The Virtues of Bishop’s Weeds
Published by Hanna | Filed Under: Plant Encyclopedia
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Right now, if you listen closely, you can hear the sounds of experienced gardeners cocking guns and grabbing implements of torture. They are saying “Hanna, them’s fightin’ words.”
This is because Bishop’s Weed (also known as Goutweed) is one of the most insidious plants that a gardener can plant in their garden. But before you string me up from the nearest tree, let me explain the virtues of this much hated plant.
But first the disclaimer…
DISCLAIMER: If you are ever offered this plant, run, do not walk, run quickly from the area before you are talked into taking some home.
Bishop’s Weed is an avid gardener’s worst nightmare. Worse yet, it is sold in garden centers and big box stores with no warning label. Really, before they are allowed to take this stuff home, people should be required to sign iron-clad contracts that requires them never to pass this plant along.
So why do garden centers and big box stores still sell it. Well, because people buy it and those places are all about making a buck. But beyond that, Bishop’s Weed does serve a purpose in the landscape world.
This is where the virtues of Bishop’s Weed comes in. Bishop’s Weed should only be used in areas where there will not be someone to garden. For example, my current guerrilla gardening project, the woman who takes care of the place told me that she purposely planted Bishop’s Weed because she hoped that it would keep down the weeds while still looking nice. Where the Bishop’s Weed is growing, it does just that.
If you have a Great Aunt Helga who just can’t get out in the yard, Bishop’s Weed is a great solution. It will choke out anything including weeds and yet does not seem to grow into the lawn turf. It also grows relatively low to the ground so does not need to be cut.
Basically, Bishop’s Weed is ideal for locations that need to be kept neat but where no one will have the time to weed and maintain. Public locations, elderly or infirmed peoples’ gardens or hard to get to locations.
And you can eat it. It is a Russian food crop and apparently an Indian aphrodisiac. Anything that is an aphrodisiac can’t be all bad.
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May 27th, 2006
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September 22nd, 2007 at 12:17 pm
It should be noted here that Bishop’s weed is also known to help psoriasis. This plant has medicinal purposes and it would seem by my web search that it gets a “bum rap” from many sites, except yours. The leaves can made into a compress or however you would like to prepare it and placed on psoriasis patches. It is best combined with sun expose to get the most of its medicinal purpose. The active ingredient is psoralens which is also found in its “cousins” carrots, parsley, angelica, celery and others.
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April 30th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
My mom lives in Idaho and had this all around her trees and up against her house. I loved it so I bought some. I completely disagree with everyone who hates this plant. It has been wonderful as a ground cover and has stayed right where I put it. I cut the flowers off as they grow and every year it comes back lovely and green and covers up the bare ugly ground and keeps the weeds out! I absolutely hate to work in the yard or garden, so this plant is wonderful for those of us who just want something to look pretty with minimal care needed and don’t want to hassel with growing, pulling weeds, watering, fertilizing, or caring about our yards. Yes, there are some of us out there!
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May 28th, 2008 at 8:54 am
I loved having this plant in a former Virginia house, and now I am in Ohio and searching for it, but to no avail. It will be perfect in my shady backyard, and it’s variegated quality will lighten up the ground. Anyone know where I can buy it?
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Judy Arnett Reply:
March 30th, 2010 at 7:39 pm
I have a lot of it. I don’t hate it because I like the Queen Ann’s Lace-type flowers, but it is an aggressive grower. I have some for trade, if you want. I also have lots of Black-Eyed Susans (Rudbeckia Hirta), Oregano (Origanum vulgare, another aggressive grower), Lamb’s Ears (Stachys lanata), Bugle (Ajuga reptans), Therese Bugnet rose plants, Chinese Chives (Allium tuberosum) and perennial Ageratum (Conoclinium coelestinum). I’m looking for peonies, daylilies, irises (especially any Dutch irises)
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June 7th, 2008 at 10:02 pm
Jane you are welcome to come to Illinois where I live and help yourself to all of the bishop weed that you want! I carried some of this “weed” home from my daughter’s garden…..it has jumped and spread everywhere, I have given up trying to rid my garden of it. I maintain it to the best of my ability, actually as I thin it out from the landscape it adds interest to the garden, but if left on it’s own it will invade the entire garden. May suggestion is don’t even think of this feature in you planting scheme.
