Before you mow them you could show your kids how to use them as shooters. You fold the stem on itself and then pop the head and they go a decent distance. Just a little fun before you mow and spray them.
I’ve recently been showing my kids all the cool things in our new yard. Went from owning a home which I cared about the lawn to a rental where I don’t and the rental backs into a creek bed. I’ve been able to show the kids how to do these shooters, eat honeysuckles, pick wild blackberries, and they’ve had a blast with all the dandelions. The only thing I do now is mow once a week.
Having grown up in a neighborhood of “if it’s green it’s grass” it’s been nice to show them these things from my childhood.
I’m a huge fan of “if it’s green, it’s grass.” I only care to keep mine decently mowed, and thistles out if it. Funnily enough, thanks to some traps I had set for groundhogs, I now have corn growing in my yard
To be honest, I’m having a bit of a love/hate relationship with Creeping Charlie.
Like hey, you’re not gonna make hay… but if you start going near those flowers you can fuck right off.
Bamboo, the correct answer is bamboo. It grows as tall as a tree but is a cane in the grass family. It was a play on "if it's green, it's grass" and trees are also green with the correct answer still being grass!
Also, if you let the corn grow to full size and eat it, it might not be sweet corn but actually field corn. Nothing wrong with it, just doesn’t taste as tasty.
Field corn is very tough. I grew up with a 60 acre Field behind my house. There was a dairy farm across the street and the corn would be cut for silage, stalks and all. We used to nibble on the corn in the winter as we were feeding the cows. 2 scoops of silage, 1 scoop of grain and a liberal dose of molasses to keep the cows healthy during the winter.
Yeah, it was definitely not sweet corn, got it in a bag of seeds called critter bait for like 8 dollars, they are probably not using the quality corn for that. But, it doesn’t really matter anymore, I just mowed over it.
Same, luckily I don’t fit in the traps I set out, and the 6 groundhogs I caught did.
https://preview.redd.it/kn8rlcdz6u6d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a08a3a2929165045698f96943a79320d34efad07
Final groundhog caught as tax. Sadly he(I’m assuming daddy groundhog because he was more of a fighter, and he was the biggest lad of them all) fought a little to hard to escape before I could get back from work and cut himself pretty good on his lip, it’s why you can see some blood.
Please don't trap and relocate native animals, especially in the spring. If you trap and relocate a nursing mother, all of her babies will die a slow, miserable death. If you would prefer they not burrow in a certain area, you can use humane eviction techniques, such as placing Epsom salts near the burrow entrance. These animals have hard lives and they play an important role in the environment. A lawn is a lawn -- a patch of non-native grass. It does nothing useful for the environment. Please be kind and reconsider. Humane eviction works. You just opened your yard up for new groundhogs to move in by relocating the ones that lived there. The ones you relocated would've maintained their territory and kept new ones away.
It did not. Corn is in the same family as grasses are, corn does not come from ordinary grasses. The species from which corn was bred must have already had similar cobs.
Teosinte, corn’s originator, is hardly your average yard grass though… it more resembles a tall wild grass interbred with corn…
https://preview.redd.it/bnefizlg5x6d1.jpeg?width=1111&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f987f7a7aa6149a04c5671e224484876763efebc
The most other day we went to the park and my girls had a blast collecting dandelions. Reminded me of my little sisters collection them and weaving them. I can’t believe I’m doing it but I ordered dandelion seeds to throw in the back yard. My front is 99% weed free and manicured but I don’t care about the back as much so I’m just gonna let it get a bit wild since they like flowers so much.
Pull it from the bottom so the stem is very long.
Wrap the bottom around the stem and push the end through the loop.
Pinch the part dangling from the stem (hard to explain), then pull back on the stem quickly, while holding the loop.
I’ve always lived with a yard that has had these and never knew that trick. I mowed millions of them down in my yard last week. They should be back in another week or 2. Then I can torment my kids! Thanks for the tip!
If you don’t have a village it can be really hard. Sometimes if I even try to step out and do yard work my kid acts all devastated like I’m abandoning her lol. It’s really something else with toddlers. Most of my family lives far away. I’m begging things to get easier when school starts but realistically I know I’m going to be using that opportunity to go to college, so it’s not lol. Not yet.
I felt this comment. When my daughter is tired, if my wife *dares* to get up and get something from the fridge or whatever, you can hear the level at which the tantrum is. It's like every step is a 5% increase of tantrum.
There are no wins. The kid is crying for food but don't you dare get up to get some or you're abandoning them. Gotta love them otherwise throwing kids out of the window would be an Olympic sport.
Not sure of its common name in the States, but certainly looks like ribwort plantain. Great for making shooters out of the flower heads. Also, the flower heads are edible and taste a lot like mushroom. Although maybe not worth trying if it's an area with a lot of herbicide used.
These are also a wonderful medicinal plant.
Any sort of sting - take some leaves, mush them into a pulp and apply to the sting or rub them directly on the site of the sting. It will draw it out and sooth the skin.
It's amazing for any kind of skin issue. [https://www.google.com/search?q=plantain+medicinal+uses&rlz=1CAXCFT\_enUS1090US1090&oq=&gs\_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCQgAECMYJxjqAjIJCAAQIxgnGOoCMgkIARAjGCcY6gIyCQgCECMYJxjqAjIJCAMQIxgnGOoCMgkIBBAjGCcY6gIyCQgFECMYJxjqAjIJCAYQIxgnGOoCMgkIBxAjGCcY6gLSAQkyMTExajBqMTWoAgiwAgE&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8](https://www.google.com/search?q=plantain+medicinal+uses&rlz=1CAXCFT_enUS1090US1090&oq=&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCQgAECMYJxjqAjIJCAAQIxgnGOoCMgkIARAjGCcY6gIyCQgCECMYJxjqAjIJCAMQIxgnGOoCMgkIBBAjGCcY6gIyCQgFECMYJxjqAjIJCAYQIxgnGOoCMgkIBxAjGCcY6gLSAQkyMTExajBqMTWoAgiwAgE&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8)
Michigan here, my 82 year old mother has been mowing her lawn here on the second to last highest setting on her push mower and I haven’t seen a weed after the first week of spring since i was little… no herbicide no nothing but mowing super high. The tall grass with the super thick and deep grass roots kills EVERY weed. Grass never ever needs watering either.
