What type of weed is this and what is an effective way of removing it?

Question

This weed kind of took over my front yard (around 300 sq ft). I'd like to remove it all and then mulch most of the area What type of weed is it and what would be an effective way of removing it? In the past, I have used vinegar with success, but right now it is cold and humid here (Pacific Northwest) and I feel like vinegar does best on hot and sunny days. No toxic stuff like Roundup please.

If I go the vinegar + salt route, is it effective in the weather conditions described above? How careful do I need to be in order to not harm existing plants?

Answer 1

It's Stellaria media, commonly known as Chickweed and its an annual (dies in winter). It's very easy to dig out, but the difficulty is the amount of seed it produces IF you have allowed it to flower; it germinates easily, meaning ongoing weeding in successive years. https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=1011

If you don't want to use anything toxic (and that includes vinegar and especially salt, which will kill all essential soil organisms too as well as other plants), just dig or hoe them out. Either that or wait for winter to do its work, kill the existing plants for you and then make sure you get your mulch down early (in winter or late winter) before spring allows any new seedlings germinate. If you only want to mulch the area afterwards rather than replant, so long as the mulch is 3 inches deep, this will prevent germination of seeds in the soil. Or use a weed membrane beneath the mulch, especially if the mulch is an inorganic one such as slate or gravel, or you want to make a thinner layer.