Common Purslane and "Field" Binding Vine Weed...AGH!!!

Hello All,

Well, this plant is now a NIGHTMARE in our gardens...no doubt it came by way of a topsoil bag I got a couple of years ago from one of our local nurseries...Grrrrr..

In mid-June, it took over a week to pluck EVERY "Common Purslane" plant...root and all from the area that is most prevalent in our gardens...which completely covers the ground like a carpet! Total weight of the weeds removed was over 50 lbs!!!

Well, guess what...
I had just taken a tour of that area in our gardens and the same amount of seedlings have started to grow again...no joke! I certainly didn't expect to have plucked 100%, but at least 50% of germinated seeds...NOPE!
Then I read a link I found about the Common Purslane (I attached the link below in my post) and here is a quote:

"Common purslane is a prolific seeder. A single plant may produce 240,000 seeds, which may germinate even after 5 to 40 years. In late summer, flat mats of mature purslane can be turned over to reveal thousands of seeds on the soil surface."

OMG!!!

I read some of the solutions...like mulch. Well, not practical in the area we have the problem which we have annuals. I would have to remove all the mulch by the bags each Spring and lay down 6-10 bags each year. To me, I would think much would be a solution for areas in a garden that has perennials...not annuals. I feel exhausted just thinking about all the extra work too. Am I wrong?

Then another suggestion they has was solorization...sigh...and during mid-summer. So I guess I don't garden in 50% of our gardens for a year?

Honestly, I am on the verge of tears. Between this issue and "Field Binding Vine Weed" is now prolific in all of our other gardens, I am ready to pack it in...have a bulldozer just trash our gardens and throw out grass seed...call it quits.

I had bought several Coneflowers for a section in our gardens I was redoing...and just found out tonight that the "Field Binding Vine Weed" is now in that section of our gardens.

I just spent 2 hours digging up as much of the root and plants as possible...only to wonder if I should even bother planting nearly $125 worth of Coneflowers into an area which they will be choked next season by the binding weed...

The binding weed is SOOOO hearty, DH and I had sprayed one of our gardens entirely with roundup. We waited 10 days before planting anything. Come to find out, yes...it killed the binding weed that grew above ground and down to "part of the root system". However, 75% of the root system was still able to stay unharmed below ground and wound up sending up twice as many sprouts/shoots than we had last year in the same area. Absolutely maddening! :(

Here's a link I found about the Common Purslane...which describes our massive issue of it becoming carpet-like:
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7461.html

*Holding back tears and sniffles*
Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated...TIA :)

This message was edited Jul 5, 2013 11:38 PM

SusanLouise
Yes, both of those "weeds" are maddening, but believe it or not, Purslane is edible. Although I have now gotten into the habit, like you, of pulling it, many years ago, after learning it was edible and how tasty it was I welcomed it into my garden. I used to cook it like spinach, but they say it can be eaten as a salad green, added to soups and so much more.

Yes, I know, I must sound like I'm "off-my-rocker", but I'm not. I can't tell you how often, as I'm pulling and pulling, I've reminded myself that purslane is really a succulent herb, not a weed.

As far as the "Field Binding Vine Weed", I'm with you and I wish I had a foolproof method of getting rid of it, but I don't. It's pretty sneaky and half the time I'm not aware of it until it wraps itself around something. Sorry...wish I could be of help, but you prompted me to do some research. If I find out anything interesting I'll let you know.

Just in case you're interested, here's some fascinating info on Purslane. You can find similar info all over the web.

http://landscaping.about.com/cs/weedsdiseases/a/purslane.htm

I'm bumping my thread in hopes someone can help me! :)

Wish I could help. It sounds like you will have to cover every inch with weed mat fabric and plant into holes just of your desired plant, then mulch.

I'm wondering if the weed dragon would help with the purslane. I keep my water hose going at the same time to prevent actual fires, but the heat still goes down into the roots. I can see where this might be an ideal job for it, especially if you haven't yet planted anything this,season.

Susan, so sorry to hear about your weeds. I have/had both of them. I pull the purslane up.

For the bind weed, I watch it and spray it every time it pops up with Round-Up. If I miss it, and it starts vining, I spray it with round up and put a WM sack over it and leave it there for at least a month. I put a brick on top of the sack if I think it might blow away.

For awhile, if it were me, I would put Preen down every two months. It will keep ANYthing from sprouting-weeds, annuals etc. When I Preen an area, I grow the plants from seed in pots, then plant in the ground. Preen only stops seeds from germinating. If the seeds have already germinated, you will have to pull or spray with RUp. Or, you can just buy annuals to put in your bed you preened. Mulch around the plants you either sowed from seed or bought from a garden center. The idea is to Preen the area to get a handle on the weed seeds.

Also, every time you break the surface of the soul by digging, or cultivating, or whatever, it will bring up weed seeds. Then, you need to Preen that area again.

Sometimes, you have to take "time out" in a garden area to get a handle on the weeds.

Don't give up. Don't despair. Just keep on top of them. Don't wait more than a week to
check on the weedy area to pull weeds.
I will say you can eventually get a handle on these weeds. Pull them while they are young.