Saturday, August 23, 2014

Hackelia Opiz in our YARD

Virginia creeper, dead leaves from Vinegar spray

I have known about the beggar lice plant my whole life.. When in the woods in Georgia, the dreaded little sticky pods cover anything they touch and stick like glue.

I looked up the REAL name, Hackelia Opiz... and the English word is Stickseed or beggar lice...which says it all.

Our side yard, now minus the Big Tree that came down, is a weed bed full of these green plants with purple flowers.. Don't even ask what happens when dogs walk through these sticky pods... Think lots of brushing before entering the house. Which spreads the seeds to make more.

Beggar Lice or Stickseed
I researched how to kill them  without harm to our dogs, because there are to many to pull up, we both pulled for two days until we nearly had heat stroke.

ENTER a gallon jug of Vinegar...the natural weed killer.  It kills everything it touches, so be careful using it. Just spray and soak the leaves and wait.
NOTE: Boiling water from a teakettle will kill weeds, like in stones or between cracks in cement.






23 comments:

diane b said...

I must try those suggestions. I will keep you informed. I can see the problem with dogs.

Willow said...

Thanks for the tips ! Good to know.

eileeninmd said...

Thanks for the tips. Vinegar is much better than using pesticides or the weed killers.. Enjoy your weekend!

Anonymous said...

Neat to know. I use vinegar a LOT to clean up pet messes.

Deb said...

Good hints!

From the Kitchen said...

Rachel Carson would have been proud of you. I am!!

Best,
Bonnie

DeniseinVA said...

Vinegar is great for so many things. I never knew about this one. Thanks Sandra and have a great weekend :)

Marie said...

I knew about vinegar for weeds, but I didn't know about the boiling water. I use vinegar for cleaning. Love natural. :)

Jackie See said...

Those remind me of cockleburs here in Missouri. I think the person who invented Velco had walked through a bunch of these! They attach themselves to anything that touches them! Good luck getting rid of those sticking little annoyances!

EG CameraGirl said...

I'm glad you've found a solution for killing the weeds. I too have a weed problem here at that moment.

TexWisGirl said...

good to know!

Unknown said...

Vinegar and boiling water...two great tips. Have a super Saturday.
Best wishes Molly

Linda P said...

Vinegar has so many good uses. Thanks for the tip. Have a good day Sandra.

Ginny Hartzler said...

Have you always had these? And why the name Beggar Lice? Please don't tell me they collect lice. Hackelia is a good name because you want to HACK it. But that would just spread it and make things worse. Does the plant stay for all the seasons?

Miss Debbie said...

Interesting! I will pass that along to the hubby!

Debby@Just Breathe said...

Good to know, I read that somewhere but didn't know if it worked.

Ruth Hiebert said...

Vinegar is great to kill weeds.I have tried it as well and was quite happy with the results.Now I just need to get out there and spray it on a few more weeds.

Susannah said...

I have used the boiling water to kill large ant hills. Boy, does that do the trick. I have a large dandelion that needs a good squirt of vinegar. That is next!

Muffy's Marks said...

I hope you win your war on beggar lice!!

Grandma C said...

Thank you for the natural weed killer tip. I was using boiling water on my driveway weeds until we started our drought.

Ann said...

I'll have to give the vinegar a try on a nuisance I have in the front yard. It's viney and wraps very tightly around anything in it's path. I pull it up best I can but it comes back quickly

jp@A Green Ridge said...

What a great nice to know tip!!!!...:)JP

DawnTreader said...

Good tips - although I don't need to do much weeding on my balcony... I managed to get rid of some greenflies with a mixture of green soap and methylated spirits, though!