Sounds encouraging. I'd read some mixed reports on the effectiveness of 2,4-D (alone) against Ajuga, but (possibly) better results with a 3-way product, which Killex is (2,4-D, Mecoprop-P, Dicamba) http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/lawns/msg0918365630041.html http://www.lawnsite.com/showthread.php?t=276043 So, it will be interesting to see your results. Yes, you are right Killex is available (at Canadian Tire), but only in British Columbia, Alberta & Manitoba. You are in BC, right? I'm in QC...sigh. Kind of farcical really, this provincial herbicide 'ban', when commercial lawn care companies can readily get the stuff (and political parties also). At least a third of the residents on my estate have their lawns sprayed....whether they really need it or not. I reckon the previous owner of my house was one and that chemical-dependency was at least part of the reason for my lawn problems....all those dormant seeds. That's my excuse anyway. Anyhow, I'll persist with the Roundup (no other choice now). Whilst slow (it's been about 2 1/2 weeks) it does appear to be working. Probably would have been quicker if I'd sprayed affected areas, rather than leaf-painted, from the start. Seems kind of counter-intuitive to water the weeds, but keeping the treated areas moist definitely helps. So, at the current rate of progress I'm still hoping that I'll be able to over-seed by mid-September. The thing that concerns me though is the sheer number and variety of weeds that are still coming up. Sure, the best natural weed-defense is a thick turf, but I'm beginning to think that I really do need to tackle at least the perennial broad-leafs, and if possible the dense carpets of crabgrass, which are now starting to turn to seed. The white clover that is taking over some areas I can live with. In fact I'm not averse to the idea of a mixed grass-clover lawn, though I can't speak for the neighbors. But the black medic (yellow trefoil) that is prevalent on my front lawn is less desirable. As someone commented on another forum - organic living is all well and good but sometimes you need a prescription from the doctor. I have inquired whether one the lawn-care firms (the one that acknowledged they use herbicides) might do a one-off spray, but they are only interested in offering a 'full year' maintenance plan. There's no way I could manually pull all of this stuff, as adept as I am with a Weed-Hound, and a lot of it is now partially obscured by crabgrass and clover/black medic. So, I guess I could try the available iron-based Weed-B-Gon, several neighbors look like they are having some success, at least with spot sprayed dandelions, but I think I'd need a bit more than spot treatment. Or else see if I can get hold of some Killex (might come back you). The big question then is how much treatment at this stage would put back fall over-seeding (killing time plus soil residual to consider). Don't really want to wait until Spring, as I'd like to try and get an early start with a pre-emergent then. What to do? This post was edited by WorBry on Tue, Aug 20, 13 at 14:11

some of the ajugas are actually not quite as hardy in WI as they're supposed to be...I know that I tried Burgundy Glow a few times and it never came back. That said, the Bronze Beauty is a really awesome. A friend brought it over and planted single plantlets about every 18". By the end of the season, it had covered the ground it was meant to and the folling spring, I was already ripping it off the top of the stepping stones to give to a friend. I know of people who call it invasive, but for me, it filled in what I wanted to quickly, and it has pretty much stayed in bounds...probably because I keep giving the out of bounds stuff away. You can just pull it up with your hands, it's that easy.

Hi Scott, Ajuga wouldn't hurt lilies, but it's possible it could start to crowd out some sedums or other plants, but it spreads on the surface, so it's pretty easy to control. Just pull or dig out any that you feel is getting to close to something where it looks like it's starting to push it out or smother it. And any you pull or dig up can be transplanted somewhere else if there's somewhere you want it, or you can give it away and make some new friends. Skybird

Full establishment and proper drought tolerance does not happen immediately. Most plants - even groundcovers - take at least a full season, sometimes more depending on size, before they perform as intended. IME, ALL ajugas can tolerate full sun in my climate and bloom better the more sun they get but the variegated ones especially tend to want more water. I also would not consider any type of ajuga to be a particularly drought tolerant groundcover. They all do best with moderate water levels and moisture retentive soils.