It is an easy task finding resources for methods to get rid of weeds, but there are few to help you identify them. And if you find any, they might be fairly botanical for most to understand, which means it will take a student of botany to follow the description and identify them. The best way is to find a herbarium, while the best efforts are put in this article to help you identify them with ease.
Different weeds commonly found in the United Kingdom are differentiated based on their structure and then identified using the type, size, availability, and appearance. A few tips to cope with different types of weeds will surely help the readers with identification.
In this comprehensive guide brought to you by Weedicide, we’ll help you identify common garden weeds in the United Kingdom.
First, we categorize weeds according to their leaf shape and size, so it is easier to identify:
Grassy Weeds
Aquilegia
Type: Self-seeding
Size: 15cm
Found in:
Appearance: Blooms early before the actual plant starts to grow. Aquilegia is a colorful flower with quite strong roots that makes it difficult to pull out.
Yarrow
Type: Perennial
Size: Up to 1 meter
Found in: Commonest types of grass available in UK
Appearance: Similar to fern like structure. Can survive in the doughtiest conditions.
Tips:
Doves-foot cranesbill
Type: Annual plant
Size: Up to 30 cm in height
Found in: commonest in lawns in UK
Appearance: Pretty pink flowers – seen in late springs and summers. It grows on dry soil and prefer dry environment.
Cotinus Coggygria
Type: Deciduous shrub
Size: up to 4.5 metres
Found across southern Europe
Appearance: Red/purple coloured flowers.
Germander Speedwell
Type: Perennial weed
Size: 12 cm on average
Found in: can survive in all kinds of weather conditions – most common in damper conditions.
Appearance: – Kidney-shaped flowers with prominent veins. Mostly seen between mid to late June.
Tips:
Mouse-ear Chickweed
Type: perennial weed
Size: 5-20cm
Found in: all UK gardens
Appearance: Small flowers with hairy dark green leaves. Visible white flowers bloom from late spring to autumn.
Tips: Since these Mouse-ear chickweeds can easily skip a mowing session, you can look for controlled and selective herbicides to get rid of these weeds.
Selfheal
Type: perennial weed – generally grown by creeping runners aka rhizomes.
Size: 30cm
Found in: most lawns throughout the UK
Appearance: Evident purple ting– easy to find in closely mown areas. Blooms during June to October.
Tips:
Broadleaf Weeds
Chickweed
Type: cool-season annual plant, widespread, hardy annual
Size: Small
Found in: native to Europe, found in moist, fertile garden soil
Appearance: fine hairs on only one side of the stem in a single band
Tips: Control chickweed by pulling with the help of an old table fork. Mulching over vacant garden space in winter will reduce chickweed problems
Scarlet Pimpernel
Type: annual growth pattern, season starts around June, extends until September
Size: small, branches easily and quickly
Found in: lawns
Appearance: This annual weed does not last for more than one year. Not common in properly maintained gardens. Sometimes misinterpreted as the Common Chickweed weed but the Pimpernel has bigger, more square-shaped stems. The name comes from big, intensely orange or red-colored flowers.
Tips: ensure your garden is clean. The Scarlet weed finds it very difficult to thrive in well-maintained, periodically groomed lawns.
Ribwort Plantain
Also known as Narrow Leaf Plantain
Type: one of UK’s commonest weeds. It can grow throughout the year. Noticeable because of its longer and thinner leaves
Size: Medium with slightly longer leaves
Found in: wet and dry areas, can resurface easily after removal, grows in most seasons
Tips: this is one of the most tolerant weeds. Though easy to remove, comprehensive eradication is often difficult. Repeated hand weeding might work in some cases. Known to cause big patches that can easily destroy your garden’s beauty. Not easily eradicated by generalized herbicides. Better handled with selected herbicides that are known to kill the Ribwort.
Creeping Cinquefoil
Type: It is one of the commonest perennial weeds found in the UK lawns and turfs. It is specifically found in ill-maintained lawns or gardens with neglected services.
Size: 2 cm in diameter
Found in: UK lawns and turfs. Visible from June to October.
Appearance: The leaves of this kind of weeds are easy to identify with five different segments and toothed edges. The yellow flowers and fleshy petals also contribute in easy recognition.
Dandelion
Type: perennial weed with a strong taproot, one of the most persistent types
Size: 50 cm or more (average)
Found in: native to temperate areas of the globe
Appearance: The leaves are simple and basal, forming a rosette above the central taproot. The flower heads are yellow to orange colored, and are open in the daytime but closed at night
Tips: brush scattered plants with a clove oil-based organic herbicide. Reduce reseeding by popping off the flowers before they develop seeds
Cats Ear
Type: perennial weed. One of the strongest and persistent taproot types.
Size: Up to 8 inch leaves
Found in: commonest weed types in lawns of UK.
