ID help please

Hi, I'm no garden expert, so I'd really like help in identifying the 'weed' that is popping up all over my grass. It seems to spread under the lawn and has a woody (rhizome??) root. I've been away for 2 weeks and it's popped up all over the place. The larger growths (now about 10 inches high) have reddish stems and oval shaped flowers. The stems also appear to have thorns (similar to roses ??). It appears to grow up from a clump of roots, which feel quite woody and it pushes the turf up.

Any idea how best to eradicate it ?

TIA

 

Welcome to GC Duncs. Only a guess but they look like suckers from a tree. Is there a tree in yours or your neighbours garden that looks the same?

 

Welcome from me too Duncs.

Funnily enough Sheal, I had thought tree suckers, but not knowing where the newcomer lives I couldn't even make a guess ... although I think I should know it ...

 

I agree with Sheal and Victoria. They look like suckers from the root of a tree, possibly False Acacia (Robinia pseudoacacia).
Have a look around, you'll probably see a large False Acacia tree nearby.
Only solution is to keep cutting them off.

 

Ah, ha Trunky, you may have it there with Robinia pseudoacacia ... there is one in the parking lot of one of the grocery shops I frequent. I believe Pete identified it for me many, many years ago ...

 

Thanks for the ideas. I live in Dorset, if that helps. I'll take a good look around my neighbours' gardens to see if there is such a tree. One possibility is a (rotten) tree which was cut down a couple of years ago, but they left about 3 meters of the stump in my neighbour's 'orchard', which is along one boundary of my garden. I'll pop round and see if there are other similar suckers around that stump .. as I assume any suckers would travel in all directions from the base.
Is it okay to mow over the suckers to remove them .. or is this likely to make matters worse ? I don't really want to dig them out, as it will ruin the grass. Is there a selective weedkiller I could use ?

 

Well, I've been round to my neighbour's field and found this :

Not the tree I thought, which had been cut down recently, but a rotten tree stump some 10+ years old. But with new shoots identical to those in my garden/grass. So it looks like your diagnoses could be correct .... False Acacia. Surprising that the suckers have only appeared in the past year or so .. since the stump looks pretty rotten/hollow.

I'm thinking it would be good to remove the stump .. or at least dig around the base and cut as many of the roots/suckers I can find ? Perhaps a good spraying of weedkiller would also help ?

Any views ?

TIA

 

Duncs, regular mowing of the suckers appearing in your lawn should be enough to keep them under control.

If you want complete eradication however, rather than just 'control' then treatment with a brushwood killer would be required.

You can either spray, applying it to the leaves, or cut off the suckers and apply it directly to the cut stems, which in my experience is often more effective. This would work for the growths appearing around the stump too.

Remember that you would of course need your neighbour's permission if you intend to treat any of the growth on their property.

 

Thanks for all the feedback. Hopefully, we've cracked it. Brushwood killer on order.

I'm assuming it would be better to try and remove as much of the rotten stump before treating it with the brushwood killer (with my neighbour's permission, of course).

Also, is it better to treat all the affected grass area with the brushwood killer (as it says it's safe to use on grass) and/or just the various growths ?

 

Assuming you are using Vitax SBK then I would treat any suckers in the lawn now, but I would delay treating the stump until Autumn / Winter.

Don't get it on any plants you want to keep (other than the grass )