Various plants belonging to very distinct families are called Purslane. This vernacular name therefore designates, among other things, this famous purslane (Purslane oleracea) with yellow flowers and small fleshy leaves that give it a succulent plant appearance. However, this is not the case. Widely used in herbal medicine for its many benefits, garden Purslane is also widely used in the cretan diet. But he is so invasive that gardeners regard it as a weed. Let’s see what are the best solutions to eliminate it.
Where does Purslane or Porcelane grow?
This Purslane is a annual plant of the family of Portulacaceae very frequently encountered in the gardens of all of our regions, but much more common still in the temperate and warm regions of the planet, so obviously in the south of France. This herbaceous plant has an annoying habit of growing without limit on very trampled soils and uncultivated areas of the vegetable garden. A ground hard by dint of being trodden does not discourage this Purslane which, on the contrary, is particularly invasive on bare, hard and dry ground.
Based on this principle, the gardener can largely limit the development of Purslane by keeping the uncultivated areas of his land cool, and by asking his children to temporarily suspend ball games there. To do this, rather than regularly watering this uncultivated area, which represents a useless expense and promotes the waste of natural wealth, it is better to put a thick mulch mineral in place and to ensure that the soil remains sufficiently loose.
What effective solutions to get rid of Purslane?
It’s necessary avoid chemicals that can put ecosystems at risk. There are solutions that are much more respectful of the environment and health to overcome (or almost) purslane in the garden. The preferred actions are as follows.
Manual elimination of Purslane
We have not yet found anything better to eliminate Purslane without harming the environment. This method, requiring only a little free time and elbow grease, is one ecological et economic. However, it can be particularly time-consuming on a large plot where market garden Purslane is very comfortable, and therefore omnipresent.
Never mind, remove purslane stalks manually gives excellent results when you show persistence. If you have a large plot covered with Purslane, it takes several days to several weeks to get rid of it.
Cultivate Purslane before bolting
The advice applies to all unwanted herbs and local plants that you do not want to keep for fear of seeing your garden invaded in a short time. We preferably proceed the morningwhen it is very early and the dew has not yet evaporated. The earth is then sufficiently wet to facilitate the uprooting of Purslane. We use a circulatorideal tool to pull out the roots of the plant.
Eradicate purslane with a thermal weeder
Many gardeners have tried the thermal weed control to eliminate Purslane from their garden because they couldn’t stand being invaded by this plant. Using a thermal weeder can give good results provided that very young feet are treated as soon as they appear because they are less tough than adult feet. At the same time, it is fundamental to respect the principle of this type of weeding to the letter, namely exposing a plant to a Thermal shock.
Recall that the intense heat diffused by this device can only be effective if the plants are exposed to it directly for 1 to 2 seconds, never again. The goal is to blow up the cells plants, not to burn the external parts because in the latter case, regrowth is assured. Moreover, it suffices to observe nature to see, for example, that after a fire, many plants that were thought to be dead reappear. If the plant regeneration is favored by rains, and it is possible after such conditions because many seeds buried in the ground have survived the fire.
Prevent the germination of purslane seeds with a synthetic mulch
Some seeds are able to wait months or even years in the ground in order to germinate at the most favorable time. For fight against proliferation of garden purslanemust therefore controlling seed germination.
To do this, nothing very complicated: you can ask a synthetic mulching fabric very good quality on the bare areas of the garden. The seeds will then lack light and heat, two essential conditions for them to germinate and for the seedlings to develop. In absolute darkness and soil not warmed by the sun’s rays, they can no longer grow.
The mulch cloth and geotextile fabric are two distinct products that can be used to control weeds. The first is used to avoid frequent manual weeding in cultivated areas. As to geotextileit also prevents weeds from developing but it is preferably placed under a layer of soil or pebbles.
Can Purslane be used as a ground cover plant?
It’s an excellent alternative in the fight against Purslane because it is ultimately a useful plant. It is therefore possible without any problem to keep the Purslane in the ditches, along the path of the garden or in the descent of the garage. This ground cover prevents soil flows in the event of heavy rain. It can also find its place at the foot of large species of perennial plants that will benefit from the coolness that Purslane allows the soil to retain in summer.
If you want to use Purslane as a ground cover, however, you have to be careful because there is no question that it covers the entire ground! Full control of its proliferation is essential by weeding by hand as regularly as possible, so as to keep only a few feet at strategic locations if desired.