Ground Elder

I have discovered ground elder. The problem is that it's growing under a very low growing Acer which I would prefer not to kill. This Acer is clearly established as it has a trunk of 60/70mm (which snapped a few years ago).

In an ideal world the Acer would be lifted and the ground elder then tackled, but I'm not sure how deep the Acer roots go.

Any suggestions on how best to tackle this will be appreciated.

 

I am recoiling in horror as I read this Keith. How I loathe this insidious weed. it forces itself in and around so many precious things doesn't it. You have my deepest sympathy but I think it is something you and I have to learn somehow to live with. I have vowed to keep a hawkeye on it and NEVER allow it to flower.
Apart from that....

 

Yes, I agree with Jenny. Nipping off the flower heads as soon as they appear and pulling off as many leaves as you can, helps to weaken it. That way, other plants have a chance to smother it. Good luck!

 

Argh! You have my commiserations . I too had a garden with ground elder and I tried everything under the sun to eradicate it without success, I only managed to keep it somewhat under control. What a horror it is. So I have no magic cures to offer.
What I wish I had done when i first saw mine was to detect how it had arrived. I think the usual is either creeping in from outside your garden (ie from a neighbour) or sometimes a bought plant is infected with it (every millimetre of its roots sprouts into a flourishing hideous network). Do you think perhaps it arrived on the back of a bought plant ? If so I think I would sacrifice that plant and go crazy to try to isolate the area and see if that contains and eradicates it before getting a good grip.
Sorry I cannot be more positive, but good luck. I hope you have better success than me.

Cheers.

 

Im just reading "The Hedgerow Handbook: Recipes, Remedies & Rituals (Adele Nozedar) & she claims that Ground Elder is quite nice to eat ... personally I doubt this, since it grows far to quickly to be useful for anything other than improving the monthly sales of Roundup, but I might give it a go at the weekend, since I have a couple of days off to recover if it all goes horribly wrong..

 

I sympathise too Longk, I too have the dreaded ground elder, mine grows through from a rough track at the bottom of the garden and a plot next door that hasn't been built on, tried for years to get rid of the stuff, I give it a spray with roundup a couple of times a year which does stop it taking over the world but flippin stuff seems invincible.
OxfordNick yes I was told the young leaves are nice to eat but can't say I fancy trying them either

 

I have tried eating ground elder raw it has a slight celery flavour I dont like celery but ground elder I find quite nice better than lettuce in salad.havent tried cooking it

 

Hmm - sounds like I might be able to make wine out of it by treating it like Nettle Wine - has to be worth a go.

 

Ye gods! I have a serious weed issue and you lot are on about food and making your own grog!!!

Any roads - looks as if glyphosate is the way to go.

Thanks all!

 

I think drowning our sorrows in a virtual GC booze up sounds as good as its gonna get Keith,
cheers,

 

I saw an advert somewhere recently , don't think I dreamt it, of a new roundup that comes with a roller sort of top that you can just dab on the weed leaves great to use on dandelions etc that grow through precious plants.

 

Round one; glyphosate dabbed on leaves.

 

I have eradicated Ground Elder from two previous gardens using Glyphosate. It was widespread, the gardens were large, and I went in somewhat Agent Orange style, and there was collateral damage. With a single outbreak you should have no difficulty sorting it out.

The "Deodorant" style Roundup is called "New Roundup Weedkiller Gel" and I've tried it on some bindweed amongst plants here this spring already. Its slightly peculiar in that it is a gel-stick with a perforated top (like a salt seller) and you click a button to "wind the gel up" until it pushes through the perforated top, then you dab it on. Not sure it will be any use to me except on plants that are embedded in other plants, I will use a small narrow-area sprayer with a upside-down-funnel-shaped drift-catcher for the main attack on Bindweed this year.

Just don't go getting Horsetail in your garden, that's much harder to get rid of ...