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What These 4 ‘Weeds’ Are Trying to Tell You About Your Yard

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Emma Gallagher is a Brit living in North Carolina. She grows organic gardens and... Read More

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Whether you are a gardener or not, if you have a yard of any description, you have probably noticed a few volunteer plants, aka “weeds”, popping up here, there, or all over the place.

A plant is deemed a weed if it sprouts in a place where you don’t want it, and there are some seemingly ubiquitous classics out there—the dandelion, plantain, chickweed, dock, nettles, and creeping charlie. Often these plants are the bane of a gardener’s life, while for others, they can make a rather tasty and nutritious snack.

Love them or hate them, these tenacious little plants are actually telling you a great deal about the properties of your soil and giving you clues about your growing conditions. This information can help you determine what might grow well in your area or how you could amend your soil accordingly to grow what you want.

What Weeds Are Trying to Tell Us

Weeds are actually pioneer plants that are often responding to some kind of disturbance in the soil. Amongst other things, they react to drought, erosion, compaction, or tilling. Weed seeds need very specific conditions to be able to sprout. Some seeds, for example, might lie dormant in the soil until someone comes along and tills the soil. This activates germination.

Lawns that have been heavily compacted by foot traffic and machinery sprout ‘weeds’ that try to loosen the soil and bring back some polyculture and nutrients to the topsoil.

You might notice that certain areas are scattered with dandelions while others have an abundance of plantain or chickweed. Each plant can be read and an abundance of useful and interesting information gleaned.

1. Dandelion

As well as being a friend to pollinators and highly nutritious, dandelions work really hard to repair compacted and deficient. They tend to grow in acidic soil

Dandelions (Taraxacum officinale) have extremely long tap roots that ‘mine’ nutrients from deep in the earth. The nutrients are pulled up to the surface of the earth replenishing depleted nutrients. These nutrients then become available to other plants in the vicinity.

Dandelions also have wide-spreading roots which help to aerate and loosen compacted soil. All the roots together act as natural tilling with roots dying back or expanding to create movement and space in the soil.

They are excellent at surviving in barren landscapes and can even be found growing through cracks in pavements and parched soil.

2. Chickweed

Source: EdibleWildFood.com/YouTube

Chickweed (Stellaria media) is a lush green ground cover that sports tiny white star-shaped flowers. It is a common weed that is actually easily pulled up due to its shallow roots and is often harvested for salads, teas, and making traditional medicines.

But, what does it tell us about the soil conditions? That chickweed is such a good ground cover, it can be an indication of an attempt to repair bare soil. Bare soil rarely occurs in nature. Soil is either covered with layers of naturally occurring mulch, or ground covers spring into action to help prevent erosion.

Chickweed grows in highly fertile soil that is especially rich in nitrogen. It prefers neutral soil and grows where there is a lot of moisture available. It can be found growing along walls as well as right in the middle of a lawn or garden bed.

3. Lambsquarter

Not surprisingly at this point, lambsquarter (Chenopodium album) is another ‘weed’ that is actually incredibly nutritious and tasty. It is used to make pesto and as a substitute for spinach. It is good raw or cooked. This plant, however, is hated by those who want a weed-free space.

Lambsquarter, like dandelions, has a really long, strong taproot that mines minerals and nutrients from deep in the earth, so its presence can be an indication of poor soil nutrients. However, lambsquarter in your garden is also an indication of high nitrogen levels.

4. Plantain

Source: Rain Country/YouTube

Plantain (Plantago major) is another common weed that many foragers love and many lawn owners revile. Plantain has a strong will to live and can survive in a number of conditions. It is, however, most likely an indicator of poorly draining, nutrient-deficient, and compacted soil.

It usually grows in acidic soil but can be an indicator of high clay content. Plantain has large fibrous roots that can survive in the dense thick clay which other plants find impossible to do.

So, instead of just tearing your weeds up, take a moment to look, and read what they are trying to tell you about your soil. It could revolutionize the success you have with your garden planting.

This is for information purposes only. Seek advice from a medical professional before using herbs medicinally. If foraging for wild edibles or medicinals, never use or consume anything without a 100% certain identification.

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