Gardens in a Bind: Field Bindweed
Weeding. The never-ending task. As our gardens progress through the season, it’s easy to put off pulling those pesky intruders from our plots. For many, weeding starts as a romantic endeavor early in the season, a responsibility that has visual consequences and offers that instant gratification. You can fall into a zen-like zone, clearing the unwanted growth from your plot, brushing your shoulders off after beautifying your space and helping your fruits and veggies thrive. Then time passes, you keep at it, it gets hot out, you go on vacation, you come back, and boom. All romance is lost and the task turns to work. Before you realize it your plot is a jungle of intrusion, of unwanted visitors overthrowing all your hard work. Those little monsters spreading their seed like it’s the garden plot apocalypse, battling your cherished plants for energy, water and space…Most of us are well acquainted with the rise in blood-pressure that can, and will, ensue.
Bindweed can quickly take over a garden with it’s vining nature.
It’s okay gardeners, we’re all in this together. Let’s put our heads down and win the battle, let’s not schlep, let’s slay.
Remember, in the words of Beyoncé, when it comes to weeding, slay:
Sometimes I go off, I go hard
Get what’s mine (take what’s mine), I’m a star
Cause I slay, I slay, I slay, I slay
All day, I slay, I slay, I slay
We gon’ slay, gon’ slay, we slay, I slay
What is a Weed?
The term weed refers to anything you don’t want in your garden, or simply, a plant out of place. In our neck of the woods this can include dill, sunflowers, horseradish, and mint, among others. More typical weeds that plague us are purslane, quack grass, lambs quarters, pigweed, dandelion, sow thistle, knapweed, and ugh, bindweed.
Field bindweed has some alarming qualities that make it absolutely necessary for gardeners to manage the weeds inside their plots. Like quack grass, another ubiquitous weed, new plants readily grow from broken roots. Bindweed roots run up to 15 feet deep and are fragile making the plant hard to pull by hand, or even dig. Apparently, bindweed seeds remain viable for more than 50 years. Yikes!
How to Manage Bindweed
Currently, bindweed exists in almost every one of Garden City Harvest’s community gardens and all over town. (As we said before, we’re all in this together! Let’s put our heads down and let’s slay.) Once bindweed has established itself, it’s very hard to eradicate due to it’s intricate and extensive root system. The Montana Weed Control Association says “the prevention of new infestations is the cheapest and easiest method of control.” To do this, actively dig out new seedlings including their root systems. For established weeds, constantly dig out as much of the root as possible. Other recommendations include:
Never let the weed develop a flower or go to seed.
Continually, dig out as much of the root as possible.
Densely plant your crops to help shade out and compete with the bindweed.
Experiment with covering beds with black plastic/weed fabric and plant into the black plastic by cutting holes just large enough to plant. This method might save you some sanity, but is only effective if left in place for several years.
Pour 30% vinegar solution on it to kill it, but be careful. This can kill other plants and negatively affect the soil ph. We only recommend it for pathways and to use sparingly. You can find 30% vinegar at Home Depot.
How to Identify Bindweed
Not sure how to identify bindweed in your garden plot? Here are some defining characteristics:
alternating arrowhead shaped leaves
trumpet, funnel, bell shaped flowers ~1” in diameter
flowers are white and sometimes tinted light pink
extensive root systems that grow laterally and vertically (up to 15’ deep!)
perennial weed (which means it comes back year after year)
in the morning glory family - don’t be charmed by bindweed’s vining nature or fooled by it’s pretty white flower that looks just like morning glory (which is its noninvasive, annual cousin).
More Resources
More blogs on weeds including the best tool for each weed, click here.
Updated: July 1, 2021, by Emily Kern Swaffar.
Originally Published Community Garden: Field Bindweed - Convolvulus arvensis, June 13, 2012, by Genevieve Marsh.
Contributions by Emy Scherrer, What Do You, Beyoncé, and Weeding Have in Common? Y’all Slay, August 10, 2016