Common Garden Weeds

If you’re a flower farmer or a gardener, weed identification is an important skill. Thanks to search engines and apps, it’s easier than ever to identify weeds. Weeding isn’t the most exciting part of flower farming, but it’s essential. It’s also a great time to let your mind wander or listen to a podcast or audiobook.

I’ve created a gallery (see below) of the most common weeds I see here on my property, so I can easily check whether a specific one is invasive, OK to compost, etc. I was surprised to find that a few of my common weeds are actually native – which doesn’t mean they can’t be problematic, but it lets me worry a little less about them. There are certain weeds, though, that are extremely invasive. I try my best to dig or pull every one I see, or at the very least remove the aboveground portion before it goes to seed.

After so many years of continual attention, our main garden areas now have very few weeds. I’ve learned that if we stay on top of weeding in the spring and early summer, that usually does the trick. It’s always easiest to weed when the soil is soft from rain and before the perennials get so big that the weeds get hidden by foliage.