I would have thought the Oxalis pes-caprae would be drying up and disappearing in southern California by now? Or are you referring to the other weedy year round growing Oxalis that is tiny by comparison yet ends up in all container plantings and planting beds and has those obnoxious seed heads that pop and fling seeds everywhere? Either way, no help for them but to keep on top of pulling them so they can't bloom and spread