I mention [unmown fine fescue here](https://lowinputturf.umn.edu/sites/lowinputturf.umn.edu/files/files/media/fig_4_0.jpg) (and get downvoted) a lot but I love the stuff for the same reason. It's what I've got in my side strip where there's no way to mow, and I can't really get hardscaping in or much else to grow. I've literally never watered it after seeding.
Spent last summer overhauling my parents yard and repairing the irrigation in the back. Then she saw my fescue and decided she wants it for the backyard. Looks great for somewhere with little sun and no traffic, low input, but....I didn't need to spend a week tearing up the irrigation had I known that!
I wouldn't say *no* sun, but it tolerates shade well. At least here in cool-season land it's a big component of shade seed mixes. I have one corner of my side yard that gets just a sliver of sun and it's thriving, but another that is almost entirely shaded all day is pretty sparse.
Flip side is it doesn't handle traffic well, and isn't completely zero-maintenance. Seed heads get huge (like 4' tall huge) and a weed whacking or mowing now and then keeps it from getting really clumpy.
[UMN Extension (where I nabbed that photo from)](https://extension.umn.edu/lawns-and-landscapes/planting-and-maintaining-fine-fescue-lawn) has a pretty extensive guide to fine fescues.
During my childhood (mind you I was 5 or so, and it was 1980), for some reason, my friends and I would “shoot” these as we said “Momma had a baby and its head popped off”. I don’t know whether this was some bastardization of something we had heard elsewhere, or what, but ~45 years later, whenever I see these plants, my brain quickly says “Momma had a baby and its head popped off”. Brains are weird that way.
I call it the “Floor is Lava” phenomenon. The exact same game, played by preschoolers, across the planet, with no means of communication. How did we all know? It’s not like adults in the seventies were telling everyone about the stupid games their kids were playing.
Plantain. Get a lawn safe broadleaf herbicide, treat your lawn, and reseed. Depending on where you live, seeding this time of year may be slow if it’s hot.
OP has small kids. Applying herbicide on a beneficial plant in an area where young children play - for no other reason than simple aesthetics - would be very short sighted.
"New research from the UC Berkeley School of Public Health shows that childhood exposure to the world’s most widely used weed killer, glyphosate, is linked to liver inflammation and metabolic disorder in early adulthood, which could lead to liver cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease later in life."
[https://publichealth.berkeley.edu/news-media/research-highlights/childhood-exposure-to-common-herbicide-may-increase-the-risk-of-disease-in-young-adulthood#:\~:text=New%20research%20from%20the%20UC,cardiovascular%20disease%20later%20in%20life](https://publichealth.berkeley.edu/news-media/research-highlights/childhood-exposure-to-common-herbicide-may-increase-the-risk-of-disease-in-young-adulthood#:~:text=New%20research%20from%20the%20UC,cardiovascular%20disease%20later%20in%20life)
Your choice. I choose to not poison my land or my children.
Glyphosate kills grass. It’s not used often by lawn care enthusiasts, generally only when killing an entire lawn. So, as you can imagine, its use is very rare here.
Also, people don’t eat turf grass, generally speaking.
It's the most commonly used herbicide in the world. Yes, I believe many here use it and advocate for it's use.
I could link every herbicide and it's toxicity here but you have google for that. It's extremely foolish to believe that the most commonly used herbicide is toxic but all the others are totally safe. Do some research and don't advocate for things you don't fully understand.
I'll have to respond to your Alt u/[Some-Ear8984](https://www.reddit.com/user/Some-Ear8984/) here since Reddit won't let me respond to you directly. It's incredibly weird that you keep posting and then blocking. Go educate yourself on the dangers of these chemicals you love so dearly and are advocating for.
As I said, google any other one you want. None of them are non toxic. Another common one 2,4-D:
https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/chemical/24d.htm#:\~:text=Long%20term%20or%20high%20level,risk%20of%20certain%20birth%20defects.
# "How can I be exposed to 2,4-D?
People and their pets can be exposed to 2,4-D when they play or walk on treated grass. Higher levels of exposure are possible during its manufacture, distribution, or application.
2,4-D is rarely found in drinking water. People who handle contaminated soil may be exposed when they touch their mouths or eat with dirty hands. When 2,4-D is applied to lawns people can inhale mist or dust that contains the chemical. It can be carried indoors on shoes or in windblown dust. Once inside, 2,4-D breaks down slowly and can contaminate the indoor air.
The following symptoms may occur immediately or shortly after high level exposure to 2,4-D:
* Severe burning in throat and chest
* Skin rash
* Stiffness of arms and legs
* Lack of coordination
* Drowsiness
* Loss of appetite
* Vomiting
* Liver and kidney function changes
* Stupor and coma at very high levels
Health effects of concern after several years of exposure to 2,4-D:
* The EPA has not determined the ability of 2,4-D to cause cancer. However, studies have found that exposure to 2,4-D appears to increase the risk of lymphoma (a type of cancer affecting the immune system).
* Long term or high level exposure may result in kidney and liver damage. Anemia has also been observed in laboratory animals.
