As I wrote about last August, I had a weed from hell growing in my yard. It is back!!! Lespedeza striata gave me fits last year. I was pretty sure that I had it under control, but there it is again, acting like I invited it to come back as a guest. Over the winter, I pulled the usual suspects, chick weed, dandelions (which are anything but dandy) and starting a few weeks ago, Bur Clover (which seems to be super easy to keep at bay, if you pull it before the seeds dry up). I have battled 2 other kinds of burred weeds, in a few spots off and on. It probably hasn’t helped that one of my neighbors, does nothing to their yard (I pull their weeds whether they are looking or not) or that I hire a lawn service (who knows where those mowers have been and what they were cutting). The clover, I try to accept at a “good weed”, because it is beneficial to the soil and makes a tasty honey.
I really, really, really DON”T want to use a chemical to control these little stinkers! I have never used chemicals in this yard and don’t want to “go there”. So, I am left with little choice other than to keep pulling and pulling weeds is at the bottom of my list of “Fun things to do”. I’ve tried to limit the time I spend jerking my enemies out of the ground by their scrawny necks, since my kids need to be fed once in a while (ok, its everyday) and there is always laundry to do (Oh, joy!). Why can’t the weeds just take the hint and leave or die a painful death? The chemical weed killers at the nursery have started to whisper to me. Things like “Just once, and everything will be all better” and “I can make all your problems go away”. But, that ________ (insert ugly word) little organic angel on my shoulder shudders and screams things like “Once you start, you’ll never stop!” and “Weed killers are a gateway chemical, before you know it you’ll be hooked on fertilizers!”. In my mind I yell back “You’re not the one doing the work, you’re just along for the ride!”. It would be so easy to just hook the hose to one of those handy little bottles and spray away. It could all be over in 15 minutes. Then I could enjoy my yard instead of constantly inspecting it and picking at it like Bud picks at his feathers. I could have a weed free zone. But, I just can’t do it. I can’t bring myself to grab they spray. Sorry, gotta go. The rain has stopped, the ground is soft…time to pull the weeds.