Early Spring!
All-out war is necessary to root out the terrible
bindweed
Dear Janet,
Before I reached the age of 82 years, which I am now, I
was able to keep up with the morning glories from my neighbor's
yard by pulling them out when they were just starting to grow in
the spring. They became out of control last year and were choking
my flowers to death. Will you please tell me how to get rid of
them?
E.H.
Dear E.H.,
I'll hope you're dealing with one of the Convolvulus
species, morning glory relatives that go most often by the name
bindweed. These native perennial weeds establish such vast and deep
root systems over time that it can take years of vigilant pulling,
digging and weed-killing of every sort to vanquish them.
Fortunately, in Michigan you don't see much of another member of
this family, the weed that's most correctly called wild morning
glory, Ipomoea pandurata. This species, even more
tenacious than the bindweeds, was known to native Americans as "man
underground" because the thick main roots might be as big around as
a man's leg, lying in the soil horizontally as deep as if in a
grave.
All of these twining vines grow very quickly and open white
trumpet flowers in summer that become pink with age. The flowers
are small on hedge bindweed and field bindweed, but those on wild
morning glory are as large as the blooms of its cultivated cousin,
annual morning glory.
Although you pulled the leafy parts from your beds for all those
years, the plant must have had the run of the lawn, a fence or bed
in the neighbor's yard. From a stronghold there, even if it was
repeatedly mowed short in the lawn, it was producing enough foliage
to be able to replenish its root system annually and make another
foray into your yard the next spring. Once you fell behind, it grew
for a season with enough leaf surface to not only replenish its
roots but enlarge them.
I know how you feel when it comes to being overwhelmed by a
garden that's gotten beyond you. I've been there myself, and
helped others in the same situation reclaim their gardens.
In your situation I would start by digging out the most
desirable perennials from your bed. I'd remove all the soil from
the roots to be sure that none of the brittle white bindweed root
is transplanted with the "keeper plants." I'd put the keepers into
large containers.
Next, turn the bindweed-infested bed into lawn. Although we do
like a garden along a fence line, that location is the most
difficult to maintain in many yards. One-sided, it's awkward to
tend and open to invasion from one or more edges that are not under
your control. As a strip that's mowed weekly it will make a better
barrier to the spread of the bindweed than a flower bed.
Now make a garden of the large containers. You'll be thrilled
with how simple it is to garden in beautiful pots and tubs. You can
grow anything from vegetables to trees and shrubs without
interference by tree roots or invasion by creeping weeds. The
plants themselves will be easier to manage, too, since they'll be
unable to spread into and overrun other members of the bed. You can
move the pieces around, to give each one its perfect quota of
sunlight, air or water. You can rearrange whenever you like, for
the season or to showcase individual specimens, even in situations
where they could never grow full-time.
If containers just won't do for you, make a new garden in an
island in your lawn, where every edge will be under your
control.
The only other alternative is to hire a gardener to weed the bed
weekly, choosing someone who knows or can be trained to identify
bindweed from its first sprout to its roots. With weekly pulling or
killing of every shoot, bindweed can be reduced from rampaging
colony to a tamer level. If you can convince your neighbor to join
the battle as an ally so your combined force attacks it weekly
wherever it appears in both yards, you could eliminate it in two to
three years.
Short reports
Waiting for Christmas cactus to bloom.
L.S. says it's been ten years since it was accidentally
mistreated, yet a Schlumbergera that bloomed reliably for
two generations still won't resume blooming. Could be you're
treating it too well. Set it outdoors this fall to feel the cool,
short of frost, for several weeks. Then watch it bloom next
winter
Originally published 3/26/05