Appearance: Cats Ear looks like a stunted Dandelion. It is often found on drier soils.
Tips: Cats Ear is often ignored in rigorous mowing in a lawn. This is why, specific herbicides are sprinkled to reduce the growth of Cats Ear.
Creeping Buttercup
Type: Creeping Buttercup is most common perennial weed.
Size: Up to 50cm
Found in Creeping Buttercup is one of the commonest yet low growing weed types in the lawns of UK. It blooms from mid spring to late summers.
Appearance: Creeping Buttercup is best seen on wet heavy soils. This Creeping Buttercup particularly grows with its creeping stem and extends upwards on a regular basis. With fibrous roots, Creeping Buttercup is very difficult to remove permanently. It blooms yellow flowers with 6-9 petals each.
Tips: A continuous practice of years can be sufficient to weaken its root.
Birds-foot trefoil
Type: perennial weed. Birds-foot trefoil is one of the members of the Clover family.
Size: Knee-length
Found in: Birds-foot trefoil is widely found in lawns and gardens of UK. The Birds-foot trefoil can be found on any kind of soil; however the highest fertility is in acidic and drier soils.
Appearance: forms large patches and regulates through a deep root system. Birds-foot trefoil doesn’t need any particular pattern for growth – as can be grown by under-runners like stolons and rhizomes. It blooms bright yellow flowers – which easily resemble with Honeysuckle.
The Daisy
Type: Daisy is one of the most commonly found perennial lawn and turf weeds in UK.
Size:
Found in: The Daisy can be seen in any soil condition – spread by short runners called Stolons.
Appearance: The Daisy is quite easy to recognize for its fleshy round leaves. The Daisy can easily grow very close to the ground – even in close mown lawns too. The flowers bloom from spring to early autumn – featuring a yellowish center for easy distinction.
Woody and Vining Weeds
Bindweed- available
Type: perennial vine
Size: large vines, roots spread up to 30 feet
Found in: Found throughout Europe, North America
Appearance: green, arrow-shaped leaves and 1-inch-wide morning glory-type flowers that may be pale pink or white
Tips: digging, cutting it back to reduce reseeding, or brushing it with a glyphosate herbicide
Morning Glory
Type: popular, annual, flowering vine
Size: Small to mid-sized
Found in: throughout the world
Appearance: Most morning glory flowers unravel into full bloom in the early morning. The flowers usually start to fade a few hours before the “petals” start showing visible curling
Tips: easy to pull or cultivate with a sharp hoe when young or you can spray them with an organic herbicide containing clove oil.
Campanula
Type: Perennial
Size: Up to 2 meters
Found in: Commonly found in UK lawns and gardens.
Appearance: Campanula has really attractive flowers –blue in color.
Tips:
Based on their nature, weeds are divided into annual weeds and perennial weeds
1. Annual Weeds
Broadleaf winter annual weeds:
- Seeds germinate from late summer through fall
- Weeds over winter and continue to grow in early spring
Broadleaf summer annual weeds:
- Seeds begin to germinate as soils begin to warm up
Grassy winter annual weeds:
- Seeds germinate in late summer to early September
Grassy summer annual weeds:
- Seed germination begins in early to mid-spring
- Seeds continue to germinate in the summer
2. Perennial Weeds
Broadleaf Perennial Weeds:
- Perennials are persistent from year to year
- Range from weeds that are easy to eliminate, to some of the most difficult to control
Grassy perennial weeds/Sedges:
- Some of the most difficult weeds to control in a lawn
- Total lawn renovation is usually necessary
Other classifications include common weed, easy to control weeds, difficult weeds, and Trees and Stumps.
Small standing trees and roots are also unwanted and categorized as weeds. The way to cope with them is to use an axe to cut then down (from November to March).
Control Measures
Various control measures to get rid of weeds include pulling weeds, digging weeds, mulching, cultivating, reducing, reseeding, crowding plants, glyphosate herbicide, organic herbicides, corn gluten herbicides, and flamers etc. Choose one that suits the plant and your budget, and keep your garden free from weeds.
If you enjoyed our weed identification guide, help us out by sharing it via your favorite social media site(s).
Thanks for producing such a lengthy and engaging list of weeds. Must admit to feeling more antagonistic towards them than you appear to be! Can you help me to identify a missing one? (Very feint type this, by the way.) Very delicate appearance; thin stems put out side shoots with a cluster (3″long) of tiny filament like leaves about 1/2″ long. Some of these grow into longer branch stems which may end in little blue buds which open into star shaped blooms surrounded by those filament ‘leaves’. Some of the stems manage an upright posture. of approx. 18″. Thanks again, CB.
Hi Colin, is the weed you’re referring to the Anagallis arvensis?
Yes , definitely is. I have been studying plants now for a long time as part of my exciting job in plant ecology. Glad I could help mate. Contact if you need more help.
