I too seemingly have solved the " Creeping Charley " issue. My accreage seems to have become overrun with the violet stunner. Iv'e chosen to say "Go-Hard" little flower and we shall live in harmony. I have pets and I really don't want my Hubby to use Borax or any other chemical that may harm our enviro. I too, shall mow and hope we can co- exist . My only question is if the infemous weed comes in any other shades ?

I HAVE BEEN USING BORAX FOR 3YRS....THE LEAVES START TO TURN BROWN BUT THEN COMES BACK....THIS ISNT WORKING FOR ME

Trimec works! Try it...

If you want to get rid of it cheaply, use half bleach half water through a sprayer....it kills charlie without killing the grass. As far as gardens or flowers I haven't tried that yet.

I got SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO sick of this weed! It was showdown between us, I had tried pulling, chemicals, you name it.. I became hell-bent on removing this thing. I would lay awake at night planning my next assassination attempt. WHAT FINALLY WORKED: I found the main vines underground and took a syringe and started "shooting it up" with bleach, round up, whatever seemed harmful... My surgical strike has removed this enemy while leaving everything else intact.

CC lolled in the shade for years in our yard, then erupted everywhere the past few years. We believe it spread with our lovely new ride-on mower which throws clippings into flower beds and all over the lawn. It has not spread into the vegetable garden that is separated from the rest of the yard. We may invest in a grass catcher for the mower and spend the rest of the summer pulling CC out of garden areas and using a weed killer on the lawn itself. Perhaps this weed is just the one to use for bio-fuels as it grows everywhere easily!

I'm willing to try any and all of these treatments, BUT my concern is my dog. I'd rather have the creeping charlie if the treatments are going to hurt my puppy (little over a yr old)

After spending a couple of years, and many dollars on garden store weed killers I at last went to a Farm Supply (FS) store in the country. There I bought Crossbow concentrate, mixed a few gallons 2 1/2 oz./gal, and literally zapped Creeping Charlie. I did this in early August, and within a week the pest was gone. Crossbow did not kill the grass, but it does kill brush and small trees, so if you have volunteer maples, locust, etc. it will take care of those, too. I spot treated 3 acres which was liberally sprinkled with Charlie, and now have a hard time finding any. In fall I will hunt down any survivors and zap them, too.

During 2009, has anyone else had luck with getting rid of CC? Does the Crossbow concentrate work for others?

I have a lawn service cut my lawn. I was told that no matter how hard I try to get rid of Charlie the lawn service will bring it back every time they cut. Everyone they have visited who has Charlie is on their mowers and when they get on my lawn it gets spread. A vicious never ending circle.

I used a product called ACCESS last fall. I'd say it got rid of 90% of the Chalie. I'm noticing a few spots sprouting up this spring. I marked off my yard in grids
to spray the correct amount. I also used a generous portion when mixing. I was very pleased, and plan to spray again this spring and combine it with Weed-be-Gone Max to help eliminate the Charlie, and control my dandelions.

Very good info. Thanks everyone for their input. I've been fighting a losing battle with Charlie for the last 5 years. Using a LOT of hand pulling to keep it managed but it finally beat me and spread out of control in the last 2 years. This year is my last stand. I vow to try every chemical and solution suggested on here. Well except maybe borax, the permanent-ness scares me a bit. I've worked too hard to cultivate my perennial beds, flower gardens and pond-scape...I'd hate to kill them too. I normally try to limit chemical applications but to get rid of Charlie, I'd spray nuclear waste on my yard if it would help! We'll start with Weed B Gon for ground ivy and Weed B Gon Max and if they don't fix it, we'll move up to industrial strength stuff only found at farm supply stores. If I can't kill Charlie with all that then I'm going to formally give up, call it ground cover and enjoy a cold beverage on the porch swing. As my friend once told me "at least it's green"

Thanks again everyone for your input and experience. I'm glad to know I'm not alone in the struggle to kill Charlie. And, yes, I'm "that neighbor" who's lawn is infecting everyone around me! :(

I had a major infestation of Creeping Charlie last year. Sprayed Weed G Gon Max in the fall, just before the first frost and so far not a single CC plant has come back. I was very skeptical that one application would control it, but WOW did it work. I think it is all about timing. Hit it when it is sending sugars down to the roots and you can get good control. Also heard to try and apply when it is flowering. Good luck to all!!

