Landscaping: Moss question

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Umgowa Roswell, GA October 26, 2009 03:40 PM	I'm growing moss in my front yard instead of grass and it is looking great. Can anyone tell me what the little green plant is growing amidst my moss in the attached photo? The thing with little green leaves. Is it a weed that needs to be plucked out? Or perhaps it's something that I can live with. If it stays small and stays green, perhaps I can just live with it. Thanks for the help. View Larger
Lynnie6868 (Zone 5b) October 27, 2009 04:54 PM	looks like the creeping charlie that I have in my yard...spreads like it should be called speedy charlie.....IF that's what it is, I'm very bad at plant ID....
Katlian Carson City, NV (Zone 6b) October 27, 2009 06:09 PM	The palmately compound leaf (leaflets all coming from the same point) rules out creeping charlie, which has simple, dentate leaves. It's probably a Potentilla, a relative of strawberries. There is a weedy one but I think it likes sunny spots better than shady ones. You can always wait until it blooms next year and take the flowers and a leaf to your county extension agent.
JulieQ Cullman, AL (Zone 7b) October 27, 2009 07:24 PM	Here is a link to cinquefoil. Does this look like it? http://www.weedalert.com/weed_pages/wa_cinquefoil.htm
Lynnie6868 (Zone 5b) November 01, 2009 09:08 PM	augh I think I have BOTH of those weeds! oh well winter is coming!
smileymom343 Kenmore, NY (Zone 6a) November 02, 2009 07:06 PM	AAAH! My entire yard is that! I would get rid of it now while you have the chance. The cinquefoil is perennial and it has taproots. Spreads by runners that root down also. I left it because for me it's a losing battle. Plus my "lawn" is always green. Your moss looks great! Get rid of that, no matter what it is. Creeping Charlie has rounder leaves (I believe-I have that too) and is easier than the cinquefoil.
Umgowa Roswell, GA November 03, 2009 07:23 AM	You mention the tap roots. This particular little green stranger has tap roots (or tendrils, or whatever you want to call them) that shoot out horizontally above the surface. You can see them going left to right in the center of the attached photo. Does this help identify this plant for anyone? Thanks. View Larger
smileymom343 Kenmore, NY (Zone 6a) November 03, 2009 07:29 AM	Yes, but then when it touches down, it roots, no? Where the next set of leaves are? It's cinquefoil. Did you look at JulieQ's link? I'm just trying to help, it's very hard to get rid of once it's established.
Katlian Carson City, NV (Zone 6b) November 03, 2009 11:47 AM	The horizontal stems are called stolons. They are common in this group of plants and strawberries are the best example. The invasive species (sulphur cinquefoil) has a woody taproot with short branches near the top but still under the soil surface. This gives the plant a clumped look. It also grows quite tall. The teeth on the leaves are very deep and the indentations go more than halfway to the middle of the leaf. The native species have stolons, which spread the plants out more. They also tend to be shorter than the invasive species. The teeth on the leaves are shallower and indent less than halfway to the center. The link above lists the native species as a weed but it's only a problem if you're trying to grow perfect turf. Sulphur cinquefoil however is a non-native that displaces native species and causes economic damage for farmers. If you have short plants with stolons you almost certainly have a native woodland wildflower. You only need to tear it out if you don't want them there.
Lynnie6868 (Zone 5b) November 03, 2009 12:06 PM	oh mine are short...thanks for the info Katlian, you're very knowledgeable!
Umgowa Roswell, GA November 04, 2009 10:49 AM	Such very helpful and thoughtful responses. Thank you very much. Yes, I did look at JulieQ's link showing a picture of cinquefoil. As you can see her plant looks similar but different from mine. Perhaps they are both cinquefoils . . but different types of cinquefoils. I was told by my county extension agent that the little plant is a wild strawberry plant. I'm sure the word "cinquefoil" must fit in there somewhere also. Could someone please educate me as to how it could be both a wild strawberry and a cinquefoil? Is a wild strawberry a type of cinquifoil?
smileymom343 Kenmore, NY (Zone 6a) November 04, 2009 12:34 PM	Katlian mentioned above that Pontentilla is a relative of the strawberry. Maybe you could go that route...
Katlian Carson City, NV (Zone 6b) November 04, 2009 12:52 PM	Common names aren't always very accurate and there are sometimes multiple common names for the same species. Strawberries usually have three leaflets per leaf and cinquefoils (pronounced sank-foil, french for "five leaf") usually have five leaflets per leaf. But they are quite similar and I can see how the common name for a familiar plant (strawberry) is easier to remember than an unusual one. If you search http://plants.usda.gov for Potentilla you will get a list of all cinquefoils in the country. You can also use the "State Search" feature to narrow it down to Georgia. They don't have a lot of identification information but it will give you a list to start with. If you really want to know which species it is you will probably have to wait until you have flowers and fruits since most plant taxonomy is based on those features. This message was edited Nov 4, 2009 8:52 AM
JulieQ Cullman, AL (Zone 7b) November 04, 2009 07:07 PM	Just for comparison: http://www.weedalert.com/weed_pages/wa_wild_strawberry.htm I have both kinds of weeds (cinquefoil and strawberry) in my moss, and I just pull them. My mossy area is not too big, though.
Umgowa Roswell, GA November 04, 2009 07:22 PM	JulieQ: I have been told by my county extension agent that the best way to eliminate these little plants is th snip them off. Don't worry about the roots regenerating. Snipping denies the roots all the goodies received above the ground (air, limited sun, etc.) and this will shrivel up the roots and kill them. As I'm sure you've noticed, pulling up weeds within moss tends to really disrupt and pull up the moss. Getting some little scissors and snipping the weeds will leave the moss in tact, get rid of the weeds, and dry up the roots so the weeds don't return. This is what I was told yesterday so I'm just passing it along.
Lynnie6868 (Zone 5b) November 04, 2009 08:30 PM	Umgowa thanks for the info, I'll take a closer look at my weeds when I get a day off that isn't raining, can't seem to have one without the other lately! Some are in a more neglected area, and they're rooted more deeply, the other spot is in my rose bed, so I'm there yanking them out more frequently and they're pretty shallow.

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