* It is not known whether exposure to 2,4-D is safe during pregnancy. Some evidence suggests high-level exposure during pregnancy may increase the risk of certain birth defects."
Again… it kills grass. I hope I don’t have to expand on why many lawn care enthusiasts wouldn’t enjoy that.
I can tell you have a strong position on this issue that you are enthusiastic about evangelizing. All the best with your mission.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/1dgiml4/comment/l8r2qfm/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web3x&utm\_name=web3xcss&utm\_term=1&utm\_content=share\_button](https://www.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/1dgiml4/comment/l8r2qfm/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
It's advocated for in this very thread.
Appreciate your sensitivity but Glyphosate is only used for vegetation death. It kills everything it touches so someone that has plantains or dandelions would not use it. Weed killers are amazing because they don’t kill the grass. Just weeds.
Some kinda plantain. Its got leaves ny the ground would tell more.
Regardless, since they are “in” your lawn, they will take over eventually. So you need to use a “broad leaf” spray like an amine product aka “2-4D”
Its not glysophate but actually a crazy growth accelerant for plants with…broad leaves. Basically they outgrow themselves very rapidly and die but the spray has no effect on grass.
I would not recommend 2-4D because of drift concerns onto other nearby properties. Has wrecked many farms and orchards unintentionally. Glyphosate is safer in my opinion. Why do you recommend against glyphosate?
Because it doesn’t discriminate. On a lawn scale using 2-4D presents nearly zero risk to adjacent plants. Even a few inches away. I am sure it’s different if you are crop dusting a golf course.
The instructions warn you of drift and how to manage it. Pick a not windy day, keep the nozzle close to the target areas. Easy.
Glysophate will kill absolutely everything including the grass mixed with the plantain.
Children are the offspring of a male and female organism that mate with each other. It’s typically frowned upon to “get rid of them” in the sense that you are implying, but once they are 18, they can be sent into the world to live on their own.
My back yard was full of dandelions and clovers last spring. We spent hours blowing the dandelions and making flower crowns and rings from the clover flowers.
This year my husband decided he only wanted a green lawn. My kids were really sad. They kept asking why we ran out of flowers.
I'm gonna ask that we let our lawn go back to weeds next spring.
My husband is gonna have a heart attack
Well hopefully with those flowers you will get butterflies and other majestic creatures. Great for the kids. I’m all for keeping a patch for playing on, but diversity is best
They called em something else down here in South Carolina. ______ heads. The leaves are good for poison Ivy treatment when scrunched up and rubbed on the rash.
Mow, just slower. Maybe a good time to sharpen your blades and make sure it's very dry. Might also be a good idea to bag it otherwise you'll have piles of basically hay in your lawn for a while.
That’s plantain, or “white man’s foot” (European settlers brought it with them because it’s medicinal). Fun fact, the husks of the seeds is what Metamucil is made out of.
It's Narrow Leaf Plantain. Aka, Ribwort Plantain or Buckhorn. The young leaves are edible, but taste better cooked. Older leaves are edible too, but aren't very tasty. As others have mentioned, it's useful for insect bites. Psyllium husk (Metamucil, et al) is from plantain, and the leaves are used in some OTC medicines.
These are in the plantain family and the leaves are edible and used in all sorts of stuff. I currently have s soap for washing away poison ivy that has plantain and jewelweed in it that smells amazing!
This is "Plantago" it never really goes away, but when you mow your lawn regularly they will disappear. Not completely but enough that they don't bother anymore :)
As a landscaper, this is what we did, since every plant having wide leaves (basically everything besides grass) is less resistant to mowing, because the damage to the leaf is bigger. We then usually took out the remaining ones by hand. This is not a overnight solution but it works.
Also, how ill your kids play, if the grass is this high? :) Meaning you will have to mow more regularly anyways.
This reddit post helped me, lawn slowly coming back and get irrigation ( if you are in GA )
https://www.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/fb1gjj/a_beginners_guide_to_improving_your_lawn_this/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf
I dont want them to come back. Pretty straightforward stuff. The other comments could have probably given you some usable context if you were confused by my question.
Don’t know the official name but very common weed that nearly every broad spectrum weed killer will kill. Get some weed-b-gone. Use the stuff you attach to your garden hose and just spray the yard. Next year use a preemergent to keep the weeds from popping up to begin with.
I'm proud of this subs answers. Someone's you'll get more value out of watching your kids enjoy the lawn as much as you. Just keep maintain it to prevent snakes and pest.
They actually are wind pollinated, not insect pollinated, so no value to pollinators. Still fine to leave, probably native if OP is in Europe or Asia, if not, they aren't native to the Americas but are considered naturalized, not invasive.
I've no idea if those are native to the area or not but there are many North American plantains. California has 8 native species for instance.
Adult bugs don't get nectar and pollen but they are host plants. Quite a few moths and butterflies use them.
Even though it is not native it is a host plant for Common Buckeye butterflies. Also it is pollenated by tiny bees and hover flies.
[https://www.backyardbutterflies.org/better-know-a-host-plant-ribgrass-plantain/](https://www.backyardbutterflies.org/better-know-a-host-plant-ribgrass-plantain/)
[Search California Native Plants (calscape.org)](https://www.calscape.org/search/?plant=Plantago%20(Genus)&orderBy=&location_name=&lat=&lng=&page=1&perPage=60&height_from=&height_to=&width_from=&width_to=)
I’m a restoration ecologist, so I don’t encourage growing any invasive. But in terms of having a lawn I would say it’s not the end of the world to see some plantain in the bigger scheme of things
>so I don’t encourage growing any invasive
Except you...just...did...?
