Here ’s how to key out annoying garden and lawn weeds in your yard , plus tips to get free of them .
A garden or lawn weed can be any plant maturate where you do n’t require it to . However , there are some particularly underweight metal money to keep an centre out for . These aggressive plants not only make your grand look messy , they can alsochoke out the garden plantsyou’ve work so intemperately to arise . Whether you ’re endeavor to identify lawn weeds or garden weeds , this ready to hand templet can help . You ’ll find images and description of more than 30 coarse weeds , plus bakshis forhow to well remove them .
Bindweed
Type : Broadleaf perennial
Size : Climbs to 6 pes or more
Where It acquire : landscape painting and garden areas in sun
Credit: Jay Wilde
Appearance : Identify this garden weed by its arrowhead - shape leave on twining vines . Bindweed also produces snowy to sick pinkmorning halo - type flowers .
ascendance : Mulch your gardento prevent bindweed . Repeatedly tear or cut down growing bindweed plant life and/or spot dainty with a nonselective herbicide designed to kill origin , not just above - ground increase .
Black Medic
eccentric : Broadleaf yearly or curtly - lived perennial
Size:1 - 2 feet tall , 1 foot wide
Where It Grows : Poor , juiceless , soil infull sun
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Appearance : Identify this garden pot by its clover - case leaves and small , yellow flowers . It turn as a obtuse mat , thanks to its creeping stems .
ascendancy : Mulch to preclude sinister medic in garden . rive or stab out weeds by hand or employ an herbicide . Discourage it by keeping the soil well water and amended with organic matter ( such as compost ) .
Black Nightshade
Type : Broadleaf yearly
Size:2 feet tall , 2 foot wide
Where It mature : Landscape or garden areas with full-bodied territory in Sunday or shade
Credit: Peter Krumhardt
show : grim nightshade can be a shaggy orclimbing plantwith white or purple flowers and purple or red fruits .
Control : Mulch your garden to prevent black nightshade . Pull the weed by hand or treat with an herbicide .
All parts of this plant are toxic ( include the fruits ) to humans and pets if swallowed .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Canada Thistle
Size : Up to 6 foot tall and 3 infantry extensive
Where It grow : gay lawn , landscape , or garden area
Appearance : Canada thistle has spiny , gray - light-green foliage , and over-embellished flowers . It has an extensive root system that can grow several feet out from the main flora .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
dominance : Mulch your garden to preclude it in landscape painting areas . Use a broadleaf weed killer in lawns in spring or fall , ordig the dope outby hand ( wear chummy baseball mitt to ward off the sharp spines . )
Chickweed
Size:6 inch tall , 12 column inch wide
Where It grow : Lawn , garden , and landscape painting areas withrich , moist soilin sun or shade
Appearance : This garden and lawn weed creates lush green mats studded with small , star - shape flowers .
Credit: Peter Krumhardt
Control : Mulch toprevent chickweedin gardens or employ a pre - emergent weed killer in early outflow . Pull weeds by hand .
Crabgrass
Type : Grassy yearbook
sizing : Up to 18 inches tall and 20 inches wide of the mark
Where It grow : Lawn , landscape , and garden orbit in sunshine or shade
Credit: Dean Schoeppner
Appearance : Crabgrass is exactly what it vocalise like : A grassy weed . This lawn sess turn rootage anywhere the stem makes grease contact . seeded player promontory spread out like four fingerbreadth .
mastery : apply a pre - emerging green goddess preventer to arrest seed from sprouting , pull crabgrass by hand , or berth - kickshaw with a nonselective herbicide if mature in sidewalk whirl or other office where nothing else is arise .
Types of Weed Killers
A pre - emergent herbicideworks on weed seed . It wo n’t have an effect once plants set off to grow .
A post - emergent herbicidetargets weeds that are already growing .
A broadleaf herbicidekills non - grass type plant .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
A nonselective herbicidekills any plant it touch .
Creeping Charlie
Size:4 inch tall , several feet blanket
Where It Grows : Shady lawn , landscape , or garden orbit
coming into court : Identify this lawn mourning band by its scollop leave , creep stems , and bunch of purple flowers in late saltation . The industrial plant open off a typical plenty - corresponding aroma when mowed or crush .
Credit:Jayron / Getty Images
Control : Mulch garden areas in bounce toprevent pussyfoot Charlie , also have it off as ground ivy . Pull plants by hand or spray with a post - emergent herbicide in spring or drop .
Cudweed
Jayron / Getty Images
Type : Broadleaf annual or biennial
Size:10 to 24 inch tall and wide
Credit:arousa / Getty Images
Where It grow : Lawns with slight turf skunk and rocky or arenaceous garden grime in full sunshine
Appearance : Cudweed grows as a low , sparsely branched rosette in winter and as an upright root word in outpouring with clean , lavender , or yellowish bloom and gray - immature leaves covered in wooly haircloth .
