How do i get rid of Nut's Edge?

Question

i like to grow vegtables but i have this super invasive weed called Nut's Edge i want to get rid of it but i don't want to use a chemical Herbicide and organic ones aren't strong enough, grr. I weed my entire patch 3x a week and it looks like it's never weeded. HELP!

Answer 1

It's actually Nut Sedge (in case you want to look up more info online...) and outside from the chemicals offered at garden centers, I'm not sure if there is anything strong enough to get rid of it.

Reason being, it spreads by little nuts under the ground at it's roots, so if you pull it after it has produced this nut, you are actually making the problem worse as it will leave the nut in the ground and keep spreading.  Since you don't really see this grass until it is above ground (and by then usually has the nut) it is hard to get rid of.

You can try putting down a weed preventative (corn gluten is a good organic, natural one) and see if that helps any next year.

Answer 2

Nutsedges are not good at competing with other plants for light, space and nutrients. To help reduce nutsedge infestations some type of mulching material should be used to cover bare soil. If possible, hand weeding and cultivation on a regular basis can help reduce nutsedge populations.

Answer 3

Hi Hillary,

I think you mean Nut Sedge but I like the play on words.  This stuff is about impossible to get rid of without damaging nearby vegetables.  Not to worry though, it does little damage by  just being there but it sure looks bad.  

I'm not a big fan of using chemicals in the garden.  In my garden I layered about 3in of compost, mixed it in and then layered another 2-3 inches of nearly composted mulch over the soil and have had very few emerging.  Those that do are easy to weed in the compost.  Be careful though - some plants are not too happy to have their stems covered in soil deeply so you may have to give them some room.  Tomatoes are very cool with this though and will sprout new roots wherever covered.

Another option might be to use plastic mulch (heavy black plastic sheet from the garden center with a little soil on top to keep the plastic from overheating in the sun) - cut holes for the plants and slits to let water in.  Trash bags are NOT thick enough.  This of course would have been easier before you started the garden but it can still be done.  Be careful to cover the black plastic so as to not cook your plant's roots and soil microbes as the sun heats it up.  

A few ideas for next year...

Before you start your garden you can use exposed plastic sheet to bake the upper layers of your soil with the heat of the sun.  This unfortunately will kill or drive off your beneficial microbes and earthworms too so turn in some compost when you're done.

I have heard (but never tried) using excessive sugar or horticultural molasses powder to promote rotting of the underground "nuts".  This would also rot your vegetable roots so it would have to be off season but still warm enough for microbial action.

Answer 4

I would prefer using the ortho crabgrass-b-gone. it gives fair results. or the second option is to cover it up with other small plants. third- say goodbye to that patch of vegetables, and dig out all the dirt to about 1  1/2  ft. use the weed killer, wait a week, and regrow and put in the best soil you can find. I hope i can help, or if you want to email me at [e-mail] - you can do that or txt me at [phone]. although i am only 13 i know alot about everything. ;-) hope i could help.

Answer 5

I think you are referring to "Nutsedge".  Call up your County Agricultural Extention Service, and tell them your problem. They will be happy to help you resolve it.  After all, you're paying their salary with your taxes!   Get your money's worth!

Answer 6

Try putting down several layers (4-10) of newspaper on the soil around the veggies. Wet it good to keep it from blowing away. To make it look better, you can put mulch on top of the newspaper. That will probably stop most of nut sedge.

After you harvest the veggies, put black plastic over the whole garden. It will absorb the heat and partially sterilize the soil which may help. If you still see the nut sedge in the spring, keep it covered with black plastic and plant your veggies elsewhere. Check now and then to see if you have gotten rid of the sedge.