Pictures Of Common Garden/Lawn Weeds Emerging In Spring

Written by Joe Foster in Invasive Plants

The purpose of this guide is to help you identify common weeds that you may find in your gardens with a particular focus on juvenile or spring emergence of the plant. It is much easier to pull these weeds when they are young or just emerging in Spring, so with my pictures you should be able to ID them and eradicate them before they get large and flower! Use this as a compliment to our guide to native plant seedling/emerging identification guide.

*Note – a few of the plants on this list are native, and therefore not ‘invasive’. However, most people would not plant these in formal flowerbeds, and would likely consider them weeds. Thus, they are included on this list for identification.

Common NameScientific NameJuvenile or Spring EmergenceFully mature plant
Beggars Lice*Hackelia virginiana
Bladder campionSilene latifolia
Callery or Bradford Pear (seedling)Pyrus calleryanainvasive Callery Bradford Pear Tree
Celandine, GreaterChelidonium majus
Celandine, LesserFicaria verna
ChickweedStellaria media
Clover, whiteTrifolium repens
Creeping CharlieGlechoma hederacea
Creeping thistleCirsium arvense
Dames RocketHesperis matronalis
dames rocket invasive Hesperis matronalis
DandelionTaraxacum sp.
Dead Nettle, HenbitLamium amplexicaule
Dead Nettle, PurpleLamium purpureum
Dwarf Plantain, Virginia PlantainPlantago virginica*
Fleabane*Erigeron annuus
Garlic MustardAlliaria petiolata
GroundselSenecio vulgaris
Hairy BittercressCardamine hirsuta
Hemlock, PoisonConium maculatumpoison hemlock conium maculatum 1
Horseweed*Erigeron canadensis
Narrow-leaf BittercressCardamine impatiens
PurslanePortulaca oreracea
SpeedwellVeronica sp.
SpurgeEuphorbia helioscopa
Yellow wood sorrelOxalis dillenii*
Strawberry, MockPotentilla indica
YellowrocketBarbarea vulgaris
White Avens*Geum canadense
Wild ParsnipPastinaca sativa
*Native to North America

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Joe Foster

Hi - I grew up outdoors in nature - hiking, fishing, hunting. In high school I got my first job at a garden center where I learned to garden and landscape. I've been growing plants from seed and designing native plant gardens for over 10 years. I hope to share some of my knowledge with you! You may have seen some of my videos I create on our YouTube channel, GrowitBuildit (more than 10 million views!). You can find my channel here: https://youtube.com/@growitbuildit Additionally I am a wood worker / DIY enthusiast. I enjoy designing/building projects (with hand tools when I can!). I hope to give you some tips and useful information!

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