How to get rid of goutweed without losing you sanity

Wow, I have been super busy! Two weeks ago, I was wondering if I would EVER get to eat something from my garden, now it is almost like I can’t keep up. My leaf-lettuce was ready for harvest so I tossed it in a salad, I got to pick my first mini garden pea (I ate it on the spot) and my radishes are getting nice and plump.

The first strawberries are visible and the blueberries are turning blue. I put my brusselsprout babies outside, but they don’t seem to like me very much. I bought some andive plants and a couple of herbs which I put in a strawberry container. My garden is actually starting to look like a garden. Lovely.

In addition to my tiny container garden, I’ve been helping out a friend with bigger garden challenges. The first time I got to help was nice and easy. Some spring cleaning and happy chatting away in early spring sunshine. 

This time I was in for a more nasty surprise. Although again the sun was happily shining and the company was superb, the work was….well. Every gardeners nightmare. Yes I said it. I know it is a total first world problem and I have no right to complain about anything, but it was.

We were battling the most feared plant in the garden. He who can’t be named. Dare I say his name?

Goutweed *shudder*

Goutweed, also known as ground elder, herb gerard, snow in the mountain or bishop’s weed.
As a Dutchie, the last one sounds very funny to me. However, this plant is not funny at all.
Although it is a tasty plant and you can use it in a variety of dishes, it is super invasive and takes over your garden. Getting rid of the bugger is nearly impossible.My friend explained to me that they had tried heavy weed killers, which resulted in all the plants dying, except for the goutweed. The weed that lived…..     

Goutweed is very easy to spot, and once I learned how to recognize this little bugger, I could see it was EVERYWERE in the garden. Whole patches of goutweed and between all the regular plants. It was horrific.

So how do you spot goutweed? 

A fully grown goutweed is about 100 cm high, the leaves are ternate and toothed and it has white flowers in umbels. Smaller plants are easily recognizable for their leaves and when you dig around them, you will see the root of their evil, the rhizomes.

How to stop it from reproducing

Goutweed reproduces by spreading seeds from their flowers, which is easily cured by removing the umbels in time. However, goutweed can sprout from a single rhizome or root particle, so to really get rid of it, you will have to start digging. Carefully remove the goutweed without snapping of the roots. After you have removed them, make sure to check the ground for left over rhizomes. They are easily spotted since they are a bright white.

When goutweed has gotten in between your plants, you will have to dig up the whole plant and carefully remove the goutweed which will be entangled through the roots of your precious plant. Then check the ground for rhizomes before you can put the cleaned plant back.

How to keep it from comming back

When removing goutweed, put the weeds in a plastic bag and throw them out when you are done. Make sure you don’t leave any particle of the plant anywhere. It will return. It has a gazillion lives.

Even if you have been more thorough than you have ever been in your life, goutweed will come back. In a few weeks, you will see the little buggers rising again. Don’t despair, (ok maybe a little, but pick yourself up!)  just put on your gloves again and carefully dig them up. The smaller you catch them, the easier they are to remove. Remove them regularly and you will keep your goutweed under control.

After four hours of working and cursing and crying, we managed to remove the goutweed from only a very small section of the garden. On the bright side, I now know some pretty ugly euphemisms for goutweed. Luckily my friend is the best gardening company in the world and spending time with her is worth all the goutweed in the world.

My ultimate master tip on goutweed? Don’t get a garden with goutweed.