This may have already been covered; but I tilled a new area last year for and in ground garden by the end of the season it was a field of Nutsedge, no matter how much I hoed or dug. I covered the plot with black plastic over the fall and winter; but the sedge is back in full force. I no Image will kill it; but that is not safe for the garden. Is their an organic alternative?

Dig it up. Nutsedge is named this because it has ground nuts or tubers under the soil. They're actually edible raw or cooked but it makes them really hard to kill, because they have all that stored energy under the soil line.

Thanks. do you think if I covered it with black plastic this summer the heat and lack of sunlight would kill it off?

Maybe? Think of it like greenbriar or potatoes or giant cane. You've got a lot of stored energy under the soil that it doesn't need sun to keep living for a long time. It has enough energy to grow through the plastic.

Thanks Kattelyn.

You're welcome. Sorry I don't have a better answer for you.

Something that I did use on a section of european hollies and a bunch of other stuff that needed to die was Crossbow herbicide It's supposed to break down in the soil fast enough that you can grow crops in it. I do have to say, it killed EVERYTHING I sprayed it on. Took it a bit, it didn't work fast, but it was effective.

You will never dig it all. I covered an area with black plastic until the plastic rotted and tore, the nutsedge was ready and waiting. I have noticed that where I have improved the soil the nutsedge is now gone.

At one point I've considered concrete as an option. I have the ground under my raised bed garden covered with the good weed fabric and 2-3 inches of gravel and still have to go out and pull a few up.

I've never been able to find anything labeled safe for vegetable gardens that works. I only have it in 2 raised beds. It's in the beds that hold the most moisture from the way the water drains in my yard. I use a weed barrier on the top of the beds covered in mulch. I mostly just have it around the edges where the barrier doesn't cover good. A few will popup in the middle through the barrier. I hate them, but I've just decided that it's part of garden life and will hand pull them from time to time.

I feel for you Zipster, we got it in our garden through some contaminated compost. I have been battling it for 3 years now and the best thing so far is to keep the ground between the rows tilled after every rain to try and let it use up all of the energy making new sprouts. I hand dig/weed where the vegetables are growing, this works better when the ground is wet as you need to get the NUT along with the green leaves. I am going to try the solar sterilization of garden soil method using clear plastic sheeting after I pull everything up.

Best thing I found to get rid of it in the turfgrass without harming the grass is SedgeHammer+, not sure if it safe for vegetable gardens but may be worth a look.

I have used this on my yard and it worked great. It is not approved for any type of food plant though per their website. Sure do wish something was.

i asked the same ? 2 yrs ago with no help. what i have found over 2yrs is the ruth stout method.if you use straw about 6-8 inches thick.it wont kill it but it will keep it from growing.i have pics of my garden covered in weeds and nut sedge.today its just straw and veggies.its not cheap and its not easy but it does work.not to mention it cuts your watering down a bunch

Thanks. I'll give it a try. I'm having a record harvest of Nutsedge this year. I just wish my tomatoes did as well..

Zipster, I sure wish you would find or invent a magic bullet that is safe for the garden. I have been keeping the area in-between the plants tilled. This dry weather has killed off or hindered the growth of it some. We have been raking where I tilled and weeding around the plant and have taken many a wheelbarrow load to our burn pile. I have been hand digging a lot of it and having to go really deep to get all (I hope) of the nuts. 30ft jon boat, where did you purchase your straw, I would like to put some of that around my cantaloupes and watermelons.

i get my straw from a farmer down the road,after he harvests the wheat he bales the straw and sells it to gardening stores