Identify Weed From St. Louis Missouri Lawn - Ask Extension
I'm sending you 3 pictures of a weed that was prevalent in my lawn this spring 2019. I removed most of them by pulling them entirely up and out from t...
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Identify Weed From St. Louis Missouri Lawn #558384
Asked May 04, 2019, 9:08 PM EDT
I'm sending you 3 pictures of a weed that was prevalent in my lawn this spring 2019. I removed most of them by pulling them entirely up and out from the root. For the life of me I can't identify this sucker. Any ideas? I looked around my neighbors lawns and they don't have it, just me. I'm under the belief that when I bought and put in top soil in some areas where my trees were cut down and removed, that I got some strange top soil and this weed came along with it. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. This is from St. Louis MO. By the way I filled up a 33 gallon yard waste bag of these dudes, they spread pretty fast. Thanks. Lance Krug
St. Louis County Missouri
Expert Response
Are the stems woody? They look like they are. If so then my first guess is the this is volunteer eastern red cedar. In Ohio they can become prevalent weeds if near red cedar trees.
With you method of removal you should have these plants controlled, but seeds in the soil or blown in from somewhere you could get the problem again.
If you have any questions or comments, please contact me!!
Jeff
First of all thanks for your quick turnaround with your answer, it's greatly appreciated. The stems are definitely woody. I pulled at least 90% of them out root and all so yes I should have control over the problem. So what I'm to understand is that this isn't really a weed but the beginnings of a tree? Last question. Is there anything to spray on these things to kill them than just trying to pull them all out root and all? Once again thanks for your reply, great help!
Yes it is a tree, most likely a cedar. If a plant is unwanted in your case you can consider it a weed. There are some herbicides that are available, but they are expensive and come it greater quantities than you need if this area is less than 2 acres. Just keep pulling. You do not need to remove all of the roots. You can just cut the top off at 2” below soil surface and remove it.
