Creeping Oxalis – 3 Ways to Remove it
July 2, 2021
Creeping oxalis is a perennial weed with an annoying growth habit in lawns. It can be identified by its light green heart shaped leaves, very similar in appearance to clover. The flowers are small, about 3-4mm in diameter and bright yellow in colour containing five petals. When seed pods mature they dry out and explode, causing the seed to spread.
Removal or eradication of oxalis is not easy, however with persistence the presence of oxalis can be at least reduced. Systemic weed killers based on glyphosate can be used on oxalis, however they are not usually selective, and will kill everything they contact.
So lets have a look at the best ways to remove creeping oxalis
It’s the small bulblets that oxalis produces are the problem, they are not easily removed by weeding and therefore the problem can persists for a number of years . Oxalis and Creeping Oxalis are difficult to control, we present a number of options.
How to Control Oxalis
We have found three methods, so here are our tips on how to control Oxalis and eventually kill it off.
Constant and vigilant weeding can greatly reduce the presence of oxalis in your lawn. If you do not let the plant flower and continually weed you will eventually reduce the problem. However with Oxalis weeding is very difficult as the tiny bulblets drop off very easily and weeding can actually spread oxalis if you are not careful
Weed killer for Oxalis
Using a weed killer will eventually do the job if you like using weed killers. However it will still take a few years to completely eradicate the problem.
A glyphosate herbicide was seen as the best way to tackle Oxalis. Care must be taken when applying weed killers near shrubs and trees. We recommend that Bindi and Clover weed killer gives the best results in removing oxalis, but be sure to read the instructions on bottle before application.
Many people believe in the use of vinegar solutions as weed killers, vinegar will kill foliage, but it will not kill the bulblets under the ground. Repeated applications are needed to eventually ‘starve’ the oxalis. Soap mixed with the solution will help penetration of waxy surfaces on some plants.