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I am trying to prevent these weeds from taking over again next year. Is there anything I should do or apply now (end of October) in order to kill these or stop them from coming back next year ?

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Update: For all the answers below: I am not sure if the plant is violets or something else but it is hard to kill. They do make volet flowers in spring and sporadically for the rest of the summer. I tried the Weedbgone (the US version) and after multiple applications the leaves you are seeing started dying toward the edge. After mowing the grass and some rain they came back in force and I got derailed by some personal issues and I could not finish the killing. I am wondering if there is anything I can do not to see them next spring. The turf is indeed old and in need of revitalization

MiniMe
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  • It's hard to tell what we're talking about. The image appears to show grass or turf with weeds. Do you only want to kill weeds or is everything fair game? Grass is considered a weed in my yard. My experience with weeds is to kill early and kill often. As soon as you see weeds emerge, start treatment immediately, regardless of whether it's chemical or mechanical.. Letting them get out of hand to flower and drop seed is making the problem worse. – Tim Nevins Oct 22 '19 at 15:44
  • I am talking about the rounder leaf weeds, I want to kill those – MiniMe Oct 22 '19 at 15:48

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I'm seeing violets not ground ivy in the turf - is this what you want to kill? Unfortunately, Glhyphosate (RoundUp), 2,4-D, Mecoprop (MPP), Dicamba, and Triclopyr ALL do NOT kill established violets (I think 2,4D and/or MPP may kill first-year seedlings, though).

The only way I've ever been able to get rid of violets is by digging them out one by one with a garden knife or by removing all of the lawn with a sod cutter, adding new topsoil, and reseeding. It's best to hand-remove the violets before they scatter their seeds, which usually happens at the latest in early October in zone 5.

Jurp
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  • I guess I missed that boat. By removing you mean take the flower and the roots out ? That is going to be a lot of work – MiniMe Oct 23 '19 at 14:17
  • Assuming that you have wood violets or a similar species, then yes, you have to remove root and stolon (underground stem-the seed pods tend to be attached to the stem below ground level). Note that some of the stems can be up to 2 inches long, with multiple forks if they're old plants. I removed one plant that was about 3 inches in diameter, with a ton of forked stolons. There is also at least one species of violet that is not stoloniferous but roots very deeply; these are actually harder to remove. I agree that removing them is a ton of work - I suspect I'll be doing it for the next 20 years. – Jurp Oct 23 '19 at 21:38
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Your best bet right now, in fall assuming you have time before frost hits in your area, is to over-seed with grass and also fertilize. You want to establish as much grass as possible to choke out that ground ivy. Assuming you don't want to just straight up burn/kill everything and sod the ground, next year.

Anubis
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  • I tried that but since I have to mow the grass higher these things stay alive and they get ahead of the grass after each cutting .... I do get the older violets of ground ivy (they are violets I checked the pictures of the flowers and the ground ivy has different flowers) – MiniMe Oct 23 '19 at 14:16
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I see violets. This is not a plant I consider a weed, however if it is in a place where you want grass instead of violets then consider why the weed is growing there. Grass under favorable conditions will choke out violet. This area is likely heavy clay or compacted soils, damp, and or shady. Your grass is having a tough time and clearly the violets don't mind.

In my chemical free garden, first I would mow everything very low. Followed by aeration, in my low tech world this is using a digging fork to either make holes or ideally turn over the area, a tiller could also work. Then I would heavily compost and work the compost into the soil. This will help make the soil better for the grass. Next mulch it for the winter, 6-8 inches of leaves or straw or your preferred mulch over the area. This will hinder if not kill the grass and weeds left in the area after turning the compost into the soil. After threat of frost is gone in your area pull the mulch back and reseed with a grass seed that will thrive in the growing conditions present.

If there is sun in the area use some of the mulch to cover the grass seed just enough to keep it moist and primed for growth. Use your extra material elsewhere in the garden where spring mulching is desired. Generally, in my gardens I spend more time trying reign in grass but composting and mulching always improves our sticky and mucky clay soils. Best Wishes

Floramaven
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  • Considering how persistent it is it could be a good solution for the design of my garden, I am trying to minimize the grass mowing, so I am experimenting with sedums and I am open to suggestions. In order to minimize the mowing I removed the grass on certain strips near walk ways and near the patio and I put the above. – MiniMe Oct 23 '19 at 14:20
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    Yes, it could be very nice in a part sun to shady walkway border. Too much heavy shade and it will get taller, depending on the species 6-8 inches tall would be max if I am remembering correctly. Your local extension service or Master gardeners can help you with an ID when you find it flowering. Other border/no mow plants that I encourage include Lawn Daisy (Bellis perennis; is good for sun to light shade), Mother of thyme (Thymus serpyllum; in sun). There are more which can be invasive. I can give you their names also if you like. Heartier growth makes for survival in difficult conditions. – Floramaven Oct 25 '19 at 02:16