Weeds in Mississippi
Can I control purple nutsedge in my garden?
Purple nutsedge is known in the scientific community as [Cyperus rotundus L.] and is the world's worst weed, according to Holm et al. in "The World's Worst Weeds." However, many home gardeners refer to purple nutsedge as cocograss or nutgrass. Unlike the slang names imply, this weed is not a grass, but a sedge. Tillage, including hand weeding, hoeing, and plowing are the only control methods suitable for the entire spectrum of vegetables that most people have in the home garden. If the infested area is small, and the soil is tilled to remove all clods, the soil can be sieved to remove nutsedge tubers. Tubers should be removed from the garden site and incinerated or placed in a garbage bag and disposed in a dump.
There are no herbicides registered for use on ALL vegetables that will control purple nutsedge. While there are herbicides that can be used safely to control purple nutsedge in lawns, these herbicides should not be used on vegetables, unless so specified on the label. Herbicides such as Image, Manage or MSMA can be used to successfully control purple nutsedge in the lawn, these herbicides will severely injure or kill most vegetables, or may result in herbicide residues in the produce. Also, since these herbicides are not labeled for use in vegetables, it is a violation of Federal law to use any pesticide in a manner inconsistent with the label.
Roundup, applied during tuber development will help control purple nutsedge. Refer to the label for specific instructions on using this product in the home garden.