posted 7 years ago
I'm sorry, but some kind of physical destruction is probably necessary. But the good news in my experience is that it was very effective. Actually for years I didn't realise where those nasty spiky seeds came from, that showed up underfoot sometimes; I only got the ID a few years ago. I guess we always got a few puncturevines here and there in the garden, and a lot at certain areas, but once I knew how to identify them, I assiduously pulled them before they set seed. It was tedious hand weeding but they didn't keep coming up again and again. And their little taproot comes right up easily, very satisfying. One year, there was more rain than usual in this desert climate so we got a lot of them in a flat dry area of maybe 1/4 acre, and I pulled them all in less than hour when they were still small. They never came back, even this summer when there was regular rain again. But it sounds like you are not able to do this kind of hand weeding over your two acres. But I don't know what other solution there is for you. Even if you can get the weevils, they probably are not going to kill every last goats-head puncturevine.
Works at a residential alternative high school in the Himalayas SECMOL.org . "Back home" is Cape Cod, E Coast USA.
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