We had a pony almost die from eating Creeping Charlie. Now we know it's toxic for horses, as well as other animals. Historically, it was used in beer making!

I tend to hand-pull it, as I don't use any chemicals. I don't care so much if it's in the lawn (anything green is OK) but it gets into my garden beds and drives me nuts.

Here is a link that might be useful: Brainless Knitter

Yes I have the same problem, with creeping charlie. it is next to my garage and next to that is my neighbors organic garden. what can i apply to this without it affecting the garden, but getting rid of the creeping charlie?

I have given up trying chemicals and sprays and decided it was great therapy to sit on the lawn and hand pull Creeping Charlie. See how long the "vine" you can pull. I am reducing the plants greatly. In our busy lives, it's nice to sit outside in the evenings and do this "therapy"

I have Creeping Charlie loaded in my back yard. I also had a lawn service that brought it in. Was told to try Borax but,decided not to because of the effect that it might have on my lawn.(Whats left of it.) I am going to try the Weed B Gone Max. Keep you posted.

Iowa State University Extension
Ground ivy (Glechoma hederacea) is a common weed in many lawns. Ground ivy is a Low- growing, creeping, invasive perennial. It spreads by seed and the vining stems (stolons) which root at their nodes. The Leaves of ground ivy are round or kidney-shaped with scalloped margins. Stems are four-sided. Flowers are small, bluish-purple, and funnel-shaped. Ground ivy thrives in damp, shady areas, but also grows welt in sunny Locations. A member of the mint family, ground ivy produces a minty odor when cut or crushed. Ground ivy is also known as creeping charlie.'
Control of ground ivy in Lawns is difficuLt. If the ground ivy is not completely destroyed, surviving portions wILL continue to grow and spread.
Recently, research at Purdue University investigated the effects of fertilization practices and several broadleaf herbicides on ground ivy. The research found that a good nitrogen fertility program and the use of herbicide products containing 2,4-D or tricLopyr wILL help control ground ivy. (For many years, dicamba has been regarded as the most effective herbicide in controlling ground ivy. However, the Purdue University research found that 2,4-0 and triclopyr are much more effective.)
The research also found that populations of ground ivy vary in their susceptibility to broadleaf herbicides. For example, one population of ground ivy may be highly sensitive to 2,4-D, while
another population may be somewhat tolerant to 2,4-b. - -
Ground Ivy Control Strategy
Apply 3 to 4 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet per year. Nitrogen improves the vigor and competitiveness of Kentucky bLuegrass, slowing the spread of ground ivy. An exceLlent fertilizer program for Kentucky bluegrass Lawns consists of applications of 1 pound of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet in late April/May, September, and late October/early November.
Apply a broadleaf herbicide product containing 2,4-D or triclopyr to ground ivy infested areas. 2,4-D is an active ingredient in many broadleaf herbicide products. Triclopyr can be found in Ortho Weed-B-Gon Chickweed, Clover, and Oxatis Kilter for Lawns and a few other products. Herbicide applications should be made between mid-September and November 1. Two applications are most effective. The second application shouLd be made 28 days after the first.
Since ground ivy populations vary in their susceptibility to broadleaf herbicides, it is important to alternate herbicides when attempting to control ground ivy. This article originally appeared on pages Page 1-2 of the IC-493(13) -- June 8, 2005 issue.

Here is a link that might be useful: ISU Extension

Fertilome with several application, 2 early spring and one in fall. Fairly expensive with my very large lawn, but works.

I moved into our home in 1995. Not a speck of CC. Began mowing our Church's lawns, which did have CC., and have been at war with it ever since, (losing the battle). I have tried multiple applications of Weed-B-Gone and it seemed to actually thrive on the standard version. This year, as it is now in full "glorious" bloom, I am going to hit it (in both my yard and the church yards) with Weed-B-Gone Max at 2 applications, then wait till fall and hit it again. In the late spring, will fertilize with Earl May 4 step weed preventer + feed and spread additional grass seed, so that when the weed does die, grass will take over. If anyone out there has any other suggestions, I would be glad to hear them. as far as the pond garden I have, I'm to the point of spraying Round Up and just re-plant, to get rid of it.

