Stalky thing that I thought was a weed, but then.........

Novice gardener. I moved to this house before Christmas last year, so things are sprouting in the garden that I am clueless about. I have a bunch of these just starting to sprout in my front garden, in the shade, with the hostas. Zone 7, Nashville TN.



Here's a closer look.


I was almost ready to yank them, thinking they were weeds because that part of the garden has a bunch of weeds that I haven't taken care of yet. But then I noticed this:


I've never known a weed to have a thick root like that. I thought maybe it was a shoot from the tree next to it or the bush close by. But neither the tree nor the bush have leaves that look ANYTHING like these stalks.

Anyone have any clue?

 

Ronni, this looks like Pokeweed to me. It has a HUGE thick tap root down in the ground. It has beautiful purple berries on it in the late summer which the birds devour and "replant" for you as they are fertilizing the yard. You need a strong leg and sharp shovel to dig it out. It makes a great screen though from the neighbors during the summer. It is a beautiful plant as it grows, just messy when the birds leave purple poop and seeds all over the place.

http://www.fcps.edu/islandcreekes/ecology/pokeweed.htm

 

One can always tell when the pokeweed berries are ripe, it rains purple. The birds love it. I have two plants in the back woods, they grow a about 5-6 feet dispute the shade.

Jerry

 

I'm not familiar with Pokeweed, but when I first saw your plant I wondered if it was Sorrel (Rumex acetosa)

 

Pokeweed. Hmmm.

I googled it once I knew what to look for, and there are many pictures of it, some of which look nothing like what's growing in my garden. But there was more than a few that could have been taken in my garden the similarity was that close. So I guess pokeweed it is!

From what I've researched, it sounds like it can be pretty invasive, and grow very tall, and be rather a mess with the berries and all, none of which will be appropriate where it's currently growing. I'm going to pull it, though some of what I read tells me that the root system is pretty hefty. Any hints or advice on getting rid of it other than just pulling it out and trying to get as much of the root as possible? I also read that pouring vinegar over it ~~ and other weeds too ~~ will kill it. So will pouring boiling water over it. I'm not going to do either, but it made me curious. Have any of you ever heard of doing such to kill weeds.

 

I should add that the links you gave me (thank you) had pictures that really didn't look anything like what's in my garden, but when I googled it once I had a name, the pictures that came up matched completely what you gave me, PLUS what I see growing. I'm guessing that the mature pokeweed looks like your pictures, while the babies look like what I have?

 

Ronni, I just dug one out of the hightunnel. It looked just like yours. The root will be a HUGE as in 4-6" in diameter, perhaps, and long. you will need a shovel to dig it out. you will not be able to pull it nor do I think vinegar or boiling water will kill it. It is such a large mass to get it on all of it. it will regrow from wherever you quit digging on it. so try to get the whole thing out.

 

Vinegar works on smaller more "timid" weeds... and boiling water will sometimes also... BUT not for Pokeweed. I doubt even Roundup could kill it. :-D

 

Well, I dug up a bunch of pokeweed. And man, you all weren't kidding! Those roots are HUGE!!! Completely out of proportion to the little itty-bitty shoots that were poking out of the ground. YIKES!

I don't believe I got all the root in some cases....it looks like I chopped it through with the shovel when I dug it out. Hopefully I've removed enough that it won't come back, or if it does it will be a while longer.

If I mulch really a lot will that slow it down?

 

I've killed pokeweed with boiling water several times. Cut plant at ground level, pour boiling water on the crown. Never had one come back after that.