This lawn weed is not your mother’s geranium
Q. I have a question about a persistent growth that occurs every year just as my grass is beginning to come back to life. I have small and large patches of this growth on my lawn and would like to eradicate it permanently if that is possible. Help! — V. Tretola, Portsmouth
A. Your nemesis is Carolina geranium, (Geranium carolinianum), in the Geraniaceae family. The broadleaf winter annual or biennial is also known by the nickname “cranesbil,” due to seeds that have a characteristically elongated “beak.” It has an upright habit, a basal rosette of leaves with pink/red erect stems. The leaves are palmate, with five to seven deeply dissected lobes. It has a fibrous root system, with a shallow taproot, and can be easily pulled up. The fivepetaled flowers, white to pink, are found at the tips of the stems. It is found in lawns, fields, landscape beds, and particularly in areas with minimal maintenance and poor or dry soils. As I ventured to get some photographs, I encountered it everywhere.
Maintaining a healthy, dense turf by practicing proper fertilization, irrigation and mowing goes a long way to prevent this opportunistic weed from getting a foothold in the lawn. A three-way herbicide containing 2,4-D, MCPP and Dicamba can be used for post-emergent control and is best applied at the seedling or immature stage to prevent seed development. Herbicides containing mesotrione or sulfentrazone can be used for pre- and post-emergent control. As always, carefully follow label directions.
Q. I have several large clusters of beautiful daffodils that are spreading beyond the flower bed into the edge of the lawn. They should have been divided several years ago, but I didn’t know when to do it. If I wait until fall, I may destroy other bulbs that I cannot see when digging. If I divide them after the foliage dies back, will they be situated by the time summer’s heat is upon us. What should I do? — J. Little, Suffolk
A. Daffodils should be lifted only after the foliage yellows and dies back, allowing time for the bulb to rejuvenate itself. Patience on this. So you have two options. They can be either dug and replanted now, or they can be dug and stored over the summer in a cool, dry place, and be replanted in fall. In your particular case, I’d suggest digging now after the foliage dies, and then go ahead and replant. Be sure to water in, but not over water, and cover with a light mulch. This all assumes you will have a spot ready to receive them in a few weeks. However, this should solve the problem of where, or where not, to place in the fall.
Q. Now that daffodil season is over (well, nearly over), I wonder if I accomplish anything (other than aesthetics) when I take the time to deadhead the spent daffodil blooms. We have lots of them and it is quite time-consuming to do that for all. Does deadheading enhance the bulbs ability to create better blossoms next spring? — L. Carr, Suffolk
A. Now, regarding deadheading (removal of spent blooms) … The Daffodil
Society, as well as some others, recommend deadheading. On the other hand, others such as Iowa State Extension, say the benefits of the practice is minimal at best. Sure, they definitely look better when deadheaded, but you probably have more urgent business in the garden right now.
One more thing
Marty Ross, of Gloucester Daffodil Club, asked that I remind readers not to mow down their daffodils now. Club members have noticed homeowners around the area committing this no-no. As discussed last week, daffodils need to retain their foliage after bloom for a sufficient amount of time to replenish themselves. Ideally, wait until the foliage begins to die-down.