Topic: Mystery weed

[Suffolklad]

Just found out how crappy I am at close-up photography !  :o

There's a macro on my camera somewhere but b******d if I can find it  ;D

This is the best I could manage:



I guess it could be shaggy soldier, but doesn't look "hairy" enough somehow
Whatever it is, I hate it !
Mike

[carloso]

well if we cant agree what it is, at least its in nice neat rows  :D

[Suffolklad]

well if we cant agree what it is, at least its in nice neat rows  :D

Hmmmpff...............it was supposed to be nice neat rows of carrots  >:(

I've bought some weed membranes to use next season, and I'm gonna plant most things through them. ..........and I'm gonna lay planks down side by side with a 1/4 inch gap between and sow my carrots in the gap !

I *will* beat these damned weeds !  ::)
Mike

[Paulines7]

Perhaps your weeds aren't "shaggy soldier" then as they are not hairy.  They are the same group though and very invasive.

I have pulled out about a thousand or so similar plants this morning and still have thousands left.  Mine are amongst the brassicas and potatoes.  When I pull the weeds up, the brassicas come up with them and have to be replanted. 

I am hoping to burn all mine before they set seed as I found this on the web:

Spreads by:
Seed only. Flowers from June until late autumn, producing large numbers of seeds. A single plant can produce up to 7500 seeds, starting as young as 8 weeks old. Seeds have no dormancy requirement, so they can start to germinate as soon as they are shed. However, many of them will also germinate the following year. Fortunately, galinsoga seeds are viable for only a few years under field conditions.  http://www.gov.on.ca/OMAFRA/english/crops/hort/news/vegnews/2004/vg1004a4.htm

With each plant producing 7500 seeds, I will have millions next year if I do not get rid of them now.  It must be more difficult for you to get rid of them being situated amongst your carrots.  I know that the plants originate from South America and are spreading throughout the world but I don't know how they got to me in Wiltshire! 

Pauline

[Suffolklad]

They aren't just in the carrots they are in EVERYTHING - it's just that the carrots are so much harder to get them out from. My plots have been unused for 2-3 years, so they were absolute jungles !  I've cleared the lot now and just keep hoeing every few days to chop off the new ones.
Mike