Yes , definitely is. I have been studying plants now for a long time as part of my exciting job in plant ecology. Glad I could help mate. Contact if you need more help.
Trying to identify a weed/plant having moved house. Looks like a cabbage about to go to seed. Has just shot up in last 2/3 weeks.
Hi Robin it could be apart of the Brassica oleracea family or it could be skunk cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus). I suggest sending a picture for correct identification.
Weed does not appear to have roots…grows long and stringy with long fine leaves.. Delicate white flower(very small)
What is it and how do I get rid of it?
Thanks
Sue
Hi Sue, is it the wild garlic? To find a suitable method of getting rid of it, we suggest you check out our guide on eliminating weeds.
Hi, thanks for such a lovely site..
I’m having trouble identifying [and getting rid of!] a particular, very invasive, weed, growing in my veg patch. It is grass-like, with tiny blade like leaves and grows very low. It starts off looking like a tiny bit of grass, then grows to form tiny flowers/seed-heads and spreads like no-body’s business! Can you help out? thanks
Hi David, it could likely be quackgrass or witchgrass. Let me know if those fit the description.
Hi great website, I’m struggling to identify this weed after having a Google. It’s pushing up through the tarmac outside my house and I’m worried it will do it on my drive next. It doesn’t pull out very well – this photo was taken as I was spraying weedkiller
http://i1207.photobucket.com/albums/bb479/NaomiHairDye/Mobile%20Uploads/IMAG1423_1.jpg
Thanks
Hi Naomi, it could be either a variation of deer or moor grass or it could be mares tail. If you want to remove the weeds by pulling them out, use a tool such as the fiskars weed puller or a hoe to do the job.
Thank you for your reply!
I have this in a flower bed. it has pushed through the weed control fabric and fine mulch. it is spreading like a vine. pulling the ‘leaf’ out will only make it spread further. each visible part is connected to a fine root, which connects up to other patches.
Hey, nice new place and beautiful weeds I’ve been btnalitg these same weeds for a couple years now; funny though, you make them look so pretty.
It’s marestail a survivor from prehistoric times. This should give you a clue to how resistant it is. No weed killers tough it and the roots go down to 3metres.
All you can do is keep pulling it out to weaken it good luck
I wonder if you can help me? I planted some mixed yellow annual seeds in April and have carefully tended the seedlings. They have come into flower but I suspect they may not be the flowers I was expecting. They are about 1.2m high, straight stems with quite long, hairy, grey-green leaves alternately up the stem. At the top there are small pink flowers with a white cross in the middle which turn into a long, thin, green seed pod when the flowers fade.
I may have weeded out all the yellow flowers as, so far, these are the only ones to flower.
Thank you for your help.
Hi Lizzy, that one is tough to say due to the lack of a visual. However, given the description of the pink flower it appears to be a cherokee brave but considering those are rare in Europe I’m thinking it’s apart of the morning glory family.
Could you help identify a creeping weed with clover-like leaves and tiny red flowers. It has very stringy roots/ stem and is easy to pull but there’s lots of it growing up through, twisting around and then flowering over other plants.
many thanks
Juliet
Hi Juliet, it could be red sorrel or red trumpet
Hi, I have some sort of weeds growing out a brick retaining wall. The base and roots are like a tree. I need to get these removed as the wall will is getting damaged. I could not even tell you what type of weed it is.
Hello John, to get rid of weeds in block pavings and walls use Algon Path and Patio Cleaner which you can purchase on Amazon.co.uk.
Hi , I hope you can help, i have growing in the borders of the lawn a ram rod straight weed with no leaves or flowers but lots of little cups with 3 or 4 seeds in each, I can’t remember having seem them before buth there are loads this year. i wondered if you could give any advice on what these may be?
Thank you
We have an unknown weed growing on the railway embankment beside some arable fields and need to identify and get rid of it. Can I email photos?
Hi Sally you can upload it to imgur.com and send us the link through a reply comment.
hi all. i have recently had this sprout up in my garden does anyone know what it is please? http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j73/Andrew_Hayden/20150915_155847_zpsiwghglhb.jpg
Hi Andrew it is likely a firetail plant, quite possibly the Persicaria amplexicaulis or something very similar.
can you help identify this? not sure if its a weed, it grew under a bird feeder and has doubled in size in a week.
http://imgur.com/kM3BboH
many thanks!
Hi Catherine, it appears to be apart of the bamboo genus. Also, a weed is any plant growing where it is not wanted.
Cheers,
Scott
We have a very prevalent weed that we would like identified. How do we send an image.
Hi Ted, you can upload to Imgur.com and post the link here.
Hi
The link to photos of a strange looking weed I found in my garden. I would love to know what it is. Can you help.
