Home Garden and Landscape Management

Year-round weed management in home landscapes requires a year-round, integrated approach. This means using common sense, good practices, knowledge of weed biology, and use of as many weed control options as possible to reduce unwanted vegetation. The choice of weed control options available to you will depend on your site-specific issues and your ability to complete timely and often repetitious tasks. All weeds, if left unmanaged, reduce the value of the land they occupy. Consider the following concepts in designing a year-round weed management approach for home landscapes and gardens:

Know your weeds. Accurate weed identification is essential for successful weed management in home landscapes and gardens. Learn to identify common weeds by obtaining copies of weed identification publications listed at the end of this section. If needed, consult your local Extension Office and Master Gardeners, or local nurseries and lawn and garden stores.

Perennial weeds are particularly difficult to control in horticultural sites. Once established, most contain large storage organs such as roots, rhizomes, tubers, or trunks and vines. Some contain thorns, one or more are poisonous, and most are extremely vigorous.

Learn to identify mature and seedling weeds. Correct identification of perennials in the seedling stage can provide control options while the plant is small and vulnerable. After weeds become established as perennials, control options are limited to brief stages within the weed life cycle. Control practices often must be repeated or combined with other methods for maximum control.