What are these two plants and how can I rid my raised bed of them?
#1
05-24-20, 03:51 PM
What are these two plants and how can I rid my raised bed of them?
There was a relatively small patch of one or both of these (purple bell-shaped flowers, and white star-shaped flowers) along the fence in years past and we decided we didn't want them there anymore so I attempted to pull it/dig it out last year. I got most of the visible/above-ground parts last year, but the deep root system remained and it has sprouted a ridiculous number of the plants/flowers this year, scattered throughout a good portion of this raised bed. They're pretty, but we don't want them growing here anymore. What are they, and how do I banish them from the bed? The only two options I've considered so far are trying to dig up the entire root system, but that's likely to be the end of one or two of the three small blueberry bushes that are growing in the same area. I've also considered spraying them with weed killer, but not sure if weed killer would even work on them, and also concerned it might kill the blueberry bushes, even if I avoid getting it directly on them, their roots are undoubtedly intertwined together, and not sure if the weedkiller can jump from one root to another. Not very knowledgeable about these things. Please help!
jessman1128
voted this post useful.
#3
05-25-20, 08:33 AM
Group Moderator
Digging is difficult as you've found. With many weeds you can actually end up with more weeds by trying to dig them up if you're not thorough and leave enough root in the ground.
If you want them gone I would spray them with herbicide. Something with glyphosate (RoundUp) will work and is only absorbed through green, growing leaves so if you don't spray your berries they won't be affected.
If you want them gone I would spray them with herbicide. Something with glyphosate (RoundUp) will work and is only absorbed through green, growing leaves so if you don't spray your berries they won't be affected.
jessman1128
voted this post useful.
#4
06-04-20, 07:21 AM
I've never worked with bulbs before, but these look like small bulbs to me. How do they replicate under-ground? Is there a common root that connects them all and feeds the start of new bulbs? It'll be a large chore to dig them all up, especially with the small blueberry bushes present in the same area, so I think I'll wait for a calm day and spray them as carefully as I can.
#5
06-04-20, 07:40 AM
Group Moderator
Much like daffodils and other bulbs that naturalize... they just do it. The bulbs split so one bulb becomes two and so on. Some plants send our runners underground and then those that grow rhizomes. It looks like your plant is flowering to produce seeds so it probably propagates in a couple different ways.
jessman1128
voted this post useful.
#6
06-04-20, 08:12 PM
Member
How about a HEAVY weed block, pinned down for a few years (except 1-2 feet from your blueberries) and see what transpires.
