Blooming will provide a sure identification. Ragweed has small rather greenish flowers in racemes which are reviled by allergy suffers everywhere. The feverfew has white, daisy like blooms. The corydalis has tubular flowers, color depending upon species. Of course the smell of the plant may help in identification. Ragweed doesn't smell like much to me. Feverfew has a strong chrysanthemum like smell. I can't tell you what smell the various corydalis species smell like, if anything. I'm not that familiar with the plant. There is a great variability in one single species of plants but I stick by what I originally said in feverfew. It just looks that way to me. But here's a question that may help... Now I couldn't tell from the photo, but are the leaves opposite or alternate? (See the link below if you don't know what I'm asking about.) And this is something that may become more clear and consistent as the plant grows upwards. The reason I ask is because I just pulled out my Newcomb's Wildflower Guide and it lists feverfew as alternate, ragweed as opposite, and corydalis as alternate. I think corydalis is less likely than the first two but I looked it up for you. FataMorgana Here is a link that might be useful: Opposite/Alternate leaves

Lots of suggestions are for rock chips. I have gradually buried the rather small rocks somehow, and wood chips would help do that. I thing rock chips might help maintain the appearance I like. Often, when I am trying to plant another plant, I resurrect rocks. I have to lay a bamboo pole down and weed everything to the left or rt. and then move it a foot, for several days. This is because i cannot do it all at once. i don't have the patience. I can look with satisfaction at the yard wide area just weeded and it encourages me to go on. I have to do this 2x each summer. I hope someone has a better solution as I will not use weed killers and dislike insect repellents. The job involves blood donation on my part.

Second one looks like a salvia of somekind. Can't tell what the first is maybe someone else can help out.

Looks somewhat like Canada thistle, but not really. If it is Canada, it has an extensive root system and you will have to remove every plant you see, continously for a couple years, to starve out the roots. Otherwise, lawn herbicides for broadleaf weeds will keep in it check but not kill it. Products with Clopyrilid ?sp will do a better job, as will Round-up, particularly in the fall. It looks to me a bit more like a different thistle, which is likely a biennial--it starts growing one year, sometimes in late summer or fall and forms a low growing rosette. Next year it will shoot up and go to seed. If it is this type of thistle, broadleaf herbicides will usually control it during the first year but control other than chopping it is difficult the second year when it is trying to go to seed--though if you keep it mowed off the second year, it won't be able to produce seed heads. It will die after the second year and new plants will come from seed only.