How do I remove all the spider grass?

Hi Susan,

If you don't want to use chemicals, the best way to remove it is to dig it up and make sure that you get all of the roots. You could also try pouring boiling water on each clump. That should kill it but leave the dirt below usable for your flowers. If you decide to use a chemical, Round-up has the chemical needed to kill it, but it also kills the dirt so you'll probably need to amend your soil.

Linda (above) has great ideas! However, I would not use Round-up. The chemicals are very harmful to humans and especially animals. Formula for a natural "systemic" week killer: 1 gal. of white cleaning vinegar (6% acidic) found underneath the regular (5% acidic) white vinegar. One cup of salt. One tsp. Dawn detergent. Heat vinegar to boiling point. Take off stove and stir in salt. Allow to cool completely. Then add Dawn. Pour in a hand-held sprayer or whatever you have. Make sure the nozzle is turned to "stream" and not mist. Hold the sprayer right up against the weed and spray. I had the same problem. Got down on my knees and sprayed a small part of the yard each day... just take your time and not wear yourself out. REMEMBER: This is a systemic solution and it takes about two weeks for it to reach roots deep in soil. Kills poison ivy and anything it touches. Just in case, take a piece of cardboard outside with you to possibly block off anything you do not want sprayed. After 2 weeks, spray again on anything you missed. Oh, one more thing, never use the 6% white vinegar inside your home...way too acidic!

Roundup. Spider grass has an extensive root system. It will reappear if dug up and physically removed because you won't get all the roots. It's not true that Roundup will kill the soil because it chemically degrades into inert compounds that keep degrading. Also not true is that it's harmful to humans; it isn't. There was a B.S. lawsuit that made as much sense as McDonald's hot coffee lawsuit. It is harmful to about all plants including most trees that receive overspray but takes many applications to kill spreading trees like pepper trees. It's the best way to remove a lot of spider grass. It absorbs slowly through the plant's circulatory system down into the roots where it slowly kills the plant enzymatically. It may take a week or 2 and might need 2 applications. When it's all dead, then dig it up, wait 3 days, amend your soil, and re-plant what you want.

I have never had much luck with the salt, vinegar, dishsoap recipes, even with using the extra strength vinegar. Boiling water works the best, also pulling them after a rainstorm when the ground is softer.

Spot weed it using a weed lifter.