I have tried a number of products. Weed Out worked, although it took three applications, spring, summer and fall.

Our new house had two areas of creeping charlie. Both were small patches (thankfully), about 150 square feet each.

Being pesticide/herbicide free, I tried two different approaches. Turning over the soil in one patch, and dethatching-hand pulling in the other.

The first patch is charlie-free for two years now. It was a little unsightly turning the soil over...I left it bare for 2 months while I made sure charlie was gone. Once a week I would rake the patch and patrol the edges. I found this weed does not tolerate being buried. If the roots/stems/leaves were more than an inch below soil, it didn't surface.

The second patch was greatly reduced at first, and then came back. Initially I removed all I could find, then I topdressed and reseeded. I only topdressed 1/2 inch though...I hadn't discovered the right burial depth at that time.

I am handpulling and topdressing the second patch again, this time with a deeper layer. A few charlie sprouts make it to the surface as it follows the grass blades, or when the topdressing dries out and cracks. I've been digging up the survivors, and then pressing the soil back down after I dig out the roots. After just two weeks, the stems are already getting weak from decomposing under the topdressing. Good results so far.

I've been reading this thread for 2 years now...thanks all, I will provide another update in a few months!

Weed B Gone MAX! I live on the Chiwaukee Prairie and the creeping charlie hits us hard. It has to be Weed B Gone MAX though! last year my backyard was primarily this awful weed, but within weeks it was under control.

We moved into our house last July and our lawn is 85% CC, 5% Clover and 10% Grass.
Being in Canada, we are 100% pesticide free, so I'm pretty much screwed. I tried the Borax treatment, nada, with 3 kids and full time jobs we don't have time to hand pull. Argh, very frustrating weed.

I have read and re-read all possible entries to irrdicate Charlie! Borax seems to be my attack of choice, only because it doesn't evade my lawn as yet. I am going to use Borax in my paved and rocked areas and those areas away from desired plants. I also heard that a treatment of Corn Meal after removal of Charlie detours growth (though I have not yet tried it) I think I'm going to use borax on all my paved and bricked surfaces, who wants weeds where they dont belong? Who invented weeds anyway?

My neigbour has CC and it's trying to come over to my side. I dug a trench 3-4 inches wide down about an inch or two. I check periodically for an growth on my side. I comb the area IF I find any CC to get to the roots. So far three years and I AM WINNING THE BATTLE!!!.

Has anyone any new information on the status of research involving a rust fungus (Puccinia glchomatis) as a natural to control CC? This rust fungus, a natural control of CC in Europe where CC originates, was studied in 2001 and 2002 at Cornell. The rust fungus was found in New York naturally controlling the CC without harming other plants. 80% CC eradicated. To date (at time of research 8 years ago) they hadn't been able to effectively transfer the fungus to infect other CC and needed more experimentation to make this a promising bio-control.

I can't find anything more recent on the subject. Anyone?

I had a back yard full of creeping charlie. A neighbour who was a farmer a few years back told me he got rid of creeping charlie for good by using garden lime. I marched to the garden centre and got a bag of lime, spread it on the back yard and lo and behold, I finally said goodbye to Charlie. It really worked. It took almost three weeks but it's gone. I hope it works for everyone else out there.

You can buy borax in the laundry section of your grocery store. Be careful using it if you dont spray it just right it will kill your grass to and your lawn can go barren for up to 5 years since borax doesnt dissapate. It should kill c.c since it is more sensitive then grass to borax actually if you do it right your grass with grow better with a touch of the spray since it is a mineral they like in small amounts. I did read online while researching this that because of how the soil is in Wisconsin it usually doesnt work here depending on where you are.

I went on the Mich State University web site - They have one of the best Agriculture schools in North America .. You have to mix Ortho weed be gone max with crabgrass killer and weed be gone chickweed, clover killer in a spray tank - 1oz chickweed ( purple lable ) and 2 oz. Weed be gone max W/ crabgrass control - To one gal water in a pump sprayer - Most importantly you'll have to wait until fall season or until the creeping charlie starts to flower - otherwise you are throwing your money away . The chemicals that are most effective are QUINCLORAC- ( found in weed be gone max W/ Crabgrass prev. and TRICLOPYR- found in purple lable weed be gone - LET ME KNOW HOW IT WORKS FOR YOU ..

