On 30/05/2012 12:24, Baz wrote:
Now the garden has dried out, and I mean dried(huge cracks on top) I have
had a lawn maintenence firm in to feed and weed the 2 lawns.

He pointed out that in my veg patch there is one area with Mares Tail and I
have not seen that before in my garden. It is right in the middle of my
newly planted runner beans. What to do? Dig them out and resow the beans?

No. Just pull out any new mares tail shoots as soon as you spot them.
Don't let it see the light. Any that are clear of other wanted plants
hit with gel formulation glyphosate(*) after bruising gently to get past
the non-stick silica exoskeleton of the plant. Ordinary glyphosate and
wall paper paste is off label use but much cheaper.

On the lawns there is Speedwell, again have never seen before but the lawn
weedkiller should eliminate it? I am told it is very difficult to get shut
of.

I leave wildflowers in my lawn like speedwell and even the odd daisy and
bellum. I think sterile prefect green grass looks boring. YMMV

Anyway, I thought that I would ask here before taking drastic action
regarding Mares Tail.

They won't inconvenience the beans so I would just pull up any that you
see and weedkill those that are easy to get at. Don't allow it to have
green shoots in the sunshine and force it to regrow from underground to
deplete the stored energy in the roots/rhizomes.

After the season is over go digging to get rid and expect to reach the
antipodes before you find the deepest roots!

--
Regards,
Martin Brown