Making Weeding Easier
It is also one of those runners that can be reborn from any missed piece of root when you are weeding it out. For these situations (nightshades do the same thing here and definitely have to be dealt with), I use a non-selective herbicide to kill the entire plant, roots and all.
Using a non-selective herbicide in the garden: I use a glyphosate product sold under several trade names, Roundup and Finale are two of them. I bought a Ready-to-Use container, so I wouldn't have a lot left over when winter comes and put some in a wide-mouth jar with a screw on lid. It will kill all green things it gets on, so I store a child's paintbrush stuck behind a rubber band around the jar, and I very carefully paint this stuff on the major leaves. That way I avoid the possibility of any spray drift onto plants I don't want to kill. The secret is painting leaves on an actively growing plant. In late summer or when they have finished flowering, plants are much less susceptible to this herbicide. When used then, you might get regrowth the next year. This is why I cut back larger stuff that needs this treatment. After they are cut back, stubborn perennial weeds and woody plants begin to regrow and you can kill them more easily when the new foliage is 6" to a foot high.
An important note: Don't use a selective broadleaf weed killer for this project. Most of these compounds contain 2,4D. This chemical has a far longer half-life in the environment and is classed as carcinogenic. It has been implicated in lymphoma in dogs and leukemia in children. Glyphosate, while not without dangers, is far safer to use if the directions are followed and will do a better job too.
New weeds germinate from the seed bank all summer, but how often you must weed is up to your tolerance for them. In mixed borders they don't show until they get larger than the other plants. Whenever you are in need of a relaxing time alone, tell the family that you have to go weed the garden.
Latest Articles