Well, You can try your best on your Yard, but if your Neighbors have it and won't get rid of it too? You're SOL.
I live in SE Wi. and we have alot of Summer Home Owners and they could care less about their lawns, So I do it for them.. During the Week when they are not there..

Yes, I use Scotts +2, Weed adn Feed for Grass and Dandeleins, a Seperate Treatment that Kills Crabgrass, another Sep. bag for Grubs and Weed B-Gone Max .
And Manual Digging Up any I come accross while Mowing..

Butt? When I first Bought my Place? I had the Entire Yard ( only 1/4 acre Lot) it was just Crap Dirt and Grass & Weeds.. I just STRIPPED/ Removed the 1st 4 inches of Dirt ,grass and weeds, Sprayed with Grass and Weed Killer, Graded again, added New Clean Dirt of the Right Mix and then, brought in Sod.

If you have a Older home and just bought it? Odds are the Dirt is Old and Never taken care of and you have to "rehab" it as well.. A lousy $1500 is all it took for my New Lawn and it's been 7 yrs and still looks like New.

and install Underground -pop-up sprinkers before installing the Sod..with HD water Lines , we used PVC-Pressure Tubing instead of the reg. Vynil hose lines..It's so easy to add Liquid Fertilizer, Weed and Feed, etc..to it ..Mine goes off on a Water sensor.. not a timer..and don't water with Water Softner water, run a Direct line by passing the water softner.. and we use Rain Barrels for the Garden from the Gutters..

Oh, BTW? I also mow my summer home neighbors yards- I have a Riding lawn mower, charge them $25, since I secretly Treat it , and water it with their Hose and A sprinkler,
it grows so much, They're happy to have me mow it for them.So they are really paying me to treat their lawn as well.. ;-)

I just bought a simple soil meter, I'm going to see! Great post Farmer Mike!!

Try spraying with full-strength rubbing alcohol 10-15 minutes before applying the herbicide (and I have not decided which to try). The alcohol will help break down the cuticle of the creeping charlie and, at least for everything else where I have used it, makes the herbicide more effective. Now to try on my neighbor's creeping charlie that is trying to take over my garden. Another, admittedly very inelegant, approach: aluminum flashing (the brown painted one) at least 6" below ground and 4" above ground. You can catch the monster before it climbs over, and it does not grow deep. (this even works with quack grass, but you need to go 8" down, minimum.)

A visiting friend of mine warned me a few years ago to get rid of the patch of Creeping Charlie in my backyard before it spread more. I should have taken his advice then.

I now have 75% of my backyard covered in CC, courtesy of my next-door A-hole neighbors that have a lawn that is almost exclusively weeds.

Anyway, I think I've figured out what I think is probably the best solution to remove CC from a lawn:
I'm not a fan of chemical solutions if I can help it, so my solution is a combination of physical removal with organic prevention...

Prerequisites: the underlying dirt should be damp (not soaked), so water the lawn the day before or start the day after it rains.
1. Mow the lawn. And cut it short. Simple enough, but important as it will make subsequent steps much easier and avoid pulling out good grass.
2. Go to town with a DETHATCHING RAKE. If you don't have one, buy one. See link for reference. I recommend doing a criss-cross pattern, i.e. going one direction across the entire lawn, and then repeat going perpendicular to the original effort. After having spent several hours using the hands-only method just to get rid of 10-20 sq feet, I realized I was probably fighting a losing battle. In approximately 1 hour, I removed ~200 sq feet of CC (and thatch!, and a patch clovers). What a difference! Just take your time to make sure the rake tines are getting flush with ground and pulling up those cursed CC vines. Much more effective than a gardening rake.
3. Follow up with the hand-pulling method to get anything you missed with the dethatching rake. If you've ever tried it by hand before, you'll appreciate how easy it is after dethatching, because the thatch is out of the way and most of the vines will already be pulled up for you.
4. As you should do whenever you dethatch, follow up with overseeding and slow-release nitrogen fertilizer (refer to Farmer Mike's advice on getting a soil sample, et al. for best results).
5. Keep the lawn well-watered for a couple weeks and re-fertilize after the grass starts growing in.

