Weeds

Weeds are plants growing where they are not wanted and usually look unsightly.

Common weeds you would see in your lawn:

Dandelion is a yellow flower seems to spring up overnight with billowy seed heads floating on long stalks above the ground.

Speedwell is an annual weed that spreads through lawns they can vary in colour and can be white, blue, pink, and purple. The leaves grow in pairs and have scalloped edges while heart shaped seed pods grow on the stem below the flowers.

Clover is an herbaceous small plant of the pea family, with dense globular flower heads and leaves which are typically three round leaves on each stem.

Mare’s tail is an invasive, deep-rooted perennial weed that will spread quickly to form a dense carpet of foliage. May establish from spores, but usually arrives via rhizomes from neighbouring gardens, or stem fragments in composts or manures.

Daisies is a weed of home lawns, parks, and other turf areas, they are typical white daisy flowers with a yellow centre. This species is often found growing in moist, fertile soils and in full sun or partial shaded lawns.

Docks are easily recognised with their large leaves and distinctive seedheads. These leaves are edible and used for herbal remedies and dyeing. They are common weeds in gardens and difficult to eradicate.

Buttercups glossy, bright yellow flowers of creeping buttercup make a cheerful addition to wildflower meadows on wet soils. Buttercups spreading habit and dense network of shoots, runners and roots can make it unsightly in gardens.

Nettles can survive in a wide range of conditions but are most common on ground that’s been left uncultivated for a long period. Plants can spread to form clumps, and seed is also distributed to infest new areas. Stinging nettles die down to tough yellow roots in autumn, over-wintering to grow up again the following spring.

Japanese knotweed is a relatively large plant that can grow up to 2 – 3 m in height and can dominate an area to the exclusion of most other plants. It can form an extensive network of (roots) which cause problems when managing this weed.

Baby Tears The botanical name for mind-your-own-business is Soleirolia soleirolii; it is also commonly known as baby’s tears. They prefers damp shaded areas, but will grow and spread in most conditions. It’s a creeping evergreen perennial with thin, highly-branched, pale green or pink stems that root along their length. Tiny, rounded green leaves cover the plant to create a dense, tactile, moss-like carpet. Plants bear minute pinkish-white flowers in the leaf.