boondox270
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Joined: Sun May 19, 2013 2:52 pm

Weed or possible mint is taking over my lawn of new home

Hello all! I am really stressing over the lawn of my new home and hope someone here can help out!!! I will first give you a little story as to where I am in my stress of this new home's lawn...

My wife and I have just recently bought our first home!:D:D:D The sale of my new home closed early November 2012 and we got the keys, did minor cosmetic changes and moved in about 3 weeks later. At that time the lawn was in what I call "lawn hibernation" :P

As spring of this year started things were turning green, but I noticed that the lawn looked odd as it was starting to grown and green. As time passed I noticed that there were patches of crab grass, but the rest of the lawn was either clover, wild strawberries, and this odd looking weed or mint. I have yet to identify this weed/mint looking thing ---> Image

The soil where this is grown seems to sink easily and it also seems that it is growing where the ground is slanting. I have a rut that goes from the top of the slant and runs down through the yard to the end of the slope. As I have said, the stuff is growing around that said area and it seems that you can easily sink a little when walking in that area. :( :(

No grass is growing in that area and after mowing, the ground is bare in places around where this stuff is growing --->Image
Here are my questions...

What is that stuff growing?
If it's a weed, will is overrun any seed I put down to grow grass:?:
Is my soil an issue with is being so soft and sinking:?:
What options do I have to make my lawn better and eliminate the stuff growing:?:

Thanks in advance for any help that is given. Below are a few more pictures for you to look at to get an idea of what my lawn is looking like. The sad part is, I'd even be glad to have more crab grass at this point then the junk I have now :P :P:P

Image

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boondox270
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Another bit about the weed. When I do mow I notice after cutting around this area I smell a very strong odor and almost makes my sinuses burn just a tiny bit. The odor is that strong. Not sure if it is coming from that weed or something else in the area or a combination.

Rick5150
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Joined: Mon Jun 10, 2013 8:24 am

Congratulations on the house!

We have the same thing on our lawn. I found it was called "Creeping Charlie" or ground ivy.

Does yours have purple flowers in the spring? It grows in wet, shady areas that are low in boron. From what I have been reading, boron is the key. You can make a solution of boron to spray on your lawn to target the Creeping Charlie. I do not presume to know how to do it, but I will be trying it soon as it is taking over.

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applestar
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Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

That boron remedy is controversial. Apparently, there is a secific time of the year when it is effective ONLY THEN because that's when the BORON is absorbed by the plant's internal activity. Also, boron is apparently cumulatively toxic to all plants to some degree, and doesn't have a way to be naturally eliminated from the soil.

Be sure to thoroughly research. :|

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watermelonpunch
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Location: Pennsylvania USA

For reference, this is a close-up of creeping charlie:
Image

Is the plant in the OP pictures Creeping Charlie? They do not appear to have rounded scalloped leaves. :?:

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pinksand
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Location: Columbia, MD

It's hard to tell from the photos but it looks very similar to a vine-like groundcover I'm currently dealing with as well. It looks a bit like a wild strawberry vine (another problem taking over my lawn) but the leaves are more like a tiny virginia creeper and it doesn't seem to produce flowers or fruit (at least not yet). It grows like a vine and sends out roots wherever it touches the ground and starts a new plant. From these photos it looks like it might be the same.



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