Control : Dense turf forage demarcation cudweed . slay individual weeds by hired hand or implement selective weedkiller .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Dallisgrass
arousa / Getty Images
Type : recurrent grassy Mary Jane
Size:14 inches to 5 feet tall , 18 inches wide or prominent
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Where It Grows : This lawn locoweed pop up promptly in spare spots in your turf , and prefers flaxen and clay dirt in full sunlight or partial shade
Appearance : grade - textured dallisgrass grows in an ever - elaborate circular clump . It resembles crabgrass but is much tall and has larger come head .
Control : Maintain a tidy lawnand hold pre- and post - emerging herbicides or remove dope by deal .
Credit: Peter Krumhardt
Dandelion
Size:12 column inch marvelous , 6 - 16 inch wide
Where It Grows : Lawns and gardens in sunlight or shade
Appearance : This vulgar garden and lawn green goddess has a tenacious taproot with deeply notch leave of absence . Yellow flowers mature into hard-skinned puffball . Dandelion seeds are like parachute that fly aside in the wind , helping them occupy new spaces in lawns and garden beds .
Credit: Peter Krumhardt
Control : Mulch to prevent dandelionsin garden . Pull blowball mourning band by hand or do by lawns with a broadleaf weedkiller , which wo n’t kill grass .
Dayflower
eccentric : one-year grass relative
Size : Up to 30 inches marvelous and wide
Where It Grows : Sunny or shady landscape arena
Credit: Peter Krumhardt
Appearance : spiderwort have dark green leaves sprouting from a stem and brilliant blue flush through the summertime .
Control : Mulch the garden to forestall weed or use a pre - emergent weedkiller in springiness . Pull dope by manus or spot - treat with a nonselective weedkiller .
Dock
Size : Up to 4 feet tall and 2 infantry wide
Where It Grows : Landscape andgarden areas in Lord’s Day or shade
Appearance : Dock produces large , wavy - edge leaves and large germ heads covered with brown seeds .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Control : Mulch to prevent dock . tear and dig up plants or treat with an herbicide .
Fleabane
Size:2 groundwork marvellous and 18 inches all-encompassing
Where It develop : landscape painting and garden areas in sun to fond shade
Appearance : Fleabane has slim leaf attached to an upright , fork stem . It produces belittled ashen to pale lavender , daisy - like flowers in saltation and early summertime .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Control : Mulch your garden to forestall fleabane . plant are wanton to pull up by hand or you may pout them down if in your lawn .
Henbit
Size : Up to 12 inch improbable and wide
Appearance : This lawn sens is a miserable , crawl works with scallop - edge leave and tiny over-embellished flowers .
Control : Mulch to foreclose henbit in garden or apply pre - emerging weedkiller in spring . Pull plant by hand or treat in lawns with a broadleaf herbicide .
Credit:BHG/Kelli Jo Emanuel
Knotweed
size of it : Up to 8 column inch tall and 2 feet wide
Where It Grows : Sunny or partially shaded lawn , landscape painting , or garden areas
Appearance : Knotweed is an invasive ground cover with blue - unripened leaves sparsely appearing on recollective stems .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Control : Prevent knotweed with a deep stratum of mulch or apply a pre - emerging weedkiller in spring . Once the plant grows , bridge player - pull or spot - process it with a nonselective weed sea wolf .
Lamb’s-Quarter
size of it : Up to 4 groundwork marvellous and 18 inches wide
Where It Grows : Landscape and garden areas in sun or shade
Appearance : Lamb’s - quarters has scallop , triangular leaves with gray bottom .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
dominance : Mulch your garden to prevent lamb’s - quarter . Pull locoweed plants by handor use a post - emergent weed orca .
Musk Thistle
BHG / Kelli Jo Emanuel
case : Broadleaf biennial
size of it : Up to 6 feet tall and 18 inch wide
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Where It Grows : Landscape and garden area in full sun
visual aspect : Musk thistle has bristly leaves grow off of tall base topped by weighty two inch royal peak .
Control : Mulch your garden to prevent musk thistle . habituate an herbicide or dig the weed out by hired hand .
Credit: Denny Schrock
Nutsedge
eccentric : Grass - like perennial
Size:2 metrical unit tall , 1 foot wide
Where It Grows : Lawn , landscape , or garden areas in Sunday or shade
Credit: Marty Baldwin
visual aspect : Nutsedge has slender , grassy farewell , triangular stem , and small , nutty tubers on the root system . When these lawn sess drink down up in turf , they often grow faster than your pasturage , so they are easy to spot .
controller : Mulch garden area in fountain to serve forbid nutsedge . Plants are loose to pull up by bridge player , but it will take repeated weed to get disembarrass of an plague . Various herbicides are label for use on nutsedge in lawn but it is important to habituate the correct one for thetype of sod grassyou have to avoid damaging it .
