Weeds Plus

I have been clearing some space in my yard for a sort of bamboo area with a section for raspberry and blackberry bushes. 

But there are weeds there that are very hard to get rid off. Just cutting them down does not help - they just grow back with a vengeance. You have to dig out the roots. If you can find them!!

Each weed requires some sort of careful excavation. The root core is a large bulb. The one shown below is a large bulb - but I have seem them much bigger than that. Usually they are the size of a mans fist.  What makes plants like this so hardcore is that the spiky vines are spiky right down to the root - and the vines can be very long. This creates a lot of hard work digging them out - being careful not to break the vine as you can break the lead to the root. I have literally had to dig out a large part of a bank to trace where some of these vines are going. You have to trace the vines as sometimes they have a mini bulb along the way! (you may see a mini bulb below just above the larger bulb). 

I have two types of this weed. Not sure of the names, but I know what I call them. This weed is perhaps the most difficult one I have found to really get rid of. It takes hours of time and I still don't know for sure that I have found all of the bulbs or the mini bulbs. It's crazy. 

Another thing these types of weed like to do is run along side large tree roots. Maybe they get some of the moisture it needs from the tree root? They can run for a long way with a tree root and again this requires a great deal of work.   Maybe one day I will be free of the weeds. But if I plant something and one of these comes up around it - then I would literally have to dig out the good plant to get to the weed. Total nightmare weed. 

 This is Solomon pretending to be a dog. He makes quite a convincing dog. Not sure where he got it all from as we don't have dogs and I don't know what he has been watching to gather his information. Solomon will chase sticks like a dog also. Pretty cool - a child and dog all in one!

Autumn is here. The trees have gone a nice golden colour. Even the ivy has gone a nice red colour. I believe this is a Swamp Hickory tree. The nuts are unedible by humans - but he squirrels love them.  They like to hide them in my grass and in my garden. Another pest in the garden! They are eating my tomatoes right now - whatever is left of them.