Wednesday, September 03, 2008

Goathead Weeds

these weeds are going to just cover me up and every thing else on the place. All kinds of weeds - tumbleweeds, goatheads, ragweed, and a dozen others that I don't even know the names of. I sort of half way tolerate anything that doesn't have stickers on it. Except the ragweed - well it sort of has a sticker - or at least it has some kind of very fine, hairlike thing that likes to stick in my skin if I'm not using gloves. And it sure does make the me sneese and caugh, and sniffle. Yucky allergies.
but worst of all are the goatheads. In the southwest we have these horid, visious, monsters that are better know as a weed. If you've never seen one, it grows in a sort of circle, flat on the ground, with tiny yellow flowers that make the moster goathead sticker seed pod. It is a roundish seed pod with horns on it, hence the name goathead. The so called horns can penatrate the toughest skin and even tires on a car. Traveling on tires seems to be the favorite way of goatheads for getting from one place to another. I could have swore several times that I had them gone from my yard and then there they would be again. I see them on my car tires. I have learned to reconize them as soon as they pop out of the ground. But with all the weeds we have growing right now the goatheads are very good at hiding in amoung the other weeds so that they can get very huge with lots of stickers before I find them. You would think they actually have a mind and can think what they are doing when they hide among the other weeds that don't seem to care if they are providing shelter for a monster. Some have been at least 2 feet across when I found them. Their little yellow flowers can be a dead give away. Yes, dead, because when I find them I stop what ever else I am doing and pull them, making sure to put them in the trash rather than to leave them lay as I do lots of the other weeds. And the poor puppies and kitties when they get one in their feet. I have known 2 people who have had to have the stickers removed by doctors. One person let his get infected before going to the doctor and almost lost his foot. I try and keep them gone but most of my neighbors don't fight them at all.
I can't figure out how they can live with a lawn of goathead stickers. If anyone knows of a good organic way to get rid of the goathead mosters please let me know.

2 comments:

  1. THEY ARE AWFUL THINGS! I get them in my socks and shoes all the time! UGH!

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousJuly 20, 2012

    go to goathead.com and get the beetles they get rid of goat heads. Awesome little bug let them loose in July. Order early limited supply

    ReplyDelete