- Curb the spread of dead nettle
- Manual work is required to combat dead nettles
- Use biological weed killers
- How to prevent
- tips and tricks
Deadnettles, especially the red deadnettle, tend to spread unchecked in the garden. So unless you want to keep deadnettles all over the place, you need to keep the ornamental plant from multiplying too much. That's easier said than done. Tips for fighting dead nettles.
Dead nettles spread very quickly
Curb the spread of dead nettle
To put the dead nettle in its place in the garden, you first need to know how dead nettles breed.
Propagation is via seeds and underground runners.
Ants do their part to ensure that the partial fruits reach all corners of the garden. If you have a lot of ants in the garden, there is not much you can do but fight them as well.
Manual work is required to combat dead nettles
- Pull out deadnettles before flowering
- loosen soil
- Work the soil with a rake
- Remove even the smallest root particles
Deadnettles that grow in unwanted places should be pulled out before they start flowering. Once seeds have formed, there is little you can do to stop the dead nettle from spreading.
Before planting beds where deadnettles have stood, loosen the soil. Go through it with a rake, which you can use to pull out the underground runners.
Make sure that the roots break as little as possible when fighting. All subterranean parts can easily sprout again.
Use biological weed killers
If you can't get the plague under control at all, your only option is to use biological weed killers, such as those offered by the Neudorff company.
How to prevent
Deadnettles should not be missing in natural gardens. They thrive in shady places and are therefore unbeatable as ground cover under shrubs and trees.
If you plant dead nettles, create a root barrier beforehand, which should be at least 20 centimeters deep in the ground.
Disrupt ant trails and immediately pull out any deadnettles outside of the desired location.
tips and tricks
Dead nettles are particularly attractive to bumblebees, which belong to the bee family. Unlike honey bees, bumblebees can penetrate flowers with their long proboscis. Dead nettles are therefore also called "bee's suction".