With the snow disappearing, I have two words for you – Winter Annuals! Argh weed control, it seems we never escape it beyond a few winter months when the ground is covered in snow. It turns out there are two common categories of annual weeds (weeds that live for one growing season and must re-seed themselves to come back year after year), summer annuals and winter annuals. Which of the two should concern you right now, well both, but in particular, winter annuals. Here is why!
Generally speaking, winter annuals germinate in the fall, overwinter as seedlings, grow rapidly in the spring and flower soon after, and die (scatter mature seed) as the heat of the summer approaches. That being said, it is good to familiarize yourself with winter annuals so you know which annual weeds you can expect to control in early spring. A great resource for this is a guidebook published by USU Extension weed scientists called Common Weeds of the Yard and Garden. Here are a few winter annuals you should be on the look-out for in your garden right now!
Leave a Reply