Weeds and Water
Photo credits: MGs Gia Parsons (purslane) & Linda Shepherd (dandelions & irrigation system)
Weeds and Water
When does a plant become a weed? What’s the best way to water your garden?
Learn to identify, prevent, and control common garden weeds such as chickweed, purslane, plantain, groundsel, pigweed, willow herb, lambsquarters, dead nettles, stinging nettles, dandelion, yellow wood sorrel, quack grass, reed canary grass, field bindweed, creeping buttercup, and dock.
Discover the best way to water your garden during our dry summers. Designing an irrigation system can be daunting, but this class will help you understand the drawbacks of overhead watering and how, instead, to use flow restrictors, manifolds, timers, soakers, connectors, and various types of emitters.
Below are resources to enhance your learning.
Weeds
- Hortsense — WSU Extension website that weeds in Washington State and links them to webpages with color photos of the weed and a description of the biology, habitat, non-chemical and chemical management options and IPM.
- PNW Weed Management Handbook — a PNW Extension Publication. If you know the name of a weed, you can search this online handbook for chemical options for control. However, not all chemicals recommended are available for sale to home gardeners.
- Organic Pest & Disease Management in Home Fruit Trees & Berry Bushes — WSU Extension Publication EM066E, a free 29-page download PDF provides PNW gardeners with an organic approach to keep their homegrown tree fruit and berries pest free.
- Neighborhood Bullies — Weed Bulletin for King County Noxious Weed Control Program.
- Bees and Noxious Weed Control: finding common ground — a publication of the Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board.
- Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board — this website provides a noxious list, help with identifying weeds, and guidelines for controlling and disposing of noxious weeds.
Water
- WateringHome Gardens and Landscape Plants — WSU Extension Publication EB1090, a free 6-page http://pubs.cahnrs.wsu.edu/publications/pubs/eb1090/online publication, covers best practices for watering plants and strategies for conserving water.
- Drip Irrigation for the Yard & Garden — WSU Extension Publication FS030E, a free 6-page online publication, provides an overview of drip irrigation systems, including the benefits and costs, the various components, and the basics of design and operation of such systems.
- Some Vegetables Require Less Water Than Others — a free download PDF publication by Oregon State University Extension Service about the water needs of various vegetables.
