Question
my plant has gotten way out of hand and now I want to rid myself of this plant entirely.  my bed is full of it plus coneflowers, hibiscus, lilies, and clematis and I do no want to hurt the surrounding plants.  Please help!

Answer
Hi Jackie,
Forgive me for the delay in answering your question and thank you for asking.  There are several things you can do.  All are labor intensive and require precision and care.  The first thing you can do, is dig up everything you want to keep and apply horticultural vinegar to what is left.  You can use Roundup but I try to avoid using these chemicals.  You must decide for yourself what is appropriate for you.  I'm not going to preach about it.  If you use Roundup, follow the directions, on the container and wait the appropriate amount of time, before replanting what you have dug up.  Coneflowers can be difficult because they have a long tap root that can result in the plant's death if broken.  The next thing you could do, is just spot pull up the weeds.  Yes, labor intensive but then you don't have to worry about application of herbicides.  The third thing you can do is spot treat either with horticultural vinegar or Roundup.  Wear gloves and place a workable amount of either in a small container and get a paint brush and apply to the plant.  With vinegar, it may take several applicationss.  With certain weeds, it will several applications ofRoundup if you're using that.  Horticultural vinegar is 20% acidic and can burn you so handle with care.  It is expensive too at about $30 a gallon and usually only available at Farm Supply Stores, Coops and large garden centers.  Regular vinegar will work too but is 5% and will take several applications.  Use white vinegar and not cider vinegar and apply directly at the root level taking care not to contact the plants you want to keep.  Roundup cannot touch anything else you want to keep.  I saw a woman get rid of a yard full of thistles like this.  It took her two months but she ended up with a beautiful yard.

I know it's not a simple solution but I hope it helps.
Tom