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Take out some frustration -- weed!

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED MAR 27, 2020

Bedstraw produces burrs that catch on socks, pant legs and pets' fur. Get rid of this weed as soon as possible. (Photo: Debbie Arrington)

Tackle invasive plants before they take hold

Is this a weed?

I get that question every workday at the Fremont Community Garden. I often ask it of myself as I tackle my plot or my garden at home, too.

A mystery plant sprouts and grows vigorously; will it be a bonus veggie or some unknown flower? Or will it be something invasive and impossible to control?

Spring is prime weed season in Sacramento with unwanted plants seemingly growing overnight. They spring out of nowhere and can quickly crowd out seedlings and new transplants.

A scuffle hoe works well in the battle against weeds.

(Photo courtesy UC IPM/by Jack Kelly Clark)

To avoid a takeover, whack weeds while they’re young. Cut them off just below the soil line with a hoe. A sharp scuffle hoe works wonders.

One of the fastest-growing and most-annoying weeds in Sacramento right now is bedstraw ( Gallium aparine ). This weed has many other nicknames including cleavers, catchweed, sticky weed and goosegrass. (Geese love to munch on this edible weed and deposit its seeds wherever they go.)

Bedstraw is covered with sticky hairs that catch onto whatever brushes its stems. (Hence, some of those nicknames.) If allowed, this weed forms tiny burrs, which are its seedpods. Those burrs seem to gravitate onto pets and are a pain to get out of fur. They also readily attach themselves to socks and pant legs.

Interestingly, bedstraw is a relative of coffee, and those burrs contain caffeine. They’ve been used as a coffee substitute. (Note to self: Something to remember if things get really desperate.)

No matter: Don’t sleep on bedstraw eradication or it will keep you up at night.

Other common weeds right now: Bermuda buttercup and its cousin creeping woodsorrel, nutsedge, bindweed and, of course, dandelions.

Some weeds such as dandelions and purslane are edible. But do some homework before you munch; others such as common groundsel can be toxic.

Which weeds are invading your garden? Check out the great resources at the University of California’s integrated pest management website, ipm.ucanr.edu .

The UC Master Gardeners of Sacramento County have compiled several helpful tools for gardeners including a weed gallery, identification guides and tips for weed management. Find them at http://sacmg.ucanr.edu/Managing_weeds/ .

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Keywords:

UCCE master gardeners gardening Sacramento integrated pest management spring chores bedstraw Fremont Community Garden spring gardening UC IPM invasive plants weeds

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Garden Checklist for week of Nov. 3

November still offers good weather for fall planting:

* If you haven't already, it's time to clean up the remains of summer. Pull faded annuals and vegetables. Prune dead or broken branches from trees.

* Now is the best time to plant most trees and shrubs. This gives them plenty of time for root development before spring growth. They also benefit from fall and winter rains.

* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies and snapdragons.

* Lettuce, cabbage and broccoli also can be planted now.

* Plant garlic and onions.

* Keep planting bulbs to spread out your spring bloom. Some possible suggestions: daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths, tulips, anemones and scillas.

* This is also a good time to seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.

* Rake and compost leaves, but dispose of any diseased plant material. For example, if peach and nectarine trees showed signs of leaf curl this year, clean up under trees and dispose of those leaves instead of composting.

* Save dry stalks and seedpods from poppies and coneflowers for fall bouquets and holiday decorating.

* For holiday blooms indoors, plant paperwhite narcissus bulbs now. Fill a shallow bowl or dish with 2 inches of rocks or pebbles. Place bulbs in the dish with the root end nestled in the rocks. Add water until it just touches the bottom of the bulbs. Place the dish in a sunny window. Add water as needed.

* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.

* For larger blooms, pinch off some camellia buds.

* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while dormant.

* To help prevent leaf curl, apply a copper fungicide spray to peach and nectarine trees after they lose their leaves this month. Leaf curl, which shows up in the spring, is caused by a fungus that winters as spores on the limbs and around the tree in fallen leaves. Sprays are most effective now.

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