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July 6th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
[...] Bishop’s Weed – I actually know people who won’t buy a house if it has Bishop’s Weed planted in the yard. So plant this one at your own property value risk. If you really, really want some of this stuff, just dig up a bit from someone’s yard. You should ask before doing so, but if you don’t, they probably won’t notice anyway. The missing plants will have regrown by the next morning. [...]
July 13th, 2008 at 7:53 pm
Please help with a problem that I ALWAYS experience with “Snow on the Mountain”, aka Bishop’s weed. It looks absolutely lovely in the late spring and early summer here in northern Illinois where I live, but in the early autumn, parts of it begin to look brown and “rusty”. I can’t stand this look, and would like to know how to prevent it. Of course, I can cut it back, but still, it would help to know how to control this problem.
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August 6th, 2008 at 11:51 am
[...] Ground Elder, Wild Edible Leni Fried of Cummington, MA writes: Do any of you know of the plant Bishops Weed also known as Goutweed or Ground Elder? I have spent many an hour routing it out or covering it. [...]
August 23rd, 2008 at 7:22 am
Let me know what you find out about the brown and dead look it gets around this time. I hate it as well. What can I do?
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August 30th, 2008 at 7:12 pm
Thanks for the information on Bishops weed. It looked beautiful growing against my mother-in-law’s house (part shade) so I brought pots of it to my new house. We planed to sell these pots at a fund raiser, but now I am reconsidering. I certainly don’t want to sell a problem plant. I’m just curious as to why it stayed so contained at her house. She had hostas growing up in it and it was lovely–airy and light.
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September 2nd, 2008 at 4:51 pm
Bishop’s weed is a pest plain and simple. My entire neighborhood is cursed with it because one foolish soul planted in their garden years ago. It crept under a fence into my yard and we’ve been fighting it ever since. Nothing kills it. Really. (One neighbor claims that if brush Roundup ON EVERY SINGLE LEAF you might be able to knock it back!!!) I’m resigned to it but my wife insists on spending hundreds of dollars a year to yard care folks to keep it in check. Despite what advocates claim, it will invade sparse grassy areas that are in deep shade.
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September 30th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
This weed was in a beautiful floral arrangement given to me as a gift. It has now spread everywhere and I wonder if the person who gave it to me was really a “friend.” It has crowded out all the naturals in my woodland property. It seems the only way to adjust is to have a change of attitude and grow to like it. Has anyone had any luck irradicating it?
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March 14th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
I also have the dreaded Bishops Weed in my veggie garden…I hate it with a passion as it creeps into my planting area. I would very much like to eradicate this weed from this area and would like to do it without harsh chemicals (round-up). I’m thinking of a weed torch. Does anyone have experience getting rid of this plant from their garden using a weed torch or any other method??
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Holly Reply:
May 9th, 2010 at 1:05 pm
I tried a weed torch and roundup to no avail. I have been fighting this plant since 1977. It wins.
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Shelley Reply:
June 13th, 2010 at 7:57 am
If you want to get rid of your Bishop’s Weed, plant Creeping Myrtle with it.
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March 14th, 2009 at 2:54 pm
If it is in your veggie bed, I would say solarize the bed before you plant, or if that will take too long, before you plants, pour buckets and buckets of boiling water over the soil. The boiling water will kill anything growing in the soil, including the bishop’s weed.
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March 15th, 2009 at 11:12 am
Yesterday after I wrote on this post, I came across advice on using boiling water to eradicate weeds. Because the area in which I have the bishops weed is large, I will use a combination of solarizing (again…I did this last year), boiling water and just digging the young plants up. Hopefully with much persistence I can finally get some control of it. And on a more positive note, this plant is good for digestive problems, ie: belching…just in case I get a bout of this while in the garden, I will know where to turn!?
Thank you for the advice Hanna.
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May 17th, 2009 at 4:06 am
I was happy to find some Bishops Weed today at a garden center that is adjacent to the owner’s home. I asked her about it, and she had some in her yard and was happy to dig some up and give it to me (no surprise there). I loved having it in my previous home, and have a large dirt area around some evergreens on my new farm. I love the look for Bishops Weed, the variegated leaf and low cover is my favorite. I suffer from a black thumb (I kill everything) so I love that the only way I have killed this is by not ever watering it (in a small side section at my old house I managed to kill some!). Thanks for the objective advice about this weed that I really enjoy.
