“It looks harmless, but in seven days it turns your garden beds into a desert.
We are not talking about the Colorado potato beetle or aphids - these are enemy No. 1 for 90% of summer residents.
The magazine "Garden Detective" conducted an investigation and is ready to name the pest. Spoiler: it is already growing on your plot!"
Couch grass is the name of the main "saboteur" of gardens. Its roots penetrate to a depth of 2.5 meters, sucking out water and minerals.
“One wheatgrass bush ‘steals’ as much nitrogen per season as is needed for the growth of 15 pepper bushes,” agronomist Maria Kovaleva sounds the alarm.
But this is not the only danger: the roots secrete toxins that suppress cultivated plants.
How to spot an enemy
- In early spring, couch grass disguises itself as young grass.
- The leaves are tough and jagged - run your finger over them and if you cut yourself, it's this one.
- On abandoned sites it forms a continuous carpet - it is better not to rent such territory.
Methods of struggle
1. Mechanical: Dig up the roots with a pitchfork (a shovel cuts them, causing them to grow). The depth should be at least 30 cm.
2. Chemical: Herbicides like Roundup are effective, but they kill soil microflora.
3. Biological: Sow phacelia or rye - their roots secrete inhibitory substances.
Life hack from grandma: Pour boiling water and vinegar over the wheatgrass (1 glass of 9% vinegar per 5 liters of water).
“The neighbors laughed until they saw my clean garden,” boasts pensioner Valentina from Tver.
Prevention:
- Mulch the beds with cardboard or black spunbond.
- Do not bring soil from fields onto the plot - it often contains wheatgrass rhizomes.
"In a week, your harvest could turn into fertilizer for this monster. Don't give it a chance - act now!"