Thanks
Have recently acquired a small plot of land (20x20m) previously part of a very overgrown field containing numerous weeds and grasses. Have had top surface removed and professionally sprayed several times leaving apparently bare earth. The intention is to create a wildflower meadow and I have used plugs and seeds this spring to start the process. Not surprisingly some of the original weeds are now reappearing (several from your list above). As some look quite pretty, I’m wondering whether I need to remove them all. I suppose my question is; what is the difference between a weed and a wildflower in this situation?
Many thanks. E.H.
Hi Eric, the difference between a wildflower and weed is that a wildflower grows in a specific area naturally and a weed is a plant that grows naturally in a specific area where it is not wanted. So basically a wildflower can be considered in areas where its cultivation is not intended.
Fantastic site. Its got me really interested in identifying some of the weeds I go to war with. However now I would love your help to identify a particular seedling that has got everywhere this year!
http://m.imgur.com/a/8oEXX
I’ve never really noticed this before but it has now sprouted in my raised beds, pots and greenhouse. Its very delicate and can be easily pulled up but I’m surprised by the invasive nature of it.
I initially thought it was ground elder as my soil is mainly rotted horse manure but it doesn’t have the same root system. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!
Hello Stuart, that plant looks to be in its very early stages of growth. Do you see any of these plants that have grown to their fullest extent?
Have just removed a bed of unidentifiable weeds. Each plant was about 2′ high and had about 10 stems per root. The leaves had about 3 lobes I think, the flowers were yellow and similar to a buttercup, and each flower stem also had a group of what looked like seed pods (each one very thin and 2″ long). The most interesting, and worrying, thing was that, as the plant broke above the root it bled orange sap, which became red after about half an hour!
This sounds like Greater Celandine – Chelidonium majus. The sap is irritating to the skin and gloves should be worn when pulling it up. Some websites say the whole plant is quite toxic, but it can be composted, if the seed heads are removed.
I have taken pictures of a rapid growing “weed”and the nearest resemblance is a horseweed. However, when I went to pull out the whole weed (it was 20-30 cms in height) under each and every leaf were a row of very sharp hook shaped thorns that proved to be very painful. I now have a second one growing nearby to the original one.
Can’t send pictures here, is there anywhere I can post them for help.
I am in Cornwall
Hello Fred, consider using a tool such as the fiskars weed puller to remove weeds easily. It appears to be a mare’s tail which can grow several meters in length from the root up.
Regarding my last comment
I went back on this site and saw ways of sharing pictures, so have sent a link
http://imgur.com/a/n0g45
Had these pop up amongst my hot peppers and Jalapenos plants.
Any idea what kind of weeds they are if they are.
They produce hundreds of seeds that fall off in the wind very easily producing more and more weeds very rapidly.
http://s869.photobucket.com/user/omendata/media/Gardening/Weeds_20160626_21_59_52_Pro%209.jpg.html
http://s869.photobucket.com/user/omendata/media/Gardening/Weeds_20160626_21_59_52_Pro.jpg.html
Hello Gary, it appears to be asthma weed (Parietaria Judaica).
I have a large container that has a very flat ground cover plant starting to grow. it appears to have flowers that are coming from it, approx 1.5 inches high and the are green star shape and have 8 points, almost like an asterisk. Any ideas please? Thank you
Hello Pat, is there anyway you could provide an image?
I have a climbing vine/hop type weed with small greeny white flowers which has large turnip type root which is had to dig out and keeps coming back. Any ideas?
Hello Ellen, it is likely apart of the Eupatorium genus
Hi, overnight my lawn has sprouted hundreds of small shoots in random spots all over. I wouldn’t say they are clustered together although there is one area which I have photographed. I thought this might be crabgrass, but now not so sure. Can you help me identify the weed please?
http://imgur.com/a/wsVHw
Thanks
Ravin
Could I have some help identifying this plant that has popped up in every bare earth space in the garden!
http://imgur.com/HZQGqED
Can you help me please, I have a self seeded broad leaf plant settled itself this past two years in a very large pot, it is not unattractive the leaves are the size of a rhubarb leaf. It comes from a middle stem in a cone shape. Good colour green so I am reluctant to pull it out. I notice I have another baby one coming in the ground nearby. I am intrigued. Please identify if you can. Thank you.
Hi, I’m trying to identify a weed that is prospering in my newly sown lawn. I sowed a bit late.
The weed seedlings have leaves that look a bit like fine grass and are very soft and fragile filaments. leaves radiate out from a single point on the central stem, and then another set an inch or two above. sort of like a fake Christmas tree. I let one grow to 6 inches and it had the makings of a tiny white flower at the top. Picture here ( if it works)
https://scontent-lhr3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/20108287_10154782488026167_7691927620068802164_n.jpg?oh=b610ee0365c37a22afc524e3aabf9d37&oe=59EDAEF5
So far, I’ve resorted to pulling them out by hand.