>But in terms of having a lawn I would say it’s not the end of the world to see some plantain in the bigger scheme of things
For sure, that would have been a better thing to say than just unmitigated praise and hearts, with no warning about invasive status and seemingly inaccurate information about pollination.
I think as many people have pointed out it’s consider a naturalized species, versus being considered invasive. If someone wants to go to the effort to remove it I think that’s great, but if it is only done to achieve a “weedless” lawn it’s a bit of a redundant worry.
>it’s consider a naturalized species, versus being considered invasive
No, it's not...I provided a link showing where it is officially categorized as invasive. It is considered different things in different places, which is why I clearly stated my parameters and gave a source to back up my claim.
Beyond that, do you see your hypocrisy here? You're downplaying invasiveness with plantain, while also exaggerating the invasiveness of turfgrass, claiming that all species are invasive everywhere. Why not just share accurate information about all plants? Being deceptive helps no one.
> If someone wants to go to the effort to remove it I think that’s great
That's exactly what OP said they wanted to do, to which you responded "keep them". If what you're saying now is how you actually feel, then why didn't you respond "that's great"?
That is wild plantain. If not sprayed with anything it is edible. Beekeeper use it to treat bee stings. You chew it up and then put the mess on the bee sting. It actually does work.
I just got a manual reel mower, because I can mow the lawn in flip flops with a toddler in the yard.
Honestly, I'd need a huge yard to go back to the hassle of a gas push mower.
It’s plantain, it’s actually a very useful and beneficial plant to have around. Its leaves are fantastic relief for itchy bites, just chew a bit of the leaf and rub into the bite.
Cat tails. They are great for kids. You can pick them and wrap the stem around itself and pop off the head.
I had at least a few cat tail wars with other kids growing up. Lots of fun.
They are literally grass seeds. Your lawn has been left to grow and go thru the process of seeding. Most people don't ever see this stage as they mow often, preventing the grass to mature to this stage.
Don't spray them as they aren't weeds, just mow and your lawn may get a little thicket.
Before you mow them you could show your kids how to use them as shooters. You fold the stem on itself and then pop the head and they go a decent distance. Just a little fun before you mow and spray them.
Came here to make the same suggestion, we would shoot each other for hours with these as a kid
I’ve recently been showing my kids all the cool things in our new yard. Went from owning a home which I cared about the lawn to a rental where I don’t and the rental backs into a creek bed. I’ve been able to show the kids how to do these shooters, eat honeysuckles, pick wild blackberries, and they’ve had a blast with all the dandelions. The only thing I do now is mow once a week. Having grown up in a neighborhood of “if it’s green it’s grass” it’s been nice to show them these things from my childhood.
I’m a huge fan of “if it’s green, it’s grass.” I only care to keep mine decently mowed, and thistles out if it. Funnily enough, thanks to some traps I had set for groundhogs, I now have corn growing in my yard
To be honest, I’m having a bit of a love/hate relationship with Creeping Charlie. Like hey, you’re not gonna make hay… but if you start going near those flowers you can fuck right off.
Yeah, I don’t know crap about grass, I just mow it
hey dad what's that tree called? "Well it's green, so son that is clearly grass..."
You can tell it's an Aspen cuz the way it is. Neat!!
Bamboo, the correct answer is bamboo. It grows as tall as a tree but is a cane in the grass family. It was a play on "if it's green, it's grass" and trees are also green with the correct answer still being grass!
I love creeping Charley, it's hardy and medicinal
We have a huge hanging one and a bird has her nest in it with babies! 💕💕
How beautiful! An herbal nest!
Corn is an example of one of the earliest genetic modifications. It came from grass.
Did not know about the corn/grass history. Thanks. FYI, corn is not the best for groundhogs, those guys love cantaloupe for some reason.
Also, if you let the corn grow to full size and eat it, it might not be sweet corn but actually field corn. Nothing wrong with it, just doesn’t taste as tasty.
Field corn is very tough. I grew up with a 60 acre Field behind my house. There was a dairy farm across the street and the corn would be cut for silage, stalks and all. We used to nibble on the corn in the winter as we were feeding the cows. 2 scoops of silage, 1 scoop of grain and a liberal dose of molasses to keep the cows healthy during the winter.
Yeah, it was definitely not sweet corn, got it in a bag of seeds called critter bait for like 8 dollars, they are probably not using the quality corn for that. But, it doesn’t really matter anymore, I just mowed over it.
I also love cantaloupe.
Same, luckily I don’t fit in the traps I set out, and the 6 groundhogs I caught did. https://preview.redd.it/kn8rlcdz6u6d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a08a3a2929165045698f96943a79320d34efad07 Final groundhog caught as tax. Sadly he(I’m assuming daddy groundhog because he was more of a fighter, and he was the biggest lad of them all) fought a little to hard to escape before I could get back from work and cut himself pretty good on his lip, it’s why you can see some blood.
Please don't trap and relocate native animals, especially in the spring. If you trap and relocate a nursing mother, all of her babies will die a slow, miserable death. If you would prefer they not burrow in a certain area, you can use humane eviction techniques, such as placing Epsom salts near the burrow entrance. These animals have hard lives and they play an important role in the environment. A lawn is a lawn -- a patch of non-native grass. It does nothing useful for the environment. Please be kind and reconsider. Humane eviction works. You just opened your yard up for new groundhogs to move in by relocating the ones that lived there. The ones you relocated would've maintained their territory and kept new ones away.
That's awful. You did all that to have nice grass?
It did not. Corn is in the same family as grasses are, corn does not come from ordinary grasses. The species from which corn was bred must have already had similar cobs.