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May 17th, 2009 at 5:20 pm
I have a couple of areas with Bishop’s weed and I really like it. But it is in an area that I would now like to plant a hydrangea. I’ve read postings here where it grown under trees . . .would it kill off a plant like a hydrangea? Help please
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May 17th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
I planted several plants in and around the Bishop’s Weed that I had at my old house. I put in some pyramidalis (sp?), ferns and annuals in front of it. It didn’t kill off anything. Perhaps just clear back the Bishop’s Weed around where you are planting until the hydrangea is established. Good luck!
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May 28th, 2009 at 5:04 pm
I am SO glad I read this!! Just a few days ago, I was admiring some Bishop’s Weed in a garden center and had decided that this was the groundcover I wanted to plant along the side of the house where nothing but quack grass will grow. Thank you, Hanna, for rescuing me from gardening disaster!
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May 31st, 2009 at 8:57 pm
Will bishop weed kill young pine trees if it is planted under them? Will it absorb all its water and choke out the pine roots?
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May 31st, 2009 at 9:24 pm
I brought it to my new house by accident in transplants from my father’s house. It was nice in an area where nothing else would grow but as I started tending more and better gardens I wanted it GONE. I was able to almost completely get rid of it by digging every last bit of root. but it must have already migrated under the fence because now it is coming back a lttle at a time – I just have to keep after it and try to keep it in check. It does have it’s uses as a ground cover where you will not have other plants. IT will choke out almost all other weeds.
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June 4th, 2009 at 4:47 pm
I’m in Nova Scotia, and on a mission to eradicate the goutweed that’s taking over the yard at my new home … although we’ve spent hours on digging out the flower bed at the side of the house, we’re not near the end … or the beginning of the end. It still feels like we’re at the beginning of the beginning. This is going to be a fight.
I’m going to take on the back half of the yard with a weed whacker tonight … and blast the hell out of it with Roundup when it comes back.
And, for the record, my first idea for handling it was “cover it with gas and set it on fire” … but, sadly, we’re not even allowed backyard bonfires in my neighbourhood.
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June 18th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
My mother always had “snow on the mountain” or Bishop’s Weed in our garden with plenty of other plants growing through it. We had mostly bulbs that would come up: tulips, daffodils and crocus plants that would bloom up through. The Bishop’s weed was contained to an area of garden that was “pavement bound” – a border garden between our neighbor’s driveway and our own. This worked great since the roots couldn’t spread past the asphalt. I’ve since grown up and bought my own house. There is a large patch of dirt, with nothing growing in it, between my driveway and my neighbor’s house. I’ve planted some Bishops Weed because I don’t want to fuss with the 3-foot wide strip of dirt, and I want something that will maintain itself without a lot of work. I think this plant does certainly have some virtues if you’re prepared to carefully consider where you plant it.
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Dill Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 12:48 am
As a ground cover in spots otherwise uncoverable, ok. I always thought it looked ok until I had it. The homeowner who had my house before me had clearly just planted it before decamping with my millions. I looked on it benignly at first–there was nothing to look at otherwise–juniper on one side, bishop’s weed on the other. But now that I have tried to have flowers, well…. Bishop’s weed is perhaps best thought of as a very slow wave, or a tide, that will eventually inundate everything that can’t stop it, like a paved road. The roots are so deep and pliable and resistant…. In response to Anne, I find that it does choke out daffodils and tulips and the like, hyacinths, etc. It would depend on your conditions, but as other posters have noted, you just can’t bet against this plant. I don’t think there’s anything it won’t overtake.
I’m sorry I don’t know any protocol…has anyone reading this ever easily transplanted peonies, or early wild rose (rosa blanda), or just knows how and when to _prune_ early wild rose bushes. . . .? Send me a nasty note if I’ve done something wrong or not read all the rules in advance enough, or just erase this post.
Good luck to all.
