Allotments 4 All

 Anyone know an easier way of getting rid of this piggin stuff, Apart from breaking my back digging it out? Not such a problem on my lottie, But, its well established on my flower borders and spreading into the grass. would be willing to use harsh measures to rid the garden of it. Help!!!!

according to joy larkcom "ground elder can eventually be weakened by regularly removing all the leaves".....

Hi Gunnerbee, :) I have been battling with ground elder in my garden on & off for 20yrs. >:( It was infested when we 1st moved here, I just dug every year trying to be careful to remove all of it. You must be careful to remove all bits as it is like bindweed, ::) Leave a bit behind & it will root. I now spot treat with round up mixed with a little wallpaper paste so that it only goes where I want it. It is now restricted to the hedge, so not such a problem but I am still spot treating.  Good Luck!!  ;D

I was going to write exactly the same as Marley, as soon as a piece of root is left in it grows.  We sprayed with round-up twice at weekly intervals and then after two weeks dug it all out about 5 years ago and still have problems with it but mostly in the hedge.

Horrible stuff, if you garden organicly,try covering it with plastic, if not,give it a good dose of glysophate, this works best if the plant is bruised, try jumping up and down on it, may get a few stares, but it works off the hatefull feelings!!!!

I found covering with black plastic doesn't work - it just runs it's roots further until it finds light - that's another 20ft of problem?

I used to pull the roots when I found them in a whole where I wanted to plant - just pull + break though, not dig over. That way I got rid of a lot of root from areas I was planting new stuff in without the danger of leaving little bits to start a million new shoots.

Then I'd remove the leaves elsewhere - in established areas (around shrubs etc) a-la Larcom.

It did seem to work + it gradually decreases, but you have to be vigilant - if it has chance to expose leaves to sunlight for long it will regain strength.

I learned from my first allotment never to dig in an area that had fleshy rooted weeds, unless you want to crop them :P

Blame the Romans....... ?Apparently they brought it with them when they popped over!!!Used to eat the roots.   Ground elder souffle? Good luck, it's wicked stuff to get rid of.  Lottie

My mum has been plagued with it for the 35 years she has lived in her home!  Awful stuff!!!!!  Little and often seems to just about keep it under control, but within 24 hours of mum clearing every last leaf and stem and as many roots and she can get at, there are fresh leaves poking through.  And as said previously, it runs and runs and comes up in the middle of patios and pavements!!

I hate the flaming stuff.  Have been battling with it, and mostly losing, for 5 years.  I have had to take out the shrubs and move rockery stone so I can get in and remove it by hand.  It forms thick mats of spagetti-like roots which are very hard to get a fork under to turn up.  This is just months after an earlier attempt.  Zapped it with glyphos then waited and zapped the regrowth and have got to get out and do it again.  Can't see it at the mo as it is covered in chick weed  :(

I've been fightingit for six years down on the allotment. Two or three years ago I had major neighbour trouble, and every time I weeded my flowerbeds all the plants vanished. So I didn't dare weed for a couple of years, and the horrible stuff staged a comeback. I'm now at the stage where I can't dig it out till the spring bulbs die back. It's proving a lot harder to get rid of than bindweed or couch grass, both of which were major problems at first.

I have ground elder on my lottie at the moment but my biggest headache at the moment is with thistles.  They are all over the bits I haven't got round to yet and some are getting as big as triffids.  I am sure once i have managed to shift most of the thistles, the ground elder will find the fresh space easy pickings. :(

Thank goodness for glyphosate ::)

QuoteBlame the Romans....... ?Apparently they brought it with them when they popped over!!!

Stupid romans >:(

I find http://www.dgsgardening.btinternet.co.uk/weeds.htm invaluable

Mind you, we can thank them for baths, which if you like gardening for any length of time, is no bad thing........!  ;D ;D ;D Lottie

All right, but apart from the sanitation, the medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, a fresh water system, and public health, what have the Romans ever done for us?



;D

Well, we did give them something in return.  Ok so it was only malaria  ;D