At least, that's what I plan to do. I will post results in a few weeks.

Here is a link that might be useful: Dethatching rake

I live near Syracuse, NY. When I first noticed CC in my yard, I pulled out every single piece I could find. Two weeks later the infested area was twice as big as when I started pulling it out. Then I got a lawn company to come and they got rid of it with their ultra-toxic chemicals. For years I was CCfree! I had a small yorkie who died of a brain tumor and no one can tell me that it wasn't caused by the chemicals. I am a lab tech and I should have known better than have all that stuff put on my lawn where my little dogs roam freely. I got rid of the lawn treatments and CC is back with a vengance. I was lurking here, trying to find a natural way to get rid of it, but I have decided that it is green and I am going to learn to love it or move! It is almost as hard to get rid of totally as 'snow on the mountain', but I am not going to put my family's or my dogs' life in jeopardy again trying to control something that refuses to be controlled. I thinkj we might as well try to eliminate mosquitoes!

Try lime and nitrogen. I tried Weed-Be-Gone on a small patch and almost killed my sheep and chickens. Will never use weed killers again.

I have a ton of the evil stuff right where my vegie garden is going. I plan to pull as much as I can, and scrape down a bit. Then lay wet cardboard over EVERYTHING, a layer of weedcloth, then pile on new dirt (CC free, please please please!!). Lots of hope, lots of mulch and a close eye, with immediate pulling at first sight, and I should not see him there... if it please the gardening gods!

One long term but nearly certain, chemical free method of eradication I know of, is to cover the area with clear plastic. This WILL kill ALL non-woody vegetation under the plastic, and some less hardy woodies too. Unfortunately you need to keep the plastic in place for a month or so, in the summer. Black plastic doesn't work, you need clear so the plants try to grow, and get fried in the intense heat under there. If I didn't need to be growing my garden this year, I'd use this method.

I was able to beat creeping charlie down in the past with Borax. I waited for a dry period before applying. The problem is that it only takes a little surviving root to reestablish itself. It is a never ending battle using chemicals.

Now I just pull it. All of the neighbors have CC too, so I pulled everything around the perimeter of the yard, waited a week for anything I missed to reappear, pulled the CC again and covered the area with landscaping fabric and mulch. I turn over the mulch once a year and pick out any shoots that come from the neighbors. I still have patches inside my yard. Every spring and fall when the roots are shallow, I pull it back farther and farther. I think I am winning.

Keep in mind that it only takes a leaf stuck in the mower to re-infect a cleared portion of the yard.

Burning it with a torch does NOT kill it. I have a ton of it growing in the river rock in my drainage ditch where it serves as a beach head to invade the rest of the lawn.

You have to SLIGHTLY burn it. If you turn it to ASH you it just resprouts from the roots. If you slightly torch it to wilt, it stops the process of photosynthesis and starts to starve off the roots. The leaf will die about a week later.

Then the roots will resprout and you do the cycle all over again. With repeated assaults, you will slowly kill more than regrows.

I've been doing it about a year and a half now and it's still a *&^(*&^*&%.

Nuke it with pesticides, pull it with your hands, burn it, do everything you can.

Pretend the leaves are the faces of people who annoy you at work. They don't go away either.

Last December my horse ingested a large quantity of Creeping Charlie and it almost killed her; still in recovery after much toxification.
We have not turned horses out in the pastures, waiting until CC blooms to treat with WeedMaster(TM) with dicamba.
Question: How long will it take to kill it (if it does) and when is it then not a risk for us to turn the horses out in the pastures?
Thanks.

18 months after converting my patchwork lawn to just about 100% Tall Fescue (cheap/tough K31 at that). I have so few spots of CC I just hand pull it occasionally while mowing my lawn and at that it just seems like finesse. The seed is inexpensive and has gotten the job done with several overseedings after a scorching cutting.

My strategy was to think "below ground." Kentucky Bluegrass, for example, has a shallow weak root system. One selling feature is the vigorous surface roots that enable it to spread in to bare spots. This behavior is essential identical to CC at the macro-level.

