How about a little Weed ID?

Question

Anyone else know the name of this weed?  I know everyone has come across this wonderful thorny weed in their yard.  For me, I normally find it after it has already won the battle with my hands and arms.  Usually, you can follow the mess of vines and find that skinny little stem heading into the ground, usually with thorns all the way.  If you wonder why you can't ever seem to pull it up with the root attached, look at the photos to see what the roots look like.  There are even thorns underground.  Now you can tell why it take a shovel to literally dig them up.

Douglas Hunt · Answer

It is nasty stuff! I hate it when my fingers find it before my eyes do!

Erica Glasener · Answer

Looks like a smilax?

360 Sod (Donna Dixson) · Answer

I agree with Erica, looks like smilax. Here is Walter Reeves on the subject: http://www.walterreeves.com/qa_display.phtml?qaID=2089

Southern Trillium LLC · Answer

Erica is correct.  I knew it was impossible to pull up, but a few years ago, I decided to dig one up just to photograph the roots/tubers.

Sherrie S · Answer

I have a little smilax but far worse is the potato plant that is high on the list of Florida's most invasive plants.  It is comparable to Kudzu in growth.  The really bad thing is I bought this plant years ago and planted it in my yard. I'm still trying to kill it.

Teresa D · Answer

Hmmm, that explains why it keeps coming back.  I've pulled these out of my azaleas and other shrubs only to see it winding its way through the following year.  My doggies have also come trotting in with a hunk of this stuck to their fur.

Flowerscapes Garden Design & Landscaping · Answer

Thorns underground! What is this plant thinking!

Mike and Anne · Answer

Believe it or not southern smilax adorns the entrances to many a home in 'Old Raleigh' It's also very expensive if you can find it in the garden center around here. They can have all of mine.

Paul M · Answer

It is called Cat's Briar, for obvious reasons. The young tendrils at the new growth area just below the leaves are edible and are listed in many wild edible plant books. Once established they are very difficult to get rid of and the berries that the produce are food for birds, who spread the seeds so that they can wind up anywhere at any time. http://www.google.com/imgres?q=Cats+briar&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1280&bih=878&tbm=isch&tbnid=LCjymhEXDobAIM:&imgrefurl=http://www.pbase.com/image/29256950&docid=kfb0IfJk_SNrkM&itg=1&imgurl=http://i.pbase.com/u45/comafungi/large/29256950.CatsBriar9802.jpg&w=800&h=600&ei=8jLZTtyZE8-Jtwe--ejuAQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=207&vpy=169&dur=376&hovh=184&hovw=248&tx=110&ty=68&sig=114045933214061786329&page=1&tbnh=157&tbnw=217&start=0&ndsp=20&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0

Peace Painting Co., Inc. · Answer

A customer once called them 'the vine from hell'.
CP

Bob and RodMan S · Answer

Smilax or greenbriar is also a popular food item for deer. They must be very careful munchers.

Freeda H · Answer

This is a green brier....Am told that the leaves are slightly bitter but can be eaten.

Kim S · Answer

Nearly impossible to kill with Roundup, too.  I am tackling a grove of this stuff along a fence line.  It's been 3 years and I am almost there!

Sonja · Answer

I can't remember name but know they are native to Georgia, have thorns and are prolific.  I usually dig them up or mow over them as I see them.  I take care they to not grow in my natural area because it is too small to accomodate them.

Anna K · Answer

nasty stuff. we usually cut it to the base and paint a tiny amount of brush killer (concentrate-not dilluted) on each fresh cut.  haha the foliage photo looks deceivingly like a clematis though...

Erica Glasener · Answer

There is a nearly thornless Smilax call the Jackson vine that is ornamental and decorative not a pest

Carol G · Answer

That is what I have and cant get rid of It. it has taken over one corner of my yard!! I have been living here for 4 yrs and this is the worst it has been. It is a beautiful vine but it is in my rose bush and my orange tree.I have used round up and all kinds of strong weed killers and still cant get rid of it.It is smothering my rose bush.

Carol G · Answer

I have some coming through the floor in my laundry room!!
did not know they had a crack there.

Pamela F · Answer

I hate, hate, hate this weed! It comes through my fence. I spray it to no avail. I carefully pull them up or cut them with my shovel.

Sherrie S · Answer

They are ugly, mean & nasty.  The ONLY way I know to stop them is to dig them up.  It is a lot  work to get the root but well worth it.  Roundup didn't do the job.

Jimmy S · Answer

Smilax. all too familiar with this weed.  Walter Reeves did a segment where his neighbor dug it up by the roots and it was over 18 feet long root system

Debbi C · Answer

As an 'oldie but a goodie', we have always referred to this as 'Devils Claw' here in AL...Ouch! Those stickers will send you to the moon! I have some that have vines as big as small tree trunks and hundred feet high into my trees here on our homestead. I just leave most of them alone. They are great for the soil underground.

Joann Davis · Answer

it is called saw brier here not good for lawn mower tires

Joann Davis · Answer

the brown stuff looks like ginseng it is worth money

Sally Roesner Fuhr · Answer

The thorns appear only on the first year or two. It is called buckthorn and is very invasive. They produce tiny black berries, which birds eat, roost and deposit everywhere. It looks almost like a tropical plant and climbs like ivy. The bare vines make neat wreaths because of its tendrils and won't reseed itself without the berries. We have programs to eradicate it in western Illinois parks and riverbanks as it crowds out the native plants, of which it isn't.

DORLIS · Answer

we always called it cardinal vine. don't ask me why, just always heard it called that. invasive and can make a mess of you, scratches all over. i am trying baking soda on this, creeping myrtle and bush honeysuckle and poison ivy this year. it changes the ph of the soil and is suspossed to stop anything.

Delores Snellen · Answer

Try Groundclear it is cheaper than roundup and suppose to last a year some vines will come back so spray again I talked to roundup and they said their stuff is only good for a month unless you buy the extended version (of course more money ) Groundclear clears everything

Rosannadanna · Answer

Spay Roundup on the leafy parts during growing season, spring and summer. It kills mine. Paint it on smaller plants if needed, just be sure it gets on the leaves.

Francisco37388 · Answer

Saw Briar. Wild animals (deer, beaver, etc.) eat the soft tips for food. It is non poisonous tho. I have eaten the tender tips and they are much like spinach. When you use chemicals to eradicate 'weeds' please be cautious and only apply to the plant you are working on. Do not broadcast it - it will kill everything it touches and the residue stays in the grounds for awhile. The residue will then prevent further sprouting of anything - good, bad or otherwise. And it isn't good for you to inhale or get on your exposed skin.

Brenda Adams · Answer

Yes, I have it in one of my flower beds, and I can't get it out. It runs rampant. If I spray Roundup on it, it will kill my roses and my Yucca Plants. I'm just to old to dig this all out and then transplant what I want to keep. Will this 'Groundclear' kill my other plants in the flower bed? I need HELP!!!!

How about a little Weed ID?

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How about a little Weed ID?

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