Allotments 4 All

I've just got a new allotment and am trying to clear it and get stuff planted.

How do I know if the grass I'm removing is couch grass or less worrying stuff? 

Also i was hoping to keep the grass as paths - is this crazy?

If it looks like the pics from my blog http://vortexs-veg-patch.blogspot.com/2007/02/slow-going.html
then its couch grass plus probably a number of other varieties of meadow grass. You rarely get one without the other.
Click on the pics to get a better view.

Couch has very long, distinctive roots that sort of branch. You can see them in Vortex's picture with other roots too. Fork it out, it's a bugger.

Hiya, anemone, welcome to the site..we had lots of couch on ours, a.k.a. spear grass here, don't panic, just clear it a bit at a time, you'll get there  ;D

Couch grass has long white, wiry spaghetti like roots and so does bindweed. Bindweed roots are more brittle but it's an equally evasive weed.

My philosophy has always been, if it's white and wiggly dig it out, if it's red and wiggly, leave it in.

Mine was always blunter and more to the point - "If it's white, it's shite"  and dig it out.

Sorry Dan :-[

Quote from: anemone on April 17, 2008, 22:44:50
I've just got a new allotment and am trying to clear it and get stuff planted.

How do I know if the grass I'm removing is couch grass or less worrying stuff? 

Also i was hoping to keep the grass as paths - is this crazy?

I can't add much to the good advice above, except to say that if you need to lie down on the couch after digging it, it's couch grass. *

More seriously, we allow it on our paths between raised beds, and it's fine.  Strim it and/or use a glyphosate weedkiller occasionally to keep it under control, and obviously dig it out of the beds themselves.



* Yes, I know some people pronounce it kooch.  ;)

This is a reasonable picture of a small bit of couch grass:

Hi Anemone

The best way to tell if it is couch is to see if the pointy white roots are quite sharp  and very pointy!

Good luck with it

Old Bird

Thanks for the replies. It does look like the pictures but not so much the longer roots. I do feel like lying down after all day digging and weeding loads out though :)

Also known in some areas as Twich..  :-\