Dww
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August 3rd, 2009 at 3:13 am
I have a steep bank in front of my house at roads edge that is too steep to mow and hard to stand on to weed-eat. It is south facing and shaded by trees from about 2:00 PM until dark. Am looking for something to plant that will kill out and replace the grass. Will Bishop’s Weed do this. Also, will mowing keep it from spreading onto the flatter area of lawn?………thanks
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October 17th, 2009 at 12:01 am
HI
I have been fighting for the last 3 years with Field Bind Weed. The best method (including chemicals) that I have found for fighting it is old carpeting that people are throwing away. I spread it over the patch to be weeded in the spring, and leave it on all summer; the plants try to grow under it, but with no light, they all eventually die off. It should work for Bishop’s weed as well. And no chemicals. One word of warning; not all carpets completely block the light. If the plants are still green under the carpet after 3 weeks, find another one.
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November 15th, 2009 at 12:02 am
I am not a fan of chemicals in my garden. I try to use ways that will work without them. Doing it shovel by shovel will work, but alot of work. The carpet idea is good but I have a foolproof way. Use cardboard. No light will pass through it. Use double thick if you want. I had thistle and used this and it worked. You can also use the fabric garden cloth, but you have to make it about 4 or 5 times thick. Don’t mess around, use cardboard but you have to wait the entire season. Oh ,one more thing if you have plants in the garden already transplant into pots or place the cardbord around them.
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January 13th, 2010 at 10:36 pm
When I moved into my house almost 14 years ago, there was Goutweed in the front garden bed – about a 3′ X 4′ patch. I don’t like to use chemicals of any kind as I’ve always had a dog and my neighbour has outdoor cats. I am happy to say that after 12 years of digging it up and removing all visible traces of the white roots (it will sprout again quickly from the tiniest of pieces, and the roots go quite deep), I only had a handful of spots left last spring! Maybe this spring (which will make 14 years in the house, 13 of trying to get rid of the Goutweed) I will only have one or two sprouts to dig up! I did find that in the past few years I had to get into the bed early in the spring to remove the roots, and this seemed to work much better than waiting until on in the season. Basically as soon as you see shoots, dig up the roots! (Not poetic on purpose…) That said, this discussion has reminded me of how ‘hearty’ it is, so if there are a few bits in the front this spring, I may transplant them to the back – I now have two dogs who have demolished my backyard grass by chasing each other for hours a day, so maybe Goutweed in the back will make me love this plant that I’ve hated for so many years!
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March 17th, 2010 at 9:24 pm
Even after reading all the comments from people who hate Bishop’s Weed, I am still planning to get some. Grass will not grow in my backyard because it is so shady, and therefore, it is not a pretty place. We also do not have pets or young children that ever go in the backyard. My only problem is that I can’t find anyone locally that sells it
Anyone want to share? I’ll be happy to pay all shipping costs!
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Debra Reply:
March 18th, 2010 at 12:12 am
Hoogie, I live in Oregon and we can get Bishop’s weed at the local yard and garden stores….not Wal-Mart or stores that sell all sorts of other things, but just our local garden shops etc. When I bought it back in 2006 (I think) it was plentiful and cheap. If you can find anyone in your area who has some just dig a few of the leaves out with the roots attached and plant them. I guarantee that they will reproduce rapidly….if not in one year season, then two. I LOVE my Bishop’s weed still because of our shade and wet ground. It keeps out weeds (and anything else) and I am happy not to have to grow anything or take much care of it. It does “burn” in really hot weather, tho. It also dies in the fall and returns in the spring. I am joyously watching it come up right now! If you live near Salem, Oregon you can come and get some of mine! Good luck!
Also, to E. Ray Heflin….mowing does not really stop this plant from spreading. It will spread right through grass. Mowing can help, but not much. Keep it contained with long wood poles, plastic borders, cement borders, etc. My mom has kept it contained around the base of her trees and her house foundation for 20 years using redwood poles. Also, cutting the flower stalks off AS SOON as they appear helps to contain it too. (I think it is a much prettier groundcover without all the long flower stalks that stick up out of it.) Don’t let them bloom and pollinate the ground around it. Hope this helps.
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April 10th, 2010 at 12:12 am
I bought some of this at a nursery last year not knowing what it was. It started scaring me this morning with how it sends runners every which way. I will be pulling it out tomorrow. Hopefully I caught it soon enough!