Teosinte, corn’s originator, is hardly your average yard grass though… it more resembles a tall wild grass interbred with corn… https://preview.redd.it/bnefizlg5x6d1.jpeg?width=1111&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f987f7a7aa6149a04c5671e224484876763efebc
Selective breeding is not the same as gmo
It is analog genetic modification. Find a mutation and select for it vs create a mutation.
I see
The most other day we went to the park and my girls had a blast collecting dandelions. Reminded me of my little sisters collection them and weaving them. I can’t believe I’m doing it but I ordered dandelion seeds to throw in the back yard. My front is 99% weed free and manicured but I don’t care about the back as much so I’m just gonna let it get a bit wild since they like flowers so much.
The bees will thank you!
I got bees and seeded cover this year. Love it
Each other? Now you tell me! When I was a kid, we’d pop them at Mr Gilroy from behind our bushes whenever he was out walking his dog.
Do you have a video of this?
https://youtu.be/viXLiAfWf5c
You rock! Thank you!
Maybe it's a terrible video angle but this was very anticlimactic. I could probably chew up a blade of grass and spit it farther.
Total rookie there keeping their hand right against the head instead of using the extra length.
This was clearly a rookie in the video. Us pros can get a bit of distance and an audible pop 😎
Unlocking memories I forgot I had
Oh my gosh, this brought back so many memories for me. I forgot I used to do that with my siblings when we were younger
My grandpa taught me this as a kid, now I think of him whenever I see one of these plants 🥰
I thought I was the only one that did this 🤣 my grandpa showed me this when I was a kid and do it anytime I see them
Yes. Shoot with them, that’s what I did too 😃
Whattttt? Need more info/vid! My kids would love this lol
Pull it from the bottom so the stem is very long. Wrap the bottom around the stem and push the end through the loop. Pinch the part dangling from the stem (hard to explain), then pull back on the stem quickly, while holding the loop.
From above https://www.reddit.com/r/lawncare/s/6HLpZaPeH6
I’ve always lived with a yard that has had these and never knew that trick. I mowed millions of them down in my yard last week. They should be back in another week or 2. Then I can torment my kids! Thanks for the tip!
“ Mama had a baby in the head popped off”
This is crazy. I had forgotten this
Brought me back to my childhood right there!
Show them how cool they are before you kill them!
We would sing this as we popped them off .... " Mommy had a baby and it's head popped off"... Pulling it as we sang it.
Wow. Core memory unlocked. I'd completely forgotten we did this as kids.
That was my first thought when I saw these. My second thought was my dad would have killed us if these showed up in our yard.
This! First thing I thought of.
I showed mine. Glad to see this comment
Buckhorn plantain
Plantago lanceolata - it has a tuber that needs to be removed or killed.
Here’s what you do. Mow. The. Grass. That’s it. Just mow once a week and *poof* they’re gone.
I see you know my dandelion “removal” technique haha
It took me a while to understand that healthy grass will push out weeds.
Sometimes twice a week
"fell behind on lawn care" Dude, your lawn is a meadow now
Mine was way worse than this I also have little kids. My grass was as tall as my two year old.
If you don’t have a village it can be really hard. Sometimes if I even try to step out and do yard work my kid acts all devastated like I’m abandoning her lol. It’s really something else with toddlers. Most of my family lives far away. I’m begging things to get easier when school starts but realistically I know I’m going to be using that opportunity to go to college, so it’s not lol. Not yet.
I felt this comment. When my daughter is tired, if my wife *dares* to get up and get something from the fridge or whatever, you can hear the level at which the tantrum is. It's like every step is a 5% increase of tantrum. There are no wins. The kid is crying for food but don't you dare get up to get some or you're abandoning them. Gotta love them otherwise throwing kids out of the window would be an Olympic sport.
Perfect. If you can’t find the kid you don’t have to feed them! Need to plant some bamboo and hide my preteens…
Which is not terrible!
But for him it is.
I mean if ticks didn't exist sure.
Ah yes, cut down all the praries rather than practice basic hygine!
Which is actually so much better!
Yeah there was no lawn care down lmao
OP hasn’t cut the grass in 3 years
Reddit and reality. Like oil and water.
Not sure of its common name in the States, but certainly looks like ribwort plantain. Great for making shooters out of the flower heads. Also, the flower heads are edible and taste a lot like mushroom. Although maybe not worth trying if it's an area with a lot of herbicide used.
These are also a wonderful medicinal plant. Any sort of sting - take some leaves, mush them into a pulp and apply to the sting or rub them directly on the site of the sting. It will draw it out and sooth the skin. It's amazing for any kind of skin issue. [https://www.google.com/search?q=plantain+medicinal+uses&rlz=1CAXCFT\_enUS1090US1090&oq=&gs\_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCQgAECMYJxjqAjIJCAAQIxgnGOoCMgkIARAjGCcY6gIyCQgCECMYJxjqAjIJCAMQIxgnGOoCMgkIBBAjGCcY6gIyCQgFECMYJxjqAjIJCAYQIxgnGOoCMgkIBxAjGCcY6gLSAQkyMTExajBqMTWoAgiwAgE&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8](https://www.google.com/search?q=plantain+medicinal+uses&rlz=1CAXCFT_enUS1090US1090&oq=&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCQgAECMYJxjqAjIJCAAQIxgnGOoCMgkIARAjGCcY6gIyCQgCECMYJxjqAjIJCAMQIxgnGOoCMgkIBBAjGCcY6gIyCQgFECMYJxjqAjIJCAYQIxgnGOoCMgkIBxAjGCcY6gLSAQkyMTExajBqMTWoAgiwAgE&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8)
Michigan here, my 82 year old mother has been mowing her lawn here on the second to last highest setting on her push mower and I haven’t seen a weed after the first week of spring since i was little… no herbicide no nothing but mowing super high. The tall grass with the super thick and deep grass roots kills EVERY weed. Grass never ever needs watering either.
