants at Home Depot were crap, and Lowes usually has better plants.

One learns in the business, to always select the best plants first. Work ethic?

I think i'm going to be going back to Oklahoma for a bit to return to my old job as manager of my little seasonal garden center. I'm a teacher, so school is closed. We're still working and the kids are still learning, but we are doing it all online, so I can do it from anywhere. A lot of the employees at the garden center don't want to work because they are worried about the virus, and the owner would like me to set up an online store where people can order what they want in advance, and then just come in and have us load it in their car, so they don't even have to get out and associate with anybody and risk exposure. I have responsibilities at home, so I"ll still have to come home every few days, but it's only a 2 and a half hour drive, so that's not too bad. I wouldn't want to do it every day, but I'm fine with every three or four days. I'm kind of excited. I loved managing that shop, and I'm sick of being stuck at home with nothing to do. They're hoping to open on the 8th.

And yes Dolly, as you said, when somebody wants help picking out a plant, you always select the best one first. Giving the customers the best plants is the best way to keep them coming back.

Well, late to the party as usual. Regardless of wild carrot, cow parsley, etc, it is SUPER hard to get rid of. Not as hard as wild garlic or onions, but still.

I'm surely not a Monsanto fan, and despise the GMO altered seeds. A different story. I won't buy "Roundup" because it's made by Monsanto. But I will and have bought a 40-50% glycophosphate not sold by Monsanto, and cautiously use it when necessary.

I'm too impatient to wait as long as it would take to stretch a sheet of black plastic over it. Not a patient person. I use most of my cardboard to start fires on brush piles (clearing back acreage of honeysuckle bush). I've tried using straight vinegar, which works well for some weeds, but not really tough ones like that one. I run around each spring with a small handheld shovel, and dig out wild onion/garlic from my mulched beds. So either dig them out, or bite the bullet and put some glycophosphate on it and be done.

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On the subject of plant sales... I used to own a couple of businesses prior to retirement five years back. The watergarden store... always help choose the best of the best available. The one that wasn't best will now be best. If I got to the point where they were pathetic specimens, i.e., hadn't grown up enough, etc., the price then dropped. Kind of like buying a seedling instead of a ready to bloom orchid. I was a terrible salesperson, and spent most of my time planting or doing other things.

When I worked at the garden center, a significant portion of my paycheck went right back to the garden center hahaha. And yes, I do the same as you. Once all the best plants are gone, I offer the janky looking ones for a lower price. If I don't do that, nobody will buy them, and they'll eventually get donated or thrown away when we have to pack up at the end of the season, so might as well get what I can for them, because it's better than nothing, and most of those plants are probably going to recover and do just fine once they're planted and cared for appropriately. And that kind of customer service is what keeps them coming back.

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And I did get some glyphosate for those weeds. I couldn't figure out any other way to do it in the time frame I need to get it done. I didn't have to use very much of it. I pulled the ones I could, and only poisoned the ones who were too stubborn to cooperate.

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And welcome to the party. You're just fashionably late. You're fancy like that.

Sure, hellsyeah. Just too many places to be. Does that make me fancy? I'll take it.

I still have a quart of Chloridane sp? gifted to me my by beloved Dad. Now, I gotta go fuel up and get ready for another day. We go to bed fairly early by most folk's standards, and get up the same way. At least I started something. Crap.... I was gonna start a new thread. Whatever... Over and out for today. XOXO

You seem plenty fancy to me! Somebody (actually Dolly on this thread) recommended that I try a product called BurnOut which is a less toxic, more environmentally friendly weed killer. She said it works, but it sometimes takes two applications for certain stubborn weeds. I ordered some, so when it gets here I'll give it a try and see how it does, but I trust Dolly, she seems to have it together, so I'm sure if she says it works, it works.

I was going to throw another log on this fire and suggest ...fire


It is not a good solution for wide areas and, I confess, I don’t know how deep it works, but I have had good results with pesky vines and sh1t awful spikey weeds with both a flame thrower (small propane, not cool military) and a controlled burn on maybe a ten sq/ft area


Sounds like you already settled the issue but in case anyone searches for this solution in the future....



Night all, you fancy folk

One if the things I liked about Burnout, was that when you sprayed, the weeds instantly turned color. You could see your coverage. This would be more evident in your hot sun. We also used a product called "Sythe" which is composed of some kind of fatty acids. It works well too but plugs your sprayer. I had to constantly shake the sprayer while using it.

We have a farm store near us and they used to carry these products. They also carry generic Roundup, which is far cheaper. We have 5 acres, so it pays to buy in quantity.

Another option would be to buy a small bottle of brush killer and paint the tops of each individual weed with a disposable paint brush. That works well for spot weeding your beds, or killing brushy/viney weeds.

Dolly and I are VERY good friends... if she says it works, you can take it to the bank.

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We have a Bernzomatic. I've had several over the years, and I love it. It works extremely well on many things. With the wild carrot, like young dandelions, it usually works if it's not very large. Wild garlic, onion, and purple thistle not as well. Has to do with the long tap root. I have one thistle I've been burning for three years now, two or three times a summer, just for kicks. It came up in the pathway in my raised veggie beds, and I enjoy fighting with it.

I've been known to walk over very large areas burning weeds, while beloved husband sits with a hose and a cold beer, spraying down the occasional mulch fire. Very satisfying way to spend an afternoon.

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Yup, the best products are at the feed stores. I don't like doing the paintbrush routine, but I have a squeeze bottle (like mustard) that I fill with straight glycophosphate, and as I cut off small trees, etc, that get into places I don't want, I put a drop of it on top of the fresh cut.

That might not be the best idea if JScott is in an urban area. (I have stories.) Although we burn down some of our ornamental grasses in the spring. The beer part sounds good, though.

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Yes, that works well too.

Oh come on Dolly! Life on the edge! :biggrin:

I also did this for years when I lived urban. Ahem... I also have stories, mostly my own. One of them is a predilection for burning stuff. That's why Michael always has the hose out, plus the beer for fortification. :rofl:

WW, maybe a good idea would be to start a weed/removal/gardening tips thread?

I really like the idea of purifying the land with fire, however I live in a populated neighborhood. I don't think there's a vacant house on my street (I live in Grand Prairie, and a lot of people are moving to the DFW area, and those houses in the 250 - 300 thousand price range sell like hotcakes. Every time we looked at a house and found one we wanted to make an offer on, there was almost always a contract on it, the very day it went up on the market)

All that is to say that I have a lot of neighbors, some of whom are very nosy, and I think if I started setting my backyard on fire, I'd have a fire truck showing up shortly. And I haven't checked, but it is probably illegal to have open fires in a residential area haha.

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I like that idea.

I grew up on a farm. One of the ways we cleared our fence lines was by burning them. I remember that my father had labored for quite some time to get that fence line started burning, and finally it caught. Shortly thereafter the fire department came. It wasn't a pretty sight. And we burn because we have to. However I do notice my neighbor hangs her clothes out. She's about 400 ft away but if the wind is right I'm sure they smell a little smoky. And it doesn't do any good to tell my husband not to burn my Linda has the clothes out. Linda and Terry have beagles, three beagles. I don't need to say more.

i think you have a perfect relationship there! a pyro and a hoser

Exactamente! Have gypsy burner, water, and beer. Can travel for the right price! :rofl: