Creeping Charlie Eradication - Ask Extension
I have been battling Creeping Charlie since we bought our property over 10 years ago. The only success was when we hired a lawn company who have been...
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Creeping Charlie Eradication #875274
Asked June 29, 2024, 4:35 PM EDT
I have been battling Creeping Charlie since we bought our property over 10 years ago. The only success was when we hired a lawn company who have been treating the lawn for maybe the past 6 years. Thats been a huge help for a 2 acre property. They stay away from my vegetable garden and shed but I think I will have to let them treat that area too. I have raised beds so they can at least treat around them. I have covered the vegetable garden area with so many layers of black plastic, weed cloth, cardboard, yoga mats, you get the picture. Each time the mulch ends up with yet another layer of Creeping Charlie. I am out of energy. Would the best option be to treat and what would be safest class of herbicide. Thank you!
Montgomery County Maryland
Expert Response
A systemic (root-killing) herbicide is the only practical solution for extensive infestations of Creeping Charlie (also known as Ground Ivy), unless you prefer to physically remove it by stripping the sod. The latter option is probably simplest if you hire a lawn company to do it, since those machines can be hard to wrangle. If you do use herbicide, more than one application might be needed to be successful. Glyphosate is the active ingredient most widely used for this purpose, though it will kill any turfgrass it contacts in the process. (To be fair, sod stripping will be removing turfgrass also.)
Having said that, if you reside anywhere in Montgomery County where the lawn pesticide law applies (essentially everywhere but Laytonsville), you won't be able to use non-organic herbicides, which means that chemical intervention for Creeping Charlie won't be nearly as effective. The linked county government page provides more information about what is permitted versus restricted. (We are not aware of any organic product that is truly systemic and effective at killing the roots of perennial lawn weeds.)
To replace removed sod, you could have new sod installed, though the ideal time of year to put down seed (or seed) for fescue lawns is in very late summer or early autumn, so you might want to delay the project until then. Sod will cost more than sowing seed, but will at least provide an essentially weed-free lawn from the start. Both seed and new sod will need careful attention to watering as it establishes, though sod at least gets you a head start in that regard as well.
Miri
Having said that, if you reside anywhere in Montgomery County where the lawn pesticide law applies (essentially everywhere but Laytonsville), you won't be able to use non-organic herbicides, which means that chemical intervention for Creeping Charlie won't be nearly as effective. The linked county government page provides more information about what is permitted versus restricted. (We are not aware of any organic product that is truly systemic and effective at killing the roots of perennial lawn weeds.)
To replace removed sod, you could have new sod installed, though the ideal time of year to put down seed (or seed) for fescue lawns is in very late summer or early autumn, so you might want to delay the project until then. Sod will cost more than sowing seed, but will at least provide an essentially weed-free lawn from the start. Both seed and new sod will need careful attention to watering as it establishes, though sod at least gets you a head start in that regard as well.
Miri
