Weed Varieties

Today was very productive.  I got a good start on pulling the infestation of weeds that took over the garden during these last two weeks of constant rain.  I can’t believe how many there are – and how tall they are!!  I have three basic types of weeds: the first and worst I refer to as “the strangler“.  It’s a viney number that climbs up plants and wraps itself around and around until the plant underneath basically suffocates and dies.  These chappies have super long roots that run horizontally under ground.  They’re tricky to deal with because you think you’ve pulled out the weed and then find that it’s attached to a clandestine horizontal carrot with millions of other roots branching out and just waiting to pop up and strangle your next plant.  Agressive little buggers.

The second is a happy, tree-like weed with soft fuzzy leaves.  It grows tall but is easy to pull out.  And once it’s out it’s out.  Nothing too sneaky about this one, except for the surprising quickness with which it regenerates creating a mini forest where you once planted lettuce.

The third weed is what I like to call “heavy-duty grass“.  I know what you’re thinking;  grass, shira?  Big deal.  But it’s HARD grass and it REFUSES to come out of the ground when you yank it.  It’s practically impossible to get to the root of these suckers, and so you know it’s going to grow back in like two days while your back is turned.  Evil.  I have quite a large patch of heavy-duty grass that’s going to meet the weed wacker and a hoe tomorrow.