Phlox Grass Removal

Keep your phlox bed grass-free with persistent weeding.

The grass growing in your garden competes with your phlox for water, nutrients and light. Over time, the grass plants may stunt your phlox's growth or reduce its flowering ability. To avoid any cultural problems, take care of the grass as soon as possible. The best time to tackle a grass weed problem is during the growing season when plants are actively growing. Once you remove the grass, spend the rest of the season nurturing your phlox. If it grows thick and healthy it may be able to shade out and suppress any weed reinfestation.

Things You'll Need

• Garden digger
• Grass herbicide
• Glyphosate herbicide

Instructions

1. Pull up the grass plants by hand or with the help of a garden digger. Horticulture and Home Pest News, an Iowa State publication, recommends hand pulling as one of the most effective ways to get rid of grass in ornamental gardens. Don't dig any deeper than the top 2 to 3 inches of soil where you risk injury to phlox roots.

2. Monitor the garden for the next few weeks after you dig. Treat any new grass plants that sprout up following the method in step 3 when they are roughly 2 inches high.

3. Spray the grass with a post-emergent grass-selective herbicide. Follow the manufacturer's instructions for application amounts and methods. Spray the herbicide close to the grass to reduce the risk of overspray.

4. Monitor the garden for the next few weeks after you spray. Treat any new grass plants that sprout up following the method in step 5 when they are roughly 2 inches high.

5. Spray the grass with a glyphosate-based herbicide according to the manufacturer's instructions. If the grass has resisted digging and contact herbicide, then it is likely a species of invasive perennial grass with deep roots. One treatment of glyphosate herbicide will likely kill the blades. Particularly aggressive species of grass may need a second treatment at the manufacturer-recommended interval.

Tips & Warnings

• To protect your phlox's leaves from accidental overspray, hose down the phlox before you apply the herbicide to the grass. Any light spray will roll off with the dripping water instead of burning the phlox's foliage. Or, paint the herbicide directly onto the grass blades with a 2-inch brush dipped directly into the herbicide.

References

• University of Illinois Extension: Garden Phlox
• Iowa State University Extension; Weed Control in the Home Garden; May 1996