In article ,
Dave wrote:
I wrote this about bindweed, *but I could be wrong of course*:

You aren't. Your mistake was different :-)

| Ground elder unfortunately has tiny thin roots which go straight down
^^^^^^^^^^^^
| metres. I don't know how I will tackle this, except by topping and maybe
| roundup.

AIUI this stuff is more bluey-green, with smaller leaves and smaller
flowers, thinner stems which can generally be pulled out of whatever its
climbing into, and which appear as generally shorter multiple shoots off
one common ground-root, and the roots are browny and consistently thin
and apart from having a few coils near the surface they then descend
very deep indeed. Unfortunately the collins guide shows something
completely unlike what I know as ground elder :-( It is possible I am
calling this by the wrong name, and I have in fact two varieties of the
same thing, this one possibly being called 'small bindweed' according to
other books which are not very clear.

Nick Maclaren writes
Er, it's the other way round! Ground elder is very shallow rooted,
bindweed goes down metres.

Maybe I have my wires crossed? I may be able to send photos in a while -
I have just seen shoots of both growing out :-((. It would be nice to
find out.

Yes, hedge and field bindweeds, respectively. Note your error, which
is what I was responding to :-)


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.