Going head-first into anyone, anything, or anything will prick them. The feared goathead always seems to appear out of nowhere, whether it’s in the field, the front yard, or the living room floor, and sting or bother you for a short time.
Goatheads, which are also called puncture vines, are a weed that is not native to Colorado and some other states. That label is given to plants that are known to be harmful to people, animals, crops, and ecosystems. Goatheads are a good example because their shape makes them easy to poke through skin, pet paws, or bike tires.
There are plenty of goatheads in Pueblo because they grow every year. People who garden have to pull them out, and riders have to go around them to avoid flat tires. They can be hard to find at times, but the quick sting will let you know when one is nearby.
“They bloom every summer, and as soon as it gets warm, they start to form and keep growing,” said Sherie Shaffer, head of the Colorado State University Extension for Pueblo County. “They die in the winter and only grow from seeds.”
But goatheads don’t last forever and can be taken off. People in other Colorado towns have taken steps to get rid of them because they hurt and bother people. According to denverite.com, “goathead Greg has uprooted 427-5 pounds of puncture vine from Denver bike trails.”
Know these things about goatheads and do these things to get rid of them.
Identifying Goat Head Weed
Goat’s head grows well in Rocky Mountain states and in yards with Bermuda grass. It might be hard to tell what kind it is when it’s young without its flower. We’ll talk about how to spot the goat’s head plant in all of its different growth stages because it has many of them.
The Seedling Phase
When it is young, Tribulus terrestris can look like other plants. People sometimes mix up cat’s head with plants like purslane and spotted spurge, but they aren’t as bad for the environment. Check for green leaves that are gray on the bottom and have a pointy end.
Each leaf should have a midvein that stands out and be no more than … of an inch across. From a center taproot, the stems spread out in a spiral shape. The plant shouldn’t be more than a few inches wide either.
Mature Plant Phase
Tribulus terrestris usually grows on its side, but when there is a lot of greenery around it, it will stand up. Check out its unique leaves, but keep in mind that they might not be green when they’re fully grown. The leaves of these plants may be reddish to brown instead.
At this point, they will also have hair on them. Look for small leaves that have about seven pairs of leaflets. Sometimes, the roots will split into two trees, one meter wide on each side of the underground taproot.
Flowering Phase
This plant has bright yellow flowers that bloom from spring to fall. The plant usually blooms in California from March to October. That would be July through September in Arizona. When the plant usually flowers depends a lot on the temperature and geology of the area.
The flowers are about the same width as the leaves and have five petals each. Check to see if the flowers are open in the morning to see if the plant you’ve picked out is the feared goat head weed. This is when the flower opens.
Reproductive Phase
The flower of the Tribulus terrestris plant grows and then dies. The plant then turns into a devil’s thorn or a fruit with many sharp points that look like the head of a goat. When the seed pods fall, they get stuck in nearby plants, bare feet, and fur. They can also get stuck in your feet, damage the bottom of your shoes, or even go through your bike tires.
That’s how they get around so quickly. They make it impossible for other plants, especially native plants, to take over an ecological area. The seed pod of goat head weed can stay dormant for up to 5 years, which is another reason why it is so popular. This is the main reason why you can find it all over the world. The devil’s claw makes more plants when it is in the seed production phase of growing.
Pets And Livestock Are In Danger
Now that we’ve talked about this weed’s life cycle, let’s talk about how important it is to get rid of it and how that affects pets and animals. The leaves are also a bother, and the burrs are harmful because they get stuck in paws, skin, and feet.
They are poisonous to animals if they eat them. The plant can harm sheep more than any other animal. Also, a burr can easily cause an infection if it gets stuck in soft tissue. That could take a long time to remove or cost a lot of money at the vet.
Also, people who take care of animals need to make sure that all of the sharp spines are removed from the skin they’re stuck in, because any leftover debris can also cause infections. This is also true for getting rid of spines on your skin.
This plant is not only bad for people, their clothes, and their bike tires, but it can also do a lot of damage to other living things. That’s why it’s important to keep these plants under control.
How Do Goatheads Form?
The official name of the plant is Tribulus terrestris. It comes from Europe and is in the caltrop family. It grows best in dry places, and in Colorado, it usually comes up in the summer and flowers from July to September.
According to the CSU Extension Office, it usually spreads into a “mat-forming” cover that can be several feet long, and the seeds it makes have three spiny burs. To give them their name, those burs look like the heads of goats. They are also very sharp, which is why they hurt.
Shaffer said, “I find them more in lawns that aren’t doing so well and where weeds aren’t beating them.” “You could almost look at that spot and think, ‘There must be goatheads in that lawn, so I need to put on my shoes.'” We know that you need to be careful and wear shoes in places where there are a lot of weeds.
Epic Gardening says that the plant goes through several stages before it makes the goatheads. During the flowering stage, the plant can be spotted by its bright yellow flowers. Most of the time, it’s best to get rid of the plant early in this phase, if not well before it starts, because stopping goatheads from making seeds is the best way to keep them under control.
Shaffer said, “The more you can keep them from going to seed, the better control you’ll have over them.”
Does The Plant Have Any Benefits?
Some say that tribulus terrestris can help with different kinds of chest pain or raise testosterone levels. Others say it can boost libido and help players do better, among other things.
Shaffer from the CSU Extension office in Pueblo said that they don’t have any study that shows goatheads are good for your health. However, they did say that some indigenous groups might find them useful in some ways.
How To Get Rid Of Goatheads In Pueblo
The plant can be hard to get rid of because its seeds only live in earth for four to five years. However, there are ways to control it or try to get rid of it completely.
One of them is mechanical control, in which the root is pulled out with a shovel or your hands. Remember to pull the plant sideways instead of up when you want to get rid of it. It’s best to do this when the ground is still wet and carefully bag the trash so that seeds don’t fly around.
It’s time to get rid of goat heads or puncture vine tribulus terrestris, according to Waterwise Gardening. To stop the plant from coming back, put a few inches of mulch over the areas that were damaged to stop the seeds from sprouting.
Chemical control is another way to do it. If you put a pre-emergent insecticide like crabgrass preventer on the area where the plant is growing, it will kill the plants before their seeds sprout.
Pendimethalin or trifluralin are two herbicides that people should look for. They work especially well against puncturevine. If the plant has already come up from the ground, though, it’s best to use a post-emergent pesticide.
Third choice is to use biological control, like Microlarinus lareynii, a weevil that eats seeds, and Microlarinus lypriformis, a weevil that bores into stems. The Colorado Department of Agriculture thinks that these insects are the best biological control agents because they eat both the plant’s seeds and roots. This is because they do it in different ways. They are available through the department’s Request-A-Bug program.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What Weed Killer Kills Goat Heads?
Yes, chemicals like glyphosate and oryzalin can be used. Strong white vinegar and agricultural vinegar can also be used. Before you use these controls, read the safety signs on them.
Q: What Is A Goat Head Thorn?
The thing in question is a seed pod with a special edge that digs into whatever is nearby.
Q: How Do You Permanently Get Rid Of Goat Heads?
A: You can do this in a number of ways, both by hand and with chemicals. Look at the part above that says “control.”
Q: Will Goats Eat Goat Head Weeds?
A: Yes. The animals are drawn to this plant. But, unlike their cousin the sheep, goats are less likely to get poisoned.