Day Three

Question: How to eradicate Lesser celandine?

Answer: Before I talk about weed control, here is a quick lesson on Lesser celandine. Lesser celandine, or Ficaria verna, is a low growing perennial weed with dark green, heart shaped leaves and yellow daisy flowers. This plant is considered an invasive species and is considered as a noxious weed by the United States Department of Agriculture because of its toxicity. This plant starts actively growing early winter to early spring and it is recommended to start weed control during that period by spraying a glyphosate based product - I have a theory that if you use Round Up Extended Control, it will prevent the plant from actively growing because that product will control the area for four months. You want spray it before it flowers, same concept with crabgrass. You want to treat for crabgrass before it turns purple and it flowers - same concept with lesser celandine. For all of my readers who practice organically, you can cut off flower buds and dig up the tubers. Put the buds and tubers in a garbage bag and toss them into the garbage. You can also smother them out with heavy mulching. After the flower in June, they start to go dormant again. Apart of me wonders a few things about controlling this weed. I think it could be possible to lay out black plastic to burn out the weed during the hotter months, this will take about four weeks and it should kill off seeds and potentially the plant itself. I also have a theory if we treat lesser celandine like Japanese silt grass and crabgrass - put down a pre-emergent before the seeds starts germinating. The pre-emergent is also a theory since its purpose is to suppress seeds from germinating. As for what type of pre-emergent, it will need to be a trail and error. I honestly think getting a shovel and digging out lesser celandine is the best way for both organic and non organic parties.
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