Georgia weeds: The worst offenders

Home and Garden

Weeds can takeover a landscape unless you pull them up on sight. Garden experts identify the worst garden offenders.

WEEDS - they seem to sprout when your back is turned but don't ignore them, experts warn, because weeds spread fast. It can be hard to spot the most aggressive Georgia weeds until they're firmly rooted in your landscape, so be on the lookout for these offenders and get ready to attack before they takeover.

Reeves and Ellen Honeycutt, director of education for the Georgia Native Plant Society, name other offenders to catch before they wreak havoc in your landscape. The weeds and vines include: Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)

Eastern Poison Ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) is the one you'll remember from the rhyme: Leaves of three, let it be. It also has aerial roots along the stem that give the stem a fuzzy appearance.

....and Mimosa (Phyllanthus urinaria). "Pulling is the first line of defense," Reeves advised. Uprooting the plant removes both the seeds from annual weeds and roots of perennial weeds, he said.

Morrow's honeysuckle (Lonicera morrowii)

Larger woody plants, shrubs and trees like this Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima) should be cut down, followed by an application of a brush killer to the stump, Honeycutt said. Make sure the herbicide comes into contact with the outer living layer (usually green) of the tree.

English Ivy (Hedera helix) is another pesky vine that requires continuous cutting before it dies.

Virginia threeseed mercury (Acalypha virginica)

Nepalese Browntop (Microstegium vimineum)

Japanese knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum)

Kudzu (Pueraria montana) - some people eat it, but most folks try to control the growth. The best way to stop kudzu in its tracks is to continuously cut back the vine to rob the plant of nutrients, causing eventual death, says Georgia gardening expert and AJC columnist Walter Reeves.

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WEEDS - they seem to sprout when your back is turned but don't ignore them, experts warn, because weeds spread fast. It can be hard to spot the most aggressive Georgia weeds until they're firmly rooted in your landscape, so be on the lookout for these offenders and get ready to attack before they takeover.

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