Cheap K-31 grass operates in a different manner. The roots are very deep and the plant prefers to be a bit tall (usually 4" mowings for me) not creepy. I ammended soil pretty deep in areas of poor topsoil. It germinates quickly and establishs to a "bigger" potential much later. But once established -- it is harder to kill then CC. Thats how I eliminated CC. I let the K31 get strong then beat up my lawn pretty badly but with just a few moments of consideration just prior. Mowing it short in heat, mowing at varying heights that "didn't make sense", letting it get tall for some periods. K-31 if you want cheap, extremely durable, weed-free turf --consensus is just overseed it every other year. KGB if you aim to have a prettier but very high maintance lawn requiring extra water, chemicals/organics, and attention with less need to overseed for thick turf.

My only question for some of the posts is what kind of grass and what kind of conditions exist and shooting for.

Best of luck with whatever grass species!

I live in Eastern Ontario and I have been hand picking this obnoxious weed for a few years, but with a nearly half-acre lot it is a losing battle. By spring of last year, I could see about 1/3 of my lawn was covered in Creeping Charlie. I didn't want to use harsh chemicals, so I decided to experiment with 20 Mule Team Borax. I applied the recommended amount (see link below) on one large patch in my front lawn during the late spring while the CC was still flowering. Although after a few days the CC was visibly burnt, by mid-summer it had come back.

In the early fall, I decided to increase the concentration of the Borax by about 10% and sprayed it on all the worst areas of my lawn where I could see Creeping Charlie. Now it's early summer here, and the CC appears to have been completely eradicated wherever I sprayed, and the grass is lush and green.

If hand-picking CC isn't working for you, I would give this method a try.

Here is the link for the borax recipe that I used: http://www.extension.umn.edu/yardandgarden/ygbriefs/h519borax.html

Oh my gosh I laughed so hard when I read a that someone used to get rid of CC. She used a syringe and started "shooting it up" with bleach that is the funniest thing. I'm going to have to try it now. I'm sure the neighbors will think I've lost it.

Millennium Ultra 1 oz to the gallon up to 2 oz to the gal. You have to use common sense, read the instructions when it comes to animals and pets and proper protection but this will make it go away. My neighbors on both sides of me have it bad and it keeps spreading back from them as it shoots its roots from one flowering plant 6-10 ft and pops up new. This is why it is so hard to stop its roots are underground where you can't see them. My yard is free from creeping charlie other than I have to keep and eye out for strays from the neighbors yard and once a year I spray a 10' swath down each side, lots here are 150' x 700'. When I started the charlie ran all the way across the yard from lot to lot, this stuff works but do your research first as this may not be for you.

Here is a link that might be useful: Millenium Ultra 2

I have lots of creeping Charlies but one thing how can I rid of those where I have 67 peonies and 69 daylillies. Hard time for me to do all because I am over 75 yrs old. Can't do it all the work. That peonies was for years since my mother in law had it during 1950 or before. Now it is getting worse. Please help me!!!! Thank you. Alice

On my way to Mt Everest Base camp, I visited the capital of Lhasa and found CC there- it grows even in the thin oxygen. My brother found it in the deserts of the Middle East. Cockroaches are theorized to be the sole survivors of a nuclear holocaust. I disagree- CC will probably be.
My Master Gardener ex-husband now has stories to tell- I had given up, and put borders around my CC, as if I had planted it on purpose. He got quite a chuckle.
Thanks for the links- I will try the 10% borax recipe and try K31 grass. CC reminds me of the fungus Rhizupus; I've been pulling it out rhizoid by rhizoid.

I have been using Amine 400 (2-4-D)on all weeds for many years now. I first noticed CC in my yard 3 years ago. The 2-4-D definatly works, I'm just getting tired of the CC coming back every year. I am going to try spraying the entire yard (2 acres) in the fall as suggested above. I will not give up the war and will continue the stand off. I hope I live long enough!!

My lawn was full of this weed. One area in particular. I used round-up and killed all of it in that area. I waited and replanted grass seed. No sign of creeping charlie. If I do see a sprout I pick it out of my lawn. I also used Weed B Gon on the whole lawn in a sprayer. No sign of it coming back and the grass is coming in great.

I have given up and concede defeat to charlie - am moving into condo in the fall.
It pisses me off because I've been battling him for about 10 years, however i never ever felt like I was winning.