We have been invaded by what I call grass spurs but I’ve been told the correct name for the is grass burs but no matter what you call them, they hurt like heck and my garden is so full of them that I can’t even walk through there. I tried my best to keep them out but they won this battle. Next year . . they won’t be so lucky.
This morning, I needed tomatoes to go on our chicken salad sandwiches for lunch. No way was I going to go through that garden. I had on shorts and they really hurt. If I wear pants, it’s worse because they embed themselves into the denim and then I end up with thorns in my fingers trying to get them out. You can imagine how bad they get stuck in my lace up tennis shoes and then they get tracked all over the yard and into the rugs. They’re the most annoying and obnoxious things I’ve ever seen.
This morning I thought . . I need a shield of some sort. And then I remembered all the batting I have that I will probably never use! Thank goodness for 3M duct tape! I created a shield so I could go into the garden and get a few tomatoes.
Batting Shield
A few of them still got me but not very many!
Grass Spurs
When Vince gets home, I’m going to suggest we wrap our lower halves in batting and go play in the garden! Every one of these things we pick up is one less that will sprout next year!
Grass Spurs
Our old push mower is on its last leg (isn’t everything around here?) and Vince bought a new push mower .. oh . . 2 or 3 years ago but it’s still sitting in the box. He thinks he can go through the garden with the mower and a grass catcher and catch a bunch of them. The new mower, still in the box, didn’t have a grass catcher so we had to buy another new mower!
Mowers
We also have an old vacuum cleaner that quit and then I bought a new one and Vince fixed the old one. I’m thinking I should try vacuuming up the seeds that are out there.
Yes, it’s all out war on the grass burs around here.
Tammie Stephens says
I love the boots!!! We always called them sand spurs. I guess different places, different names. But no matter still the same hurtful spiked balls that hang on to clothes/skin for dear life. Sucking them up with a lawn mower is a great idea. Weather permitting we would try and burn them out. However burning a field is not always smart… Ask me how I know. Good luck.
Sherrill says
That’s funny. We called em sand burrs..either way, they’re awful!
Bon says
We call them sand burrs here in Michigan, too. And they are nasty to get off clothing. Great idea about the boots, Judy.
Diana in RR,TX says
They are bad for us but are really bad when they get between the pads of our four footed friends. We get a few in the yard from the birds and other animals. I try to get them pulled out while they are still in the green stage. Doesn’t always work but helps! We always call them sand burrs, but what ever the name, they are a pain!
Sherrill says
Those things are HORRIFIC!! If I ever walk ANYWHERE that I see those things, I make sure there is not ONE left on my shoe because that’s all it takes to get them started in MY yard. And yes, just trying to pull one off can cause great bodily injury! 🙂 I hate those things!!
Sue in Scottsdale, AZ says
Our yard seems to be full of them and I think they were brought in on the lawn mower of our lawn guy. They are horrible. They stick to our dogs and are a real pain. One of our dogs won’t let us touch her legs when she has them because they must hurt when I try to get them off. It is easier to call the groomer and have her shave the dogs all the way down. I hate them! And yes, they hurt, especially if you don’t see one in the house and step on them while you are bare footed.
shirley bruner says
OMG….you made me laugh so much. we have those devils, too….i am always pulling them out. when i read Garden Shields i had no idea what you were going to tell me. that is one hilarious picture. how did you get your shields off…cut them off? go back to the war….you got to WIN. hahahahaha
Joyce Wilson says
In California and here in Eastern Washington,we call them goatheads.
The best thing to do is learn the plant and hand pull them, bag them, what ever.
They thrive in hot dry places and if you apply water to the plants they get kind of spindley and do not thrive. Of course, its better if you pull them before they go to seed.
Mary says
Yeah, we used to call them goat heads also out in west Texas. Nasty little things!
Toni Wood says
Sand spurs in FL. Hated those things.
Carol c says
You are so funny. However every one you mow down will seed new ones. Weed and feed is all I know to use.
Linda Smith says
We called them sticky burrs or sticker burrs in South Texas. By the way, I am “ruined” forever after trying Tillamook Ice Cream! Thanks a lot, Judy! I’m thinking of taking my lawn chair to the freezer department in Kroger and staying there until I try every flavor.
I do love to read your blog!
Elaine says
What about wearing waders, you know the kind they use for fishing……
Penny in S CA says
I did laugh when I saw pic of your armor but I do think that was a great innovative idea! I’ve always called them puncture weeds! Very appropriate, don’t you think? Recently I was surprised that one of the persistent vines even grow up through the “pet turf” we had installed last year because of the continuing Ca drought. I wore an old pair of gardening gloves & used a large pair of pliers to remove the one vine that seemed to multiply the spurs as I pulled & pulled. I discarded the gloves covered with spurs along with the vine covered with even more spurs in a small trash bag that I sealed in a card board box & placed in our trash can. Hopefully no more grow in our yard!
Dar in MO says
Those things are horrible whatever you call them. I was totally amused at your shields, especially with your shorts. You are lucky the fashion police were not in your neighborhood that day! I like the vacuum idea. I’d be afraid the mower might re-seed them too easily.
wanda jordan says
Called grass burs here outside of Houston. We don’t get them much except in cow fields around. here thank heavens. They are very painful so I feel yours/ Vince’s pain.
Now where are they in your garden? Have you thought about mowing very short and covering the walking area with either tons of newspaper you wet or cardboard. I use cardboard boxes between my rows. With all the rain we had back in May would have been pulling grass or mowing daily. What about tilling them under and putting paper/cardboard on top. Then when garden is done take up and spray weed killer.Just trying to help.
Linda Enneking says
Don’t you have a pair of boots?
Sandy says
Growing up in Florida we called them sand spurs. We frequently stepped on them with our bare feet (which got tougher as the summer went on), but that never stopped us from going barefoot! We would never have thought of wearing batting shields!
Shirley S. says
When we moved here (East Texas), there were some stickers. We talked to our County Extension Agent and he suggested adding nitrogen to our soil. The local Ag teacher suggested the same thing. We applied a fertilizer with a high first number and it worked!
PattiLynn says
Ouch! ! ! We always called them goat heads. Painful for sure.
Good luck, hope you get rid of them.
Kathy C in OR says
Could you try plastic garbage bags on your legs or would they stick through them?
We don’t have them here in OR. I remember seeing them once at some beach we were at but don’t remember where.
They look nasty though.
Trina says
Oh yeah I remember those spurs while stationed in Texas. They would stick to the bottom of tennis shoes. I would find them in my carpet with my bare feet. Ow. I like your batting boots.
Trina
Claudia says
We called those things bull head stickers when I was a kid in Waco. Hated having to pull them out of the bottom of my feet. We have a family cemetery outside of Huntsville and they spray something every year to keep them from growing. Have no idea what it is, but it works.