help a beginer!

That was my first thought as well.

If so, then they can be quite a problem. Don't try and pull them up or break them off until we have identified what they are.

Also, we will need to see a general picture of the area where they are - including what else is around the gravel and patio. What is around the area can have a major influence on what can be used to try and kill them off. You don't want to kill off good things at the same time.

Good luck :thumb:

 

There is no point in returfing it before the mares tail has been killed. That is a lot harder than you would think but you have a better chance if the ground is not going to have anything planted. It will take repeated applications of killer.

You may not be able to turf it for many months. If you have arranged for professionals to lay the turf then you need to speak to them immediately to postpone it.

Mares tail cannot be dug out. It has to be killed. The roots can go down many metres - they have even been found alive stretching down 70ft into a mine in Wales.

Its not quite as desparate as it sounds but you need to be dilligent in eradicating it.

 

Ziggy, don't exaggerate. In Britain the deepest they have found the roots is 70ft down in a mine in Wales. :gaagh:

Bethan, that's why we are saying don't try and dig it out. :thumb:

 

I think Mares Tail is supposed to be one of the oldest plants on the planet. It has a waxy coating to the stems and leafs which is difficult for Weedkiller to penetrate. I believe one of the methods was to thrash the Mares Tails to break the waxy coating to allow the weedkiller through into the tissues of the plant.
It's certainly going to be a fairly long job to eradicate it all, especially as it seems to be in large quantities. I didn't know the roots could go down to 70 feet though, Wow

 

Now that we've got you really worried about it , here is some info for you.

Although the roots can go that deep they generally only go down about 5-10ft or so - still too deep to dig out. They propagate by two methods. From the root spreading but particularly from the thousands of spores they produce.

They get two forms of growth.
The early growth, in spring, will produce a short stem (3" - 6") with what appears to have a little cone shaped top to it. It's this cone that contains the spores. If you have the time it is best to manually snap off these spore bearing stems and put them in the bin. The used to spread their spores about June time but in recent years I've noticed that they seem ready by the end of April - early May.
The later growth can grow up to a couple of feet high with lots of thin horizontal stalks. This growth is sterile.

As they have the highest silica content of all plants (hence good for cleaning pots and pans), and because of their shape, they are resistant to weedkiller - the weedkiller runs off it. That's why the old recommendation was to 'thrash' it first. Hitting them gently with the back of a spade can help. If you hit them too hard they will just snap off.

If they are growing up through any hard landscaping then applying killer isn't a problem. If they are coming up through the lawn or flower beds then it can be a problem.
Lawns:- unless you are prepared to kill off large areas of lawn at the same time then weedkiller is not an option. You just have to accept that it is there and mow regularly so it doesn't notice. NOTE - it is poisonous to grazing animals so don't let pet rabbits, hamsters etc on it. It's totally harmless to humans and is used in some herbal remedies.
Flower beds:- it depends on how rampant it is. If it's in small areas and you can isolate your spraying then it is OK. Otherwise pot up any plants you want to keep and then spray. You will need to keep the plants in pots for a year to see whether there are any popping up in the pots or you can completely make the plants bare rooted before potting.

What I do:-
Lawns - just mow them down exactly as I do with all the other weeds, but mow regularly.
Flower beds:-
I have quite a lot of it in some of my beds but have a philosophical view of them. They were there before I was (possibly by many millions of years) but I want to keep them under control. So I do 'Mares tail patrol' every 7-10 days. This takes about half an hour. I search through the beds for any that are coming up (they can grow very fast) and then grip the stem very gently at the base and pull vertically very gently. Doing it gently can actually pull out about 6" of root without the stem snapping off. I carry a bucket and put them into it and then transfer them to the bin.

That way I keep them down, they don't look a mess or interfere with any other plants and I don't worry about them being there and they don't spread. I also think that it gradually weakens them but it may just be my optimistic view of thing. I consider the small amount of time expended doing that is much better than the time, and worry, needed to try and eradicate it.