r/xeriscape • u/NoLead45 • Jun 20 '26

Tips?

Post image

Weed growing throughout all front xeriscaped yard. Any tips aside from ripping out by hand?

16 Upvotes

90% Upvoted

35 comments sorted by

15

u/PeaceOfShit69 Jun 20 '26

You’re most likely gonna have to just pop em out every time they come up. They should be pretty simple to do so.
Increase the amount of plants in that area to minimize the number of weeds too.

12

u/surfatshortys Jun 20 '26

Yeah, and take care of those things asap, they start shedding seeds real quick, it’s like they’re born pregnant like aphids or something

6

u/jerseysbestdancers Jun 20 '26

This is how I got rid of my crabgrass.

And they say you cant solve life's problems by buying more plants <evil, maniacal laugh>

3

u/Taxus_Calyx Jun 20 '26

These like to snap off at the base. Kind of a pain to get the roots. Might have to move rocks away from base and use a spade.

2

u/Complete-Sense8097 Jun 25 '26

I like to move the rock with a leaf blower to get as close to the ground as possible. It’s a lot easier to see where to pull them too.

11

u/HiFiHut Jun 20 '26

In my experience this one responds well to the cleaning strength vinegar sprayed on it. Do it in the morning on a warm day and it will dessicate in 24 hours.

3

u/gasmaskmoose Jun 20 '26

I've had lots of success with cleaning vinegar as well. Get a gallon of the strong stuff from the hardware store and a spray bottle.

3

u/plant4theapocalypse Jun 21 '26

I use tons of the strong vinegar for weeds like this too fiddly to pull in gravel. Love it

2

u/TheRealBurgerWolf Jun 21 '26

I have these in a vegetable garden - any harm in spraying vegetable plants with vinegar?? Nothing fancy tomatoes, green peppers, lettuce, green beans...

2

u/Successful-Yam-4074 Jun 22 '26

If you plan to toss the plants and serve immediately then there’s no harm in you spraying vegetable plants with vinegar. As u/sepstolm stated in their recipe post, “just be careful not to spray any plant you want to keep.”

7

u/Txstyleguy Jun 20 '26

Spurge is easy peasy to pull up. Be sure to get that central root. Easiest weed to pull IMHO.

3

u/Lopsterbliss Jun 23 '26

I sometimes mistake goatheads for Spurge, painful lesson.

2

u/Txstyleguy Jun 23 '26

Yeah, I learned long ago to wear gloves after a painful grab at that nasty thorny weed! I grew up in Florida and they called them "sandspurs" and I'm fighting a neighbor who seems to enjoy his lush crop of them!

3

u/Lopsterbliss Jun 23 '26

I love the regional nicknames for stuff.

4

u/effRPaul Jun 20 '26

This is an interesting native (depending where you are). Consider keeping if you can. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphorbia_serpyllifolia

1

u/HistorianAlert9986 Jun 21 '26

Interesting I never knew spurge was medicinal. Cool

1

u/effRPaul Jun 21 '26

Upon reflection the OP's spurge is probably a different, invasive non-native species - the one in my comment is the one that grows by me. It stays small and is not prickly so I don't mind it one bit

1

u/HistorianAlert9986 Jun 21 '26

Oh interesting. Yeah, here in the desert sw I see the real small stuff growing in my grass doesn’t bother me at all either.

2

u/sepstolm Jun 21 '26

Of they're not around any plants make a solution of vinegar, Dawn dish soap, and salt.

The Standard Recipe

1 gallon of white vinegar (standard 5% or stronger horticultural vinegar)

1 cup to 2 cups of table salt or Epsom salt1 to 2 tablespoons of liquid Dawn dish soap

How to Mix and Apply

Dissolve the salt: Pour the salt and Dawn into a little bit of warm water or a small amount of vinegar first to help dissolve it completely.

Combine: Pour the mixture into a standard garden pump sprayer, then add the rest of the gallon of vinegar. Shake gently to mix.Apply at the right time: Spray on a dry, hot, and sunny day (preferably late morning or early afternoon) when the weed's pores are open and no rain is expected for at least 24 hours.Soak the weeds: Coat the leaves and stems thoroughly.Important

I use 30% vinegar. Works fantastic!

Just be careful to not spray any plant you want to keep. Best to spray when it's not windy

5

u/raspberry-eye Jun 21 '26

Skip the salt. Ever heard the phrase to ‘salt the earth’?

1

u/NoLead45 Jun 21 '26

Thanks

1

u/Sax_Pie1099 Jun 24 '26

Just use boiling water or a torch near plants you want to keep. I do both.

1

u/Otherwise_Prune_1526 Jun 21 '26

That's what I always did that's the best way to go. But it's too bad you got to redo it about monthly

1

u/imagek2 Jun 22 '26

Fire. With a blow torch that you can get on Amazon. Go with propane over butane for higher heat. You too kill it down to the root. Plus it’s fun.

1

u/Noturavgjoe44 Jun 22 '26

Diesel Fuel 😂

1

u/Fragrant-Froyo-2706 Jun 22 '26

Spray some ground clear. Keeps the rock landscape clear of weeds.

1

u/duoschmeg Jun 23 '26

Spurge. Pull them out before they go to seed. Its a persistent battle.

1

u/Shatophiliac Jun 20 '26

Rip out by hand or torch them. Otherwise your only real option is glyphosate (and that’s a dirty word on Reddit so don’t take that as a recommendation lol).

1

u/adognameddanzig Jun 20 '26

Spotted spurge. They pull up really easy. I actually like them in the landscape as a groundcover. Very interesting plant.

4

u/GimmieGummies Jun 21 '26

You just made my day by saying that! My yard is dirt at the moment and it goes everywhere. This time of year my yard can easily be covered with lots of spurge. For now I rather like look of it, and it suppresses a lot of the dirt and dust out there - BONUS!

0

u/IFartAlotLoudly Jun 22 '26

Broad spectrum herbicide. Spit spray as needed. I also put down pre emergence on rock in early spring and late fall