During March one of the first lawn weeds that become noticeable is the Celandine (Ranunculus ficaria).
When carrying out the first mowing’s of the season you might be aware that these little invaders have suddenly appeared from nowhere, with their shiny Yellow Buttercup flower and glossy green leaves.
Celandine are a bit different from most lawn weeds because they are a little spring bulb with root tubers which make them difficult, or impossible to control with selective lawn herbicide. This is something that we should not worry about too much because due to the bulbous nature of the plant it only appears and flowers briefly before dying back and becoming inconspicuous by the end of April.
Most lawns are not any worse for wear from a spring flush of Celandine and we don’t recommend chemical control which is likely to be ineffective. Any of these little invaders that have crept into flowerbeds can be dug out as soon as they appear which will help to control further invasion in the future.
To summarise our advice on how to control Celandines in your lawn, simply mow regularly from early spring onwards and they will soon disappear until the same time next year.