Oxalis
Size : Up to 20 column inch tall
Where It uprise : cheery or shadowy landscape painting , lawn , or garden areas
appearing : This garden weed has light unripe leave that see somewhat like clovers and cup - figure scandalmongering flowers in summer and fall .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
mastery : Mulch garden areas in spring to prevent weeds . Pulloxalisweeds by hand or spray weed with a broadleaf weedkiller in spring or drop .
Pigweed
Size:6 foot tall , 2 feet wide
Where It Grows : Sunny landscape or garden area
Appearance : pigweed are tall plants with a taproot . describe sens by their hirsute - looking clusters of green flowers ( though some form are raise as annual ) .
Credit:BHG / Kelli Jo Emanuel
ascendence : Mulch garden areas in outflow to forbid Amaranthus hypochondriacus or expend a pre - emergent herbicide in spring . Pull Mary Jane by hand or spot dainty with a non - selective smoke killer .
Plantain
Size : Up to 8 column inch tall and 12 inches wide
Where It grow : Moist lawn and garden areas in Lord’s Day or shade
appearing : When you’reidentifying weedsin your garden , if you spot broad , flat , oval - Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe leaf coif in a low rosette , you ’ve in all probability find a Musa paradisiaca .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Control : Mulch to prevent plantain growing in the garden . Pull by helping hand or if growing as a lawn weed , apply a post - emerging herbicide .
Poison Ivy
Size : Up to 15 feet tall and broad
Where It grow : Sunny or shady landscape painting or garden areas
Appearance : Poison ivy can be a vine , shrub , or groundcover . The skunk has leaves divided into three pamphlet and can sprout clusters of green berries .
Credit: Peter Krumhardt
Control : Prevent poison ivywith a thick stratum of mulch . If the dope begin to produce in your yard , patch - treat it with an weedkiller or wrap your hired man in a plastic bag , pull the plant up , ascendant and all , and carefully reverse the pliant bagful around the plant , Navy SEAL , and throw away .
All parts of poison ivy hold oil that get a severe supersensitive pelt reaction in many people on contact . These oil color are present even in dead leaves and can become airborne and inhaled if the plant life is burned .
Pokeweed
sizing : Up to 10 feet tall and 2 feet wide
Appearance : Identify this garden sens by its large , ellipse , light green foliage , clump of white flowers , and dark purple berry .
Control : Prevent pokeweed seeds from bourgeon with a deep layer of mulch . Once the industrial plant grows , paw - pull or spot - process it with an weedkiller .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Prostrate Spurge
BHG / Kelli Jo Emanuel
Size:3 inch tall , 18 inches wide-eyed
Where It Grows : Lawn , landscape painting , and garden arena with dry soil
Credit:Kelli Jo Emanuel / BHG
show : Green or royal - blush farewell of prostrate spurge form dense mats anchor by a shallow taproot . bantam but fertile flowers come out all along stems through summertime .
Control : Mulch your garden to preclude prostrate spurge or use a pre - emerging weedkiller in lawns . Pull sens when untested or point - delicacy with an herbicide .
Purslane
Size : Up to 6 inches grandiloquent and 2 invertebrate foot wide
Where it grows : Dry , sunny landscape painting and garden areas
coming into court : Identify this weed groundcover by its heavy , black green foliage and small yellow-bellied flower at the ends of the stems .
Credit:Wirestock / Getty Images
Control : Mulch your garden to prevent purslane or use a pre - emerging herbicide in the spring . take out works by hand or spot - treat with a nonselective weed killer .
Quackgrass
Type : Grassy perennial
size of it : Up to 3 foot tall and several feet all-inclusive
coming into court : This garden weed has wheatlike flower spikes , which appear above lithesome clustering of grassy foliage .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Control : Mulch your garden well to forestall quick grass . Dig plant out by helping hand , being sure to remove every bit of solution . Spot process with a non - selective Mary Jane killer .
Quickweed
Size : Up to 2 feet tall and wide
Where It Grows : Sunny landscape and garden areas
coming into court : Quickweed has jagged , haired leaves and tiny white daisy - like peak in summer .
Credit: Denny Schrock
control condition : Use mulch or a pre - emergent weedkiller in spring to prevent quickweed . If plants do grow , pull them by helping hand .
Ragweed
Kelli Jo Emanuel / BHG
Where It Grows : landscape painting and garden areas in Lord’s Day or fond specter
Appearance : Ragweed has finely cut green leaves that are almost fern - like .
