Hi All
I had grown coriander last year with no issues, this year I have tried and having lots of little weeds growing and hardly any coriander. The only thing I have done differently this year is put some quality expensive compost and manure.
Any body know why have I got alot more weeds growing? Anybody know if it is a weed or something else? Any ideas of how to eliminate this so I can start growing coriander again.
The area I grow is raised , right next to a field. If I created another raised bedding on top and put new compost, will that make a difference?
Thks
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Husk24
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- Location: United Kingdon, England, Yorkshire
Weeds growing alongside coriander
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Lindsaylew82
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Hi!
It looks like common chickweed seedlings to me. It likely came from weed seeds in your compost. It pulls out pretty easily. You could cover the area with newspaper or brown craft paper (big rolls in the paint section!). Then mulch over it. It's very easily suppressed this way. It isn't a very though weed, it just produces a LOT of tough seeds.
Cilantro transplants really well for me. If you sow it in cells, then transplant through the paper, you should have a fairly weed free experience!
Hope that helps!
It looks like common chickweed seedlings to me. It likely came from weed seeds in your compost. It pulls out pretty easily. You could cover the area with newspaper or brown craft paper (big rolls in the paint section!). Then mulch over it. It's very easily suppressed this way. It isn't a very though weed, it just produces a LOT of tough seeds.
Cilantro transplants really well for me. If you sow it in cells, then transplant through the paper, you should have a fairly weed free experience!
Hope that helps!
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rainbowgardener
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When you say coriander, are you talking about the tree? The coriander I know is aka cilantro and is a small herbaceous annual.
But if you mean the tree, then the solution is easy. Just get out your hoe and chop up the ground and all the weeds, then mulch heavily. Weeds will eventually come back, but not nearly as many and easily dealt with. That is a very small area to deal with with a hoe.
If you did mean cilantro, then it has been taken over by the weeds, and I would still do the same thing and start over. Plant your cilantro seeds in a flat in potting soil and then transplant them when they are big enough to see over the mulch and have a head start on the weeds.
But if you mean the tree, then the solution is easy. Just get out your hoe and chop up the ground and all the weeds, then mulch heavily. Weeds will eventually come back, but not nearly as many and easily dealt with. That is a very small area to deal with with a hoe.
If you did mean cilantro, then it has been taken over by the weeds, and I would still do the same thing and start over. Plant your cilantro seeds in a flat in potting soil and then transplant them when they are big enough to see over the mulch and have a head start on the weeds.
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Lindsaylew82
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- Joined: Wed May 21, 2014 9:26 pm
- Location: Upstate, SC
I wouldn't mulch with that compost. It contains the weed seeds. Doesn't mean it's bad compost, it just didn't get hot enough to kill the weed seed. It'll still break down and feed your soil. My favoritemulch is old straw. I've been having poor lunch with straw over the last couple years. It's had lots of wheat seeds in it... Pine straw is my next favorite mulch. It breaks down fairly fast as well, so it adds to your soil in a years time. Love the stuff!
I do mulch with compost but only on established beds. Some seeds can survive composting so you do have to make sure you get a good compost. Animal manures can contain weed seeds as well. If you use compost and manure it is best to put that in about a month before and till it into the soil. Water well and let the weeds come up, weed and repeat a couple of times. cover with cardboard, newspaper until you are ready to plant. Cilantro does not compete well with weeds and it does not grow well in the heat so I usually grow that in pots anyway. You can start in pots as suggested and plant out later. You can plant through the newspaper and it will get a head start, before the newspaper decomposes.
Sometimes the seeds are not from what you put in as they could have come from any remnant weeds from previous plantings or brought in from adjoining areas, even on your boots.
I don't buy a lot of manure. I do get compost, but I get a brand that I have not had problems with and I use vermicast when I have it instead. I have alkaline plots and I am adding more peat moss than alkaline compost now to fix that. Peat moss doesn't usually have weeds. Peat moss used to be very expensive and it still is, the price of compost has risen with the demand so now it costs almost as much as peat moss for the same volume. (Peat moss is compressed, so consider the uncompressed volume).
Manure can also contain weed seeds depending on what kind you got and what the animal eats. It also needs to be hot composted before it kills most of the weed seeds.
I don't buy a lot of manure. I do get compost, but I get a brand that I have not had problems with and I use vermicast when I have it instead. I have alkaline plots and I am adding more peat moss than alkaline compost now to fix that. Peat moss doesn't usually have weeds. Peat moss used to be very expensive and it still is, the price of compost has risen with the demand so now it costs almost as much as peat moss for the same volume. (Peat moss is compressed, so consider the uncompressed volume).
Manure can also contain weed seeds depending on what kind you got and what the animal eats. It also needs to be hot composted before it kills most of the weed seeds.