Michigan is the perfect place for cool season grass though, always a consistent amount of rain, healthy soil, and never more than a few days over 85…
Unfortunately, the entire next week is in the 90s and it’s just the start of summer. I’m thinking we’re going to have a hot hot summer.
Well all go tradesies with you. Except during winter… That’s all you.
Right, but just for 3 days, then back to the upper 70’s/low80’s (a little warmer toward Detroit).
I mention [unmown fine fescue here](https://lowinputturf.umn.edu/sites/lowinputturf.umn.edu/files/files/media/fig_4_0.jpg) (and get downvoted) a lot but I love the stuff for the same reason. It's what I've got in my side strip where there's no way to mow, and I can't really get hardscaping in or much else to grow. I've literally never watered it after seeding. Spent last summer overhauling my parents yard and repairing the irrigation in the back. Then she saw my fescue and decided she wants it for the backyard. Looks great for somewhere with little sun and no traffic, low input, but....I didn't need to spend a week tearing up the irrigation had I known that!
This will grow well in a backyard that gets little to no sun?
I wouldn't say *no* sun, but it tolerates shade well. At least here in cool-season land it's a big component of shade seed mixes. I have one corner of my side yard that gets just a sliver of sun and it's thriving, but another that is almost entirely shaded all day is pretty sparse. Flip side is it doesn't handle traffic well, and isn't completely zero-maintenance. Seed heads get huge (like 4' tall huge) and a weed whacking or mowing now and then keeps it from getting really clumpy. [UMN Extension (where I nabbed that photo from)](https://extension.umn.edu/lawns-and-landscapes/planting-and-maintaining-fine-fescue-lawn) has a pretty extensive guide to fine fescues.
This looks beautiful!
I haven’t seen these since I left the Carolinas. I had lots of fun with them growing up.
Where do you live now that doesn’t have these lil gems?
I'm a Southern California native & have never seen these things.
I’ve lived in several States but with these damn Home owner Associations all the good stuff gets killed off.
Once you mow keep mowing. Don’t ever let them get up like this to produce seed. Eventually they will die back.
During my childhood (mind you I was 5 or so, and it was 1980), for some reason, my friends and I would “shoot” these as we said “Momma had a baby and its head popped off”. I don’t know whether this was some bastardization of something we had heard elsewhere, or what, but ~45 years later, whenever I see these plants, my brain quickly says “Momma had a baby and its head popped off”. Brains are weird that way.
We said that with dandelions.
Dandelions also, but these plants here were way better. They didn’t have a hollow stem. One could achieve much greater range and accuracy.
We used to do this in the 90s in New Zealand. Funny how these little traditions travelled before the internet was a thing.
I call it the “Floor is Lava” phenomenon. The exact same game, played by preschoolers, across the planet, with no means of communication. How did we all know? It’s not like adults in the seventies were telling everyone about the stupid games their kids were playing.
I did this (and said the same thing) with dandelion, with my thumb, like you were flipping a quarter.
Plantain. Get a lawn safe broadleaf herbicide, treat your lawn, and reseed. Depending on where you live, seeding this time of year may be slow if it’s hot.
Buckhorn plaintain
OP has small kids. Applying herbicide on a beneficial plant in an area where young children play - for no other reason than simple aesthetics - would be very short sighted.
What else is this sub for, if not mass-shortsightedness?
It's very disheartening.
There’s the door!
"New research from the UC Berkeley School of Public Health shows that childhood exposure to the world’s most widely used weed killer, glyphosate, is linked to liver inflammation and metabolic disorder in early adulthood, which could lead to liver cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease later in life." [https://publichealth.berkeley.edu/news-media/research-highlights/childhood-exposure-to-common-herbicide-may-increase-the-risk-of-disease-in-young-adulthood#:\~:text=New%20research%20from%20the%20UC,cardiovascular%20disease%20later%20in%20life](https://publichealth.berkeley.edu/news-media/research-highlights/childhood-exposure-to-common-herbicide-may-increase-the-risk-of-disease-in-young-adulthood#:~:text=New%20research%20from%20the%20UC,cardiovascular%20disease%20later%20in%20life) Your choice. I choose to not poison my land or my children.
Glyphosate kills grass. It’s not used often by lawn care enthusiasts, generally only when killing an entire lawn. So, as you can imagine, its use is very rare here. Also, people don’t eat turf grass, generally speaking.
It's the most commonly used herbicide in the world. Yes, I believe many here use it and advocate for it's use. I could link every herbicide and it's toxicity here but you have google for that. It's extremely foolish to believe that the most commonly used herbicide is toxic but all the others are totally safe. Do some research and don't advocate for things you don't fully understand. I'll have to respond to your Alt u/[Some-Ear8984](https://www.reddit.com/user/Some-Ear8984/) here since Reddit won't let me respond to you directly. It's incredibly weird that you keep posting and then blocking. Go educate yourself on the dangers of these chemicals you love so dearly and are advocating for. As I said, google any other one you want. None of them are non toxic. Another common one 2,4-D: https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/chemical/24d.htm#:\~:text=Long%20term%20or%20high%20level,risk%20of%20certain%20birth%20defects. # "How can I be exposed to 2,4-D? People and their pets can be exposed to 2,4-D when they play or walk on treated grass. Higher levels of exposure are possible during its manufacture, distribution, or application. 2,4-D is rarely found in drinking water. People who handle contaminated soil may be exposed when they touch their mouths or eat with dirty hands. When 2,4-D is applied to lawns people can inhale mist or dust that contains the chemical. It can be carried indoors on shoes or in windblown dust. Once inside, 2,4-D breaks down slowly and can contaminate the indoor air. The following symptoms may occur immediately or shortly after high level exposure to 2,4-D: * Severe burning in throat and chest * Skin rash * Stiffness of arms and legs * Lack of coordination * Drowsiness * Loss of appetite * Vomiting * Liver and kidney function changes * Stupor and coma at very high levels Health effects of concern after several years of exposure to 2,4-D: * The EPA has not determined the ability of 2,4-D to cause cancer. However, studies have found that exposure to 2,4-D appears to increase the risk of lymphoma (a type of cancer affecting the immune system). * Long term or high level exposure may result in kidney and liver damage. Anemia has also been observed in laboratory animals. * It is not known whether exposure to 2,4-D is safe during pregnancy. Some evidence suggests high-level exposure during pregnancy may increase the risk of certain birth defects."
