ID tips: Twining vine with arrow-shaped leaves and large white trumpet flowers.

Spreads: Deep rhizomes and seed.

Best control: Smother area with cardboard + thick mulch or lightproof membrane for 12+ months; do not dig or rotavate.

Outcompete with: Robust perennials like comfrey or rhubarb.

Benefits: Supports pollinators, but invasive and hard to manage.

Soil indicator: Bare, disturbed soils — common in neglected beds.

ID tips: Clusters of three-toothed leaves; white umbrella flowers; creeps underground.

Spreads: Fast-growing rhizomes.

Best control: Full coverage with cardboard and mulch, topped up annually. Avoid digging. Leave covered for 12+ months.

Outcompete with: Shady groundcovers like ferns, bugle (Ajuga), or Lamium.

Benefits: Edible young leaves; once used as a pot herb.

Soil indicator: Fertile, shaded soils — often neglected beds or hedge bases.

ID tips: Ancient-looking plant with bristly, upright stems; no true leaves.

Spreads: Deep, brittle rhizomes.

Best control: Repeated cutting and smothering with cardboard and mulch; persistent management required over several years.

Outcompete with: Dense plantings that shade the soil, e.g. berry bushes or shrubs.

Benefits: High silica content; used traditionally for scouring pans.

Soil indicator: Waterlogged, acidic, compacted soils — often a drainage issue.

ID tips: Serrated, opposite leaves with fine stinging hairs; square stems.

Spreads: Creeping roots and seed.

Best control: Cut back repeatedly, cover with cardboard and mulch; dig crowns if manageable.

Outcompete with: Established shrubs or tall perennials.

Benefits: Edible when young; brilliant for compost and wildlife.

Soil indicator: Rich, nitrogen-heavy soil — often after animal manures or compost.

ID tips: Coarse grass with white creeping roots and persistent regrowth.

Spreads: Rapid rhizomes.

Best control: Avoid digging; instead, smother with cardboard and mulch over full area. Maintain edge barriers to stop reinvasion.

Outcompete with: Thick green manure crops or dense shrub planting.

Benefits: Limited; once used medicinally.

Soil indicator: Open, uncultivated ground; often nutrient-depleted.

ID tips: Large oval leaves with red-tinged stems; tall seed spikes.

Spreads: Wind-blown seed; deep taproot.

Best control: Lift entire taproot with a fork; mulch thickly to prevent seed germination.

Outcompete with: Fast-spreading herbaceous plants like globe artichoke or horseradish.

Benefits: Edible in small amounts; said to ease nettle stings.

Soil indicator: Compacted, damp or poorly-drained ground.

ID tips: Small, delicate green leaves; white star-shaped flowers; creeping habit.

Spreads: Fast-growing annual via seed.

Best control: Hoe or pull before flowering; cardboard and mulch smothers new growth.

Outcompete with: Dense planting; use as green mulch where desired.

Benefits: Edible, mild salad green; good for hens.

Soil indicator: Moist, rich, cultivated soil — common in veg beds.

ID tips: Bamboo-like stems, heart-shaped leaves, frothy white flowers in summer.

Spreads: Aggressive rhizomes (no viable seed in UK).

Best control: Full area coverage with lightproof membrane or thick mulched layers for 2+ years. Never dig or compost. Seek professional help if near buildings.

Outcompete with: Almost nothing — best to starve it with exclusion.

Benefits: Young shoots edible (cook like rhubarb); good late nectar.

Soil indicator: Thrives in disturbed, moist, nutrient-rich ground.

Why it’s a problem: Vigorous perennial with arching stems that root wherever they touch soil.

Control: Cut hard, then smother with cardboard + deep mulch. Remove crowns and new shoots repeatedly.

Benefits: Edible fruit and wildlife value — but unmanageable if left unchecked.

Soil indicator: Often a sign of unmanaged, fertile or transitional ground.

ID tips: Rosette of jagged leaves; bright yellow flowers; fluffy seed heads.

Spreads: Wind-borne seeds; deep taproot.

Best control: Dig out entire taproot or smother area with 3 layers of cardboard + 4–6 inches of woodchip mulchfor 6–12 months.

Outcompete with: Dense groundcovers like white clover or creeping thyme.

Benefits: Edible leaves, flowers, and roots; early nectar source.

Soil indicator: Compacted, low-fertility soil — dandelions help break it up.

ID tips: Coarse grass with white creeping roots and persistent regrowth.

Spreads: Rapid rhizomes.

Best control: Avoid digging; instead, smother with cardboard and mulch over full area. Maintain edge barriers to stop reinvasion.

Outcompete with: Thick green manure crops or dense shrub planting.

Benefits: Limited; once used medicinally.

Soil indicator: Open, uncultivated ground; often nutrient-depleted.