A weed is a plant growing where you don’t want it to grow, so it’s important to pull spring invaders before they take over. Many are non-native invasive species that thrive on disturbed lands. Our roadsides, tilled plots, and empty lawns are prime real estate for weed seeds. They sprout as we cultivate the land, filling bare soil with leaves, stems, flowers, and seeds.

Some weeds may be native plants, though whether or not you should pull them depends on your preferences. I prefer not to pull native plants; if I do, I move them to a new location where they’ll perform well. Native plants cannot be invasive, as they evolved to thrive in their native range. They may be aggressive, though they aren’t officially invasive like non-native species are. 

Though this weed is troublesome in moist regions, it’s edible! It has a flavor halfway between mustard and broccoli, with a peppery aftertaste. Use it fresh in salads or cut it up like an herb on pizzas, pasta, and stews. 

To effectively remove annual popweed, you must pull all the young seedlings this spring. Leaving one plant behind allows it to self-seed and create fresh patches the next fall or spring. Remove all the plants if you don’t want popweed; otherwise, leave two or three behind for edible greens the next year. 

Lesser Celandine

It pops up early, blooms fast, then ghosts your flowerbed.

Lesser celandine is a spring annual weed that is quite difficult to pull! It’s extremely difficult to eradicate, as it reproduces through aboveground and belowground bulbils and seeds. Both spread via waterways, creating dense patches alongside rivers, streams, and creeks. 

Hand pulling, though effective for most plants, may spread this species further. Rather than pulling, try occultation or solarization. These methods involve laying down opaque or clear plastic over the plants until they die underneath.

Though it takes a few weeks to work for most plants, lesser celandine may require years of occultation. The ephemeral nature of the plant allows it to resist removal methods. Leave the cover in place for two to three years, then dig out any remaining sprouts after removing the cover. You may have to dig annually each spring until the celandine disappears completely. 

Nipplewort

It blooms cheerfully, then quietly fills every empty inch around.

Nipplewort is an aggressive spreader in the States! It’s a perennial herb that self-sows each year to form dense stands of yellow flowers. Pretty, edible, and easy to remove, this weed is a favorite of foragers. Its sunshine-yellow blooms feed pollinators in the spring.

Though gorgeous, this weed sprouts many seeds each year. It can quickly take over empty sites and require hours of manual pulling to remove. Rather than letting it spread, remove the seedlings while they’re young and weak-rooted early in the growing season. 

Nipplewort is common in shady sites, though it may pop up in sunny areas with moist soil. To pull this annual weed, grab it by the lower leaves (preferably in the spring), then twist and pull simultaneously. The plant should come out with little resistance.

English Daisy

It loves soft spring soil and takes full advantage of it.

English daisies are lovely, but they tend to invade disturbed grounds, lawns, and wild spaces. They’re native to Europe and naturalized in many other countries worldwide, including the U.S. You’ll see their white and yellow blooms appear low to the ground in late winter and early spring.

Because English daisies are perennial, it’s important to remove them before they sow seeds. They’ll grow anew each spring until you remove them. Their roots are tough and resist hand pulling. It’s easiest to pull these annual weeds early in the spring season when the ground is loose, soft, and moist.

Look for smooth or slightly serrated spoon-shaped leaves and flowers with yellow centers and white petals. Though unruly, English daisies are valuable to pollinators in ecological dead spaces like lawns. If you don’t mind a few daisies on your lawn, they’re excellent plants to leave for nectar-loving pollinators. 

Dandelion

They’re easy to spot, harder to dig, and surprisingly tasty.

Dandelions are cute perennials or pesky weeds, depending on who you ask! These wild plants originate from Europe and Asia and are now widespread throughout the globe. They sprout toothed greens and bright yellow flowers. Both are edible!

Whether or not to remove these plants depends on you and your gardening preferences. I like to leave them growing on the lawn; they provide edible greens and flowers for salads. Old, bitter leaves make excellent cooked greens. Rather than waging war on the species, you may choose to use it to your benefit.

If these iconic annual weeds are invading your garden beds, early spring is the best time to pull them out. They sprout long, deep taproots that can resprout when cut. Use a deep shovel or trowel to excavate them when the ground is moist and soft. 

Bedstraw

Catch it early, or it’ll smother your seedlings quietly.

Bedstraw is a clinging, scrambling annual with vine-like tendrils. Its leaves, stems, and seeds have fine hooks that attach themselves to hair, clothes, and shoes. You may be familiar with them if you have pets; you’ll pull the seeds off your fuzzy friends each summer!