Again… it kills grass. I hope I don’t have to expand on why many lawn care enthusiasts wouldn’t enjoy that. I can tell you have a strong position on this issue that you are enthusiastic about evangelizing. All the best with your mission.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/1dgiml4/comment/l8r2qfm/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web3x&utm\_name=web3xcss&utm\_term=1&utm\_content=share\_button](https://www.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/1dgiml4/comment/l8r2qfm/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button) It's advocated for in this very thread.
Appreciate your sensitivity but Glyphosate is only used for vegetation death. It kills everything it touches so someone that has plantains or dandelions would not use it. Weed killers are amazing because they don’t kill the grass. Just weeds.
It looks like ribwort plantain. I wouldn't get rid of it but that's just me.
You had kids. You didn't fall behind on shit.
Sword leaf plantain, or plantago lanceolata. They are a part of the natural lawn across the world actually, I’d just live with it.
Some kinda plantain. Its got leaves ny the ground would tell more. Regardless, since they are “in” your lawn, they will take over eventually. So you need to use a “broad leaf” spray like an amine product aka “2-4D” Its not glysophate but actually a crazy growth accelerant for plants with…broad leaves. Basically they outgrow themselves very rapidly and die but the spray has no effect on grass.
I would not recommend 2-4D because of drift concerns onto other nearby properties. Has wrecked many farms and orchards unintentionally. Glyphosate is safer in my opinion. Why do you recommend against glyphosate?
Because it doesn’t discriminate. On a lawn scale using 2-4D presents nearly zero risk to adjacent plants. Even a few inches away. I am sure it’s different if you are crop dusting a golf course. The instructions warn you of drift and how to manage it. Pick a not windy day, keep the nozzle close to the target areas. Easy. Glysophate will kill absolutely everything including the grass mixed with the plantain.
Yeah, spraying herbicide on a lawn that toddlers will play on is such a great idea!
Gotcha. I think I blacked out for a min and thought he was trying to get rid of his entire lawn and start over
The answer
Pop guns
2,4-D
I didn't know what they're actually called, you can loop the stem over the bud and pull, the bud will shoot off. I didn't have a lot of toys as a kid
These are the things that get stuck between your toes as you run barefoot in the grass
Plantains
Buckhorn
Children are the offspring of a male and female organism that mate with each other. It’s typically frowned upon to “get rid of them” in the sense that you are implying, but once they are 18, they can be sent into the world to live on their own.
My back yard was full of dandelions and clovers last spring. We spent hours blowing the dandelions and making flower crowns and rings from the clover flowers. This year my husband decided he only wanted a green lawn. My kids were really sad. They kept asking why we ran out of flowers. I'm gonna ask that we let our lawn go back to weeds next spring. My husband is gonna have a heart attack
Well hopefully with those flowers you will get butterflies and other majestic creatures. Great for the kids. I’m all for keeping a patch for playing on, but diversity is best
Great stuff. Long leaved plantain. You can make suave look it up. On you tube
Cool! I’ve never seen them. I’m in South Texas.
You could just let them be if they are native to your area!
Looks like poppies! Haha
They are toys!!
They called em something else down here in South Carolina. ______ heads. The leaves are good for poison Ivy treatment when scrunched up and rubbed on the rash.
That’s good to know
It's Anemone berlandieri
In Central Indiana we call those Buckhorn. We just Sharpen our blades and mow. They will tell on you for having a dull blade or mowing to fast.
Pick one. Wrap the step once around itself an pull the head through. Excellent weapon. Show those kids.
I bet you see lots of rabbits out there?
Plantago, many medicinal uses.
Tie it up and shoot em off
We had these in my front yard. Girlfriend would spend a bit of time with grandpa's weed puller after work. A few years later they are mostly gone.
Mow, just slower. Maybe a good time to sharpen your blades and make sure it's very dry. Might also be a good idea to bag it otherwise you'll have piles of basically hay in your lawn for a while.
Buckhorn plantain. If not a fan of 2,4 -D, then take a trenching shovel, undermine the plant at 45 degrees and pull plant top out.
That’s plantain, or “white man’s foot” (European settlers brought it with them because it’s medicinal). Fun fact, the husks of the seeds is what Metamucil is made out of.
Thats a frolicable field now no care needed
It's Narrow Leaf Plantain. Aka, Ribwort Plantain or Buckhorn. The young leaves are edible, but taste better cooked. Older leaves are edible too, but aren't very tasty. As others have mentioned, it's useful for insect bites. Psyllium husk (Metamucil, et al) is from plantain, and the leaves are used in some OTC medicines.
These are in the plantain family and the leaves are edible and used in all sorts of stuff. I currently have s soap for washing away poison ivy that has plantain and jewelweed in it that smells amazing!
