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Located in Edmonton, Alberta Canada. Canada's most northern major city. The summer here started out very hot and dry with many days above 30C and stretches of no rain for weeks. The grass did not take off very well this season and there seems to be a way higher than ever average of weeds growing in the grass. This weed first only appeared in our yard about 3 years ago and now I cannot seem to keep up with them.

Some traits of this weed are.

- very coarse tough stems
- lay down and creep along the ground
- one long root for whole plant
- easy to pull out intact due to the strong nature of the plant
- no flowers that I have noticed
- grow in the center of the lawn and on the edge

what is this prolific weed? and is there anything that can be done to rid my grass of this weed or make it undesirable for this weed to grow?

enter image description here enter image description here

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  • does it taste like spinach with a mucilaginous texture, or lemon?
    – black thumb
    Commented Jul 18, 2018 at 22:06
  • definitely does not taste citrusy
    – Ron Myschuk
    Commented Jul 18, 2018 at 22:15
  • I can't help with the identification but I have a suggestion. Here in BC the provincial government has a web site devoted to common and troublesome weeds in the province. Alberta may have something similar where you could identify it and maybe suggestions how to deal with it.
    – Al Maki
    Commented Jul 18, 2018 at 23:31
  • it is a good suggestion. I did check the Alberta website and it does have a list of such weeds. I didn't recognize it on the list but the list was from 2014. Not sure if it's possible that this is a new addition to the area.
    – Ron Myschuk
    Commented Jul 19, 2018 at 0:40
  • It's not a speedwell, but looking closely at the top picture, there appear to be small buds in the leaf axils, some of which are beginning to show white - those might be flowers just coming. If they are, and they get bigger or open up a bit more, another photo showing those might be helpful, though likely the flowers may be fairly small and relatively unnoticeable without looking closely
    – Bamboo
    Commented Jul 19, 2018 at 1:33

3 Answers 3

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I have the same weed that is taking over my barnyard. I checked prostrate knotweed and found this picture to be very much what I have and it does not describe it as being upright. I am pretty sure that is what yours is as well. https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=28748

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I do not agree with @stormy. I think it is some sort of Polygonum aviculare. If you look carefully, you will see the very tiny flowers.

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4
  • a big difference between my weed and the one you linked to is that my weed doesn't grow tall. it only is upright for about 2-3 inches than it lays on the ground and spreads out. Sometimes when I am pulling the weeds out of the ground I won't even realize how large it is until I pull all the arteries to the center.
    – Ron Myschuk
    Commented Jul 19, 2018 at 15:09
  • BTW it is also the usual habit, I always see it as horizontal weed. If you google (image) it, you will find that in most cases it is horizontal.
    – Giacomo Catenazzi
    Commented Jul 19, 2018 at 16:10
  • I'm still torn between creeping Purslane and Polygonum aviculare - that's why I asked about the flowers...
    – Bamboo
    Commented Jul 19, 2018 at 16:41
  • See? I told you the genius IDers would help! Anyway, the entire point is getting your lawn healthier. No matter the ID your lawn's health needs to be addressed. This is like managing a secondary infection without dealing with the primary problem, grins! Weeds are nothing more than a Plant Out of Place. They are plants and are subjected to very finite things such as light, chemistry, water, drainage...
    – stormy
    Commented Jul 20, 2018 at 0:17
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This plant might be a Speedwell. Veronica beccabunga Veronica beccabunga

Do you recall the color of flowers? This plant is sold in lots of nurseries. Most certainly a vigorous and can be invasive plant. We need to talk about your lawn, perhaps. The edges between the lawn and your plant beds. Your cool season grass management when done correctly will eliminate weeds. Or vigorous opportunists. Correct management practices are far better than any pesticide for controlling weeds in cool season grasses.

Ask another question and send a picture of your lawn. Tell us what you are doing for mowing height, watering, fertilizer, aeration and edging.

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3
  • I've never seen any flowers on it at anytime of the summer
    – Ron Myschuk
    Commented Jul 18, 2018 at 22:49
  • The spring? This looks like an escaped perennial ground cover. Nice plant as long as there is a bit of supervision. All plants flower. Some are very inconspicuous others floriferous and this looks like it will be blooming shortly. If your lawn was healthy this plant would probably not be interested in homesteading? Let's wait for other answers on the ID.
    – stormy
    Commented Jul 18, 2018 at 22:58
  • The only invasion by any weed into a lawn is if that lawn is weak and unhealthy.
    – stormy
    Commented Jul 20, 2018 at 0:11

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