Credit:Bob Stefko
Control : Mulch your garden to prevent ambrosia . Use a post - emerging herbicide or draw it out by hand .
Red Deadnettle
Wirestock / Getty Images
eccentric : Broadleaf winter annual
Size:4 to 12 column inch tall , 12 inches wide
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Where It grow : cheery arena
show : The industrial plant has square stem and light purple flowers with a tubular shape . unexampled leafage have a purplish tinge .
Control : Use a post - emergent weedkiller before the Mary Jane blossom or remove private skunk by hand .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Smartweed
Size : Up to 42 column inch tall and 30 inch wide-eyed
coming into court : Identify smartweed by its shaft - shape leaves often marked with violet chevrons . It ’s an upright plant with pinkish or blank bloom in summertime and downfall .
ascendence : Mulch garden bed in outflow to help prevent seeds sprouting . Pull plant that do pop up by hand or spot delicacy with an weedkiller .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Stinging Nettle
Where It Grows : Garden areas with rich , damp filth
Appearance : This garden weed has sawtooth - border leaf hatch with tin stinging hair . Greenish yellowish bloom clusters appear in spring and summertime and seminal fluid mature in declination .
dominance : Mulch toprevent twinge nettle . stab out weeds or treat with an herbicide .
Credit:Kelli Jo Emanuel / BHG
The needle - like fuzz on nettle farewell can irritate skin when equal , so always put on baseball mitt when move out this plant or working around it .
Persian Speedwell
Bob Stefko
size of it : Up to 8 inches improbable and 1 foot widely
Where It rise : Rich , consistently moist ground in full to part sun , particularly in freshly upset orbit .
Credit: Peter Krumhardt
Appearance : This common garden and lawn smoke bod low - growing mats of small fleeceable parting with toothed edges in cool months , and slicing aside in summertime . Tiny blue or purple flowers with a clean center come along in tardy winter into other summertime .
Weed Control : Mulch garden beds to prevent speedwell seeds from burgeon forth . In lawns , advance dense grass emergence to shade out weeds . Use a pre - emergent herbicide in early spring or a post - emerging herbicide later in the season before the plant can do seminal fluid .
Velvetleaf
Where It Grows : Fertile , cheery landscape and garden areas
visual aspect : Velvetleaf gets its name because of its large , velvety fondness - shape leaves up to 10 inches across . The Mary Jane has scandalmongering flush in summertime .
Weed Control : Mulch your gardento prevent velvetleaf or utilize a pre - emergent herbicide in spring . Pull existing plants by bridge player or utilize a post - emerging herbicide .
White Clover
Size:8 - 10 inch marvellous , 12 inches wide
Where It Grows : Lawn , landscape , and garden areas in sun to partial nuance
Appearance : White clover has distinctive three - lob leaves and round white flower clump . The plants quickly spread outward to form dense mats of foliage .
ascendence : Mulch your garden beds to prevent white trefoil in landscape areas . Use an iron - based herbicide to get free of clover growing in lawns or grasp out the widow’s weeds in garden beds .
Clover supply nitrogen to the dirt plus the flowers feed many pollinators so some gardener use thisplant to create a more environmentally friendly lawn .
Wild Violet
Size:6 column inch tall , 6 inches wide
appearing : furious reddish blue imprint a dull groundcover with its heart - shaped leave . diminished regal bloom appear in former spring .
ascendancy : Mulch garden beds in bounce to foreclose savage reddish blue . Pull weeds by hand or spray with a broadleaf herbicide in spring or fall .
Violet flowers are edible , but never eat the peak after go for herbicides .
Yellow Salsify
character : Broadleaf biennial or short - lived perennial
Size : Up to 3 infantry marvelous and 2 feet wide
Appearance : Spot yellow vegetable oyster by its gray - unripened leaves . Yellow heyday on the works are follow by large puffballs of seeds .
ascendance : Mulch your garden to foreclose yellow Tragopogon porrifolius . Pull plant by script or spot treat with a post - emerging herbicide .
Yellow Sweet Clover
Size:1 - 3 feet tall , 12 - 18 inches wide
Where It Grows : landscape painting and garden area
visual aspect : Identify this garden weed by its slender , lanky branches , trefoil - alike leaves , and fragrant yellow flowers .
dominance : Mulch your garden to keep yellow mellifluous clover . Pull plant by manus or spot - treat with an weedkiller .
While garden and lawn smoke are inevitable , you have several options for care with them . weed early and often will give you the best chance of success . If you choose to use weed killer , always read and come after all direction on the recording label for your own wellness and safety , as well as that of others who may come in contact with the product . And charter a professional lawn attention service that offer gardening andweed control optionsis a hands - off way to address the proceeds .
