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Couch grass in shrub

Poly-anthusPoly-anthus Posts: 155
in Problem solving
There is a large clump of couch grass growing up through the middle of a Pieris shrub.  I keep trying to pull some of it out but I think I'm just pruning it and it's getting bigger!  Any ideas as to how to get it out.  (Taking out the shrub to get at it is not an option, lol)  Would soaking the long bits in weed killer do any good, or would that just go into the shrub and kill it?

Posts

  • bcpathomebcpathome Posts: 1,313



















    We are absolutely plagued 
    by couch grass in our garden . Unfortunately we have found no way of getting rid of it except by pulling it up by its long roots and not leaving any bits of it in situ .Just how to get it from the middle of a plant I’ve no idea ,we have it growing through rose trees and all sorts . At a Q&A with Alan Titchmarsh once ,I asked how to rid myself of couch grass ,his answer was ,6 ft of concrete ! 
  • rossdriscoll13rossdriscoll13 Posts: 234
    @Poly-anthus try using Fusilade.  It kills the grass without harming the shrub.
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    You could apply a systemic weedkiller very carefully to the grass only - liquid or gel, a paintbrush and rubber gloves is probably the easiest way to do it. Glyphosate is supposed to only act if you get it on the green foliage but I don't think I'd risk getting it it on the bark of the shrub.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • Poly-anthusPoly-anthus Posts: 155
    Thanks folks. Grrrr!!  I'll keep at it as best I can, but I'm sure it's having a laugh at me, lol.
  • bcpathomebcpathome Posts: 1,313
    Tried all that ,weed killer stuff ……..doesn’t work .
  • WaterbutWaterbut Posts: 344
    You will have to dig it all up. Had a massive problem when it grew through the roots of my large number of lavender plants in my long border. 
  • LiriodendronLiriodendron Posts: 8,328
    If you can dig up as much couch grass as possible round the shrub, and then pull off all the top growth from the remainder each time you see green shoots, it genuinely is possible to kill it if you never let it grow.  It'll take a long time - I've got rid of couch grass growing out of concrete foundations twice in this way.  It takes at least a season, depending on the amount of root you're trying to starve of nourishment.
    Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    I don't laugh because I have the same problem.  I do laugh a little because I have very dry sandy soil, and if I persist I can ALMOST winkle it all out.
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
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