Question
well, it's about that time, well actually not yet (ohio) for gardening. I have had the same weed come up  every year. It's the only one I have but it is devastating. it starts out low growing  and it spreads like wilfire you might have a handful today and tommorow you might have  the whole garden full.It you leave them grow they have white flowers. I can't control it once it starts, tilling my garden seems to only replant them. It's to the point where if I can't get rid of them then I am going to quit gardening. What should I do?  Thanks

Answer
Kurt, you have several options.  The easiest is to spray the area with a broad based herbicide such as Finale or Roundup.  Depending on the product, the grass and weeds will be eradicated in anywhere from one to ten days.  If you're looking for a more organic method, boiling 1 part vinegar to 5 parts water will also kill all vegetation.  Rock salt will also work, but keep in mind the salt residue will remain in the soil making it difficult to grow anything else in the area for quite some time.  But for a permanent solution, it will do the job as long as the coverage is complete.

The best solution is to solarize the soil by placing black plastic over the affected area.  The downside to this process is that it takes at least 4 weeks to kill the weeds.  But this method definitely works and will permanently eradicate the weeds.

Good luck, and thanks for writing.

Regards,

Mike