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May 8th, 2010 at 8:22 am
I am a bishop’s weed lover. I have had it in various yards and have found it makes a beautiful ground cover. It takes a lot of work to keep it where one wants it, but my passion (obsession) is weeding, so bishop’s weed and I were meant for each other. I have not found the carpet/cardboard method of eradication effective, because the roots are so deep that they just move on out beyond the barrier to sprout elsewhere. Kathleen’s method is mine: get out there early and dig deep! For the period of time after blooming, when the leaves get rusty, just mow or weed-whack it all down to the ground. It will blossom again, rust again, and you can mow it down a second time and still get a third blossoming. The leaves come back that lovely spring green. This process would weary some plants but, as we all know, nothing wearies bishop’s weed!
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May 8th, 2010 at 12:09 pm
I live in the Pacific Northwest and Bishop’s Weed is an incorrigible problem. I have seen the variegated type sold in local shops and my fence neighbour planted some that is (of course) crawling through. (This is just after they finally removed an incredibly aggressive kiwi vine from the same spot! I do notice that the variegated type is not quite as aggressive as the solid green that seems to run rampant otherwise.
A good tip for our neck of the woods is to keep mulching frequently. It won’t necessarily stop the weed but a looser soil makes it much easier to pull out roots. Also, planting hyacinth bulbs or plants like wooly woodruff, that leaf out early, can shade the spring soil so the little buggers don’t get quite the same head start they would have.
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May 13th, 2010 at 11:41 am
Bishop’s weed is a great groundcover if used correctly. We have some well-established lilac bushes that shade the back of our yard, and the Bishop’s Weed has filled in beneath it, along with some purple iris’ and makes the back of the yard “forest-like”.
Never had an issue with the Bishop’s weed trying to get into the yard or anywhere else.
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May 25th, 2010 at 6:19 pm
I just moved into our first house three weeks ago, and I’m so excited to get my hands back into the dirt. I was so excited at first to see the Bishop’s Weed. It looks so lovely against the red corabells. (I think that’s what they are.) Now as it’s gotten taller and busier, I can see that it’s crowding out my autumn joy sedum, bee balm and other perennials. I’m already predicting that this is going to be the bane of my gardening life!!!
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June 3rd, 2010 at 7:23 pm
I have a third generation planting of Bishop’s Weed. My Grandmother planted it along the “cellar” walls, my mother transplanted some around her front porch, and now I have her transplants along one foundation wall of my home. I had no idea this lovely plant was considered a horrible scourge !! Our summers here can be hot and dry and the leaves will “rust” over. I was looking for info on trimming it back and I found some very helpful tips here. I have had no problems with this plant invading any other spaces.
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July 17th, 2010 at 11:39 am
DONT PLANT IT! I would NEVER purchase another home if it had Bishop’s weed. We recently moved into our new home only to find that this lovely varigated leafy plant is unstoppable and if you simply adore true flowers, it will prevent you from gardening. I pulled it out(and got a rash from doing so w/out gloves)and by the next morning it was back. I ended up having some success with cutting all flower heads off, digging below the root line and removing each and every little root by hand over several days. I then laid in in the driveway to completely dry out and die before placing in with yard clippings for removal(didnt want to spread this pest into my neighbors yards). Several days of non stop vigilence and very hard work and it is almost gone. Sadly, it has spread to another area of the yard and I will have to work on it next. It will spread and it will choke out your flowers~ it is also considered an invasive, non~native pest and shouldnt be sold in garden centers. If you want some-and live in Ohio-you can take all you want from my house. Just be sure you arent friendly with your neighbors first or you may become enemies….
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July 28th, 2010 at 6:52 am
Thanks for all the eradication advice. It *does* travel under pavement given time. No good neighbor plants this evil weed. I curse the former owner of our house for the time I’ve wasted on this stupid ornamental that she thought would control weeds in the rhubarb. Hah! It provides cover for thistles, the morning glories, swedish ivy, regular ivy, ornamental strawberries (another ridifulous plant). It’s roots have penetrated through the rhubarb stock, such that to remove it is to kill the rhubarb. And now it has invaded the sunny patch of grass I have in Pennsylvania. You want low maintenance ground cover… I suggest weedbarrier and rocks. I will not buy a house with this stuff or in the neighbors’ yards again.
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