Though bedstraw is less invasive than most other weeds, it tends to snuff out young seedlings when it clambers over them. Pulling the plant may snag other veggies and wildflowers nearby. Catch bedstraw when it’s young and you’ll prevent it from harming your tender garden specimens. 

Bedstraw has some amazing uses, as it’s a relative of the coffee tree. They’re both members of the Rubiaceae family. The seeds work as a coffee bean substitute, and the young leaves and stems are edible raw or cooked. 

Shiny Geranium

It shows up shiny and sweet, then takes over everything.

Shiny geranium is a pest like none other! It readily invades forests, roadsides, gardens, and landscapes throughout the West Coast. Though it’s a more recent introduction than the other weeds on this list, it has spread rapidly throughout Oregon, Washington, and California.

Identify shiny geranium by its divided, shiny green leaves. They turn red as they age, creating a green-red contrast between the old and new foliage. Tiny magenta flowers sprout and morph into green seed pods that eject seeds far and wide.

Mulching is a clever way to defeat this species. Because it’s an annual, it relies on seeds that germinate the following year. Prevent this by covering all the shiny geraniums with thick layers of mulch. Aim for a layer six inches or thicker. If seedlings pop up, take them out promptly to prevent them from reseeding. 

Stinking Bob

Crushed leaves hit your nose before you see the plant.

Stinking Bob is stinky, as its name suggests! The crushed leaves emit an unpleasant odor that many find off-putting. Though smelly, it has shallow, fibrous roots that are easy to pull out of the ground, especially when it’s soft early in the growing season.

Stinking Bob sprouts pink flowers that turn into exploding seed pods. The pods may distribute the seeds far from the original plant. A single specimen can turn into a vast colony over a single growing season.

Rather than letting it take over, remove stinking Bob plants promptly after spotting them. Take them out before they produce seeds to prevent seedlings from germinating. 

Grasses

Pull them now or chase them all summer long.

Weedy grasses are present in all 50 states! They’re quick to sprout, seed, and spread through underground roots. Preventing their spread is key to controlling their populations. Many germinate as days lengthen and warm during the growing season, and spring is a good season to extract them from the yard. 

Though perennial grasses are tough to pull later in summer, they’re easy to excavate when the soil is soft, moist, and loose. Take out mature grasses and their seedlings before they can form more seeds for a weed-free garden the next year.

Heal-All

Catch it before it claims the whole corner.

Heal all is a weedy introduction from Europe and Asia. Though many sources say it’s a native plant, there is some confusion about the plant. The subspecies Prunella vulgaris ssp. lanceolata is native to the U.S., while the Eurasian subspecies P. vulgaris ssp. vulgaris is a non-native introduced plant. 

The two subspecies are difficult to tell apart, though not impossible. The native heal all has lanceolate leaves that are three times as long as they are wide, while the weedy species has leaves two times as long as they are wide, or less. The flowers of our native heal-all are also much larger than the weedy species. 

Heal all is a mint relative, and it can form wide mats like mint. Pull young weed seedlings in the spring before they mature, and excavate large mats before they spread further. 

Chickweed

It spreads easily but doesn’t overtake your favorite plants.

Chickweed is edible, tender, and tasty! It’s not bitter, like dandelion greens, nor is it hard to grow. Its weedy nature allows it to spread into natural areas, disturbed fields, and roadsides. Look for its star-like white blooms, fleshy green leaves, and low-growing stems. 

Prepare chickweed in salads, charcuterie boards, or cooked greens recipes. Always be sure you’re harvesting the plant in question. It’s best not to eat plants you can’t identify. 

Though chickweed can be a nuisance, it doesn’t invade new beds like many of these other plants do. Decide whether you can deal with a few around the garden, or remove them entirely to prevent their return. 

Purple Deadnettle

This is a colorful ground cover, but it spreads!

Purple deadnettle is a rather attractive weed, sprouting purple and green leaves with pink blooms poking out underneath them. It’s a winter annual that grows during cool, moist conditions from fall through spring. In abandoned fields, they may form large colonies that grow before most other plants emerge. 

Though troublesome, purple deadnettle is easy to take out. Simply pull it by its stems to dislodge the roots. You can throw the pulled plants back on the soil to decay and protect the ground. 

Clover

A little effort now can prevent a big spread later.

Clover is one of the most difficult plants to excavate! Many invasive species rely on underground runners to form vast colonies. If you pull their leaves, they’ll resprout from the roots! Removing them in spring is crucial in preventing their return the following growing season. Otherwise, they’ll use seeds, roots, and runners to colonize bare soil.