couch grass and creeping buttercup

[aquilegia]

I have both these growing in my garden. Mostly in the lawn.

Is there anything I can do to get rid of them? I'm digging up the worst bits, but I realise this won't get rid of it entirely.

Can't use chemicals as I have a 4-y-o son, so I can't ban him from playing on the lawn - he'd go nuts not being able to run around!

[aquilegia]

[birdsrfun]

Spray on glyphosate (?spelling) after he has gone to bed, it will be dry by the morning and thus safe.

[goodlife]

Umm...yes that spray will work...but..any spray landing on lawn will be terminated too :-\ Creeping buttecup is easier out of the two to deal with as it is shallow rooted and can be dug out and surface repaire done. But couch is the difficult one..other than scraping layer of soil off, replacing the top soil and laying/sowing new lawn there is not much else to be done..couch has roots that travel everywhere and it regenerate from the bits that are left under ground.
Do you need to have perfect lawn as yet?..if you could just keep the worst weeds under control for now..and when he is bit older then tackle the lawn with more efficiently.. ;) Good thing is...both weeds are really hard wearing.. ::) ;) ;D

[Obelixx]

You could spot paint glyphosate on the creeping buttercup while he's at school.   Do it early on a sunny day and the active ingredient will have passed to the roots and dried on the leaves by the time he gets home.

I can't see that couch grass is a problem as it looks like ordinary grass till you expose the roots and see those nasty spears seeking to take over the world so just make sure you keep the lawn edges trimmed to stop it escaping into your borders.

[OllieC]

I thought couch hated being cut short.

[RSJK]

I thought couch hated being cut short.

And me

[goodlife]

Code Select Expand

I thought couch hated being cut short. It might not flourish with short cut..but it ait get killed neither. Trouble with short cut is that rest of the lawn have to be good enough grass to take it too..otherwise you end up with patchy lawn. 

[aquilegia]

Thanks for the replies.  :)

I don't really care too much about the state of the lawn - as long as it's green! I even rather like the pretty yellow flowers amongst the grass! The problem is that it keeps spreading into my beds and borders. I'm forever pulling it out. I think I'll just have to put up with it for now and try to keep on top of it.

By "hates being cut short" - how short is short? I have my mower set to about 5cm (I think!) I don't like it too short as it gets really bald in the summer.

[lottie lou]

What I am wondering is if we get rid of all the couch would/could a great gust of wind come and take off our topsoil like the Great Dust Bowl

[goodlife]

Ahh...but then your new topsoil is too dry and new grass would not grow in it..if it's kept watered/moist..you will need tornado to lift if up..

[lottie lou]

also wonder if couch was grown on mountainous areas - would that prevent muslides.  Also could it prevent soil erosion

[Robert_Brenchley]

also wonder if couch was grown on mountainous areas - would that prevent muslides.  Also could it prevent soil erosion

Slides tend to go rather deeper than couch roots. Erosion tends to occur in the absence of ground cover, so you have to ask why it's missing. It can be inappropriate agricultural methods or treefelling, or overgrazing, for instance. Areas can often recover once the cause of the problem is removed, and plantings can be part of that. An obvious example is the planting of marram grass to stop dune erosion.