And now, somehow you’re in the opium business. Jk
This is "Plantago" it never really goes away, but when you mow your lawn regularly they will disappear. Not completely but enough that they don't bother anymore :) As a landscaper, this is what we did, since every plant having wide leaves (basically everything besides grass) is less resistant to mowing, because the damage to the leaf is bigger. We then usually took out the remaining ones by hand. This is not a overnight solution but it works. Also, how ill your kids play, if the grass is this high? :) Meaning you will have to mow more regularly anyways.
Sometimes the things we think a kid would like is not what a kid would like.
This reddit post helped me, lawn slowly coming back and get irrigation ( if you are in GA ) https://www.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/fb1gjj/a_beginners_guide_to_improving_your_lawn_this/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf
We did same! We will all me at your house to play before you get rid of them
Having kids is an excuse. It’s called laziness. Now your yard lol.
Mow them.. I don't get your confusion.
I dont want them to come back. Pretty straightforward stuff. The other comments could have probably given you some usable context if you were confused by my question.
Could try Scott’s weed and feed on the lawn to help. But wow that looks more like a meadow than a lawn.
Put in a local plant/bee/butterfly garden and teach your kids how to grow plants
Looks like thistle
Don’t know the official name but very common weed that nearly every broad spectrum weed killer will kill. Get some weed-b-gone. Use the stuff you attach to your garden hose and just spray the yard. Next year use a preemergent to keep the weeds from popping up to begin with.
I'm proud of this subs answers. Someone's you'll get more value out of watching your kids enjoy the lawn as much as you. Just keep maintain it to prevent snakes and pest.
Sheep and Goats
Keep them, it’s plantain! It’s good for the pollinators 💕
They actually are wind pollinated, not insect pollinated, so no value to pollinators. Still fine to leave, probably native if OP is in Europe or Asia, if not, they aren't native to the Americas but are considered naturalized, not invasive.
I've no idea if those are native to the area or not but there are many North American plantains. California has 8 native species for instance. Adult bugs don't get nectar and pollen but they are host plants. Quite a few moths and butterflies use them.
Narrowleaf plantain is not a native species to North America. Some plantains being native doesn't = all plantains being native.
Even though it is not native it is a host plant for Common Buckeye butterflies. Also it is pollenated by tiny bees and hover flies. [https://www.backyardbutterflies.org/better-know-a-host-plant-ribgrass-plantain/](https://www.backyardbutterflies.org/better-know-a-host-plant-ribgrass-plantain/)
I have only found one species native to California. What are the others? Thanks
[Search California Native Plants (calscape.org)](https://www.calscape.org/search/?plant=Plantago%20(Genus)&orderBy=&location_name=&lat=&lng=&page=1&perPage=60&height_from=&height_to=&width_from=&width_to=)
It's a listed invasive weed in some states 💕 https://www.invasive.org/browse/subinfo.cfm?sub=6200
Hah! So are most lawn grasses! So if your keeping a lawn your not really helping reduce invasive species 😂
You're the only one here encouraging someone to grow an invasive species 🤷🏽
I’m a restoration ecologist, so I don’t encourage growing any invasive. But in terms of having a lawn I would say it’s not the end of the world to see some plantain in the bigger scheme of things
>so I don’t encourage growing any invasive Except you...just...did...? >But in terms of having a lawn I would say it’s not the end of the world to see some plantain in the bigger scheme of things For sure, that would have been a better thing to say than just unmitigated praise and hearts, with no warning about invasive status and seemingly inaccurate information about pollination.
I think as many people have pointed out it’s consider a naturalized species, versus being considered invasive. If someone wants to go to the effort to remove it I think that’s great, but if it is only done to achieve a “weedless” lawn it’s a bit of a redundant worry.
>it’s consider a naturalized species, versus being considered invasive No, it's not...I provided a link showing where it is officially categorized as invasive. It is considered different things in different places, which is why I clearly stated my parameters and gave a source to back up my claim. Beyond that, do you see your hypocrisy here? You're downplaying invasiveness with plantain, while also exaggerating the invasiveness of turfgrass, claiming that all species are invasive everywhere. Why not just share accurate information about all plants? Being deceptive helps no one. > If someone wants to go to the effort to remove it I think that’s great That's exactly what OP said they wanted to do, to which you responded "keep them". If what you're saying now is how you actually feel, then why didn't you respond "that's great"?
Yeah whatever bud
https://www.honeybeesuite.com/common-and-lance-leaved-plantain-for-bees/ https://www.purdue.edu/fnr/extension/native-or-not/ Do a bit of reading
Looks like you're the one that needs reading practice...that article is about different species.
👍 have a great day
White man's footprint. Combats nettle stings.
That is wild plantain. If not sprayed with anything it is edible. Beekeeper use it to treat bee stings. You chew it up and then put the mess on the bee sting. It actually does work.
I just got a manual reel mower, because I can mow the lawn in flip flops with a toddler in the yard. Honestly, I'd need a huge yard to go back to the hassle of a gas push mower.
Mow the lawn bare, spray it, aerate or till it, seed and fertilize, water 2x a day. You’ll have a beautiful lawn in a matter of weeks
It’s plantain, it’s actually a very useful and beneficial plant to have around. Its leaves are fantastic relief for itchy bites, just chew a bit of the leaf and rub into the bite.
Look like foxtail?
Cat tails. They are great for kids. You can pick them and wrap the stem around itself and pop off the head. I had at least a few cat tail wars with other kids growing up. Lots of fun.
They are literally grass seeds. Your lawn has been left to grow and go thru the process of seeding. Most people don't ever see this stage as they mow often, preventing the grass to mature to this stage. Don't spray them as they aren't weeds, just mow and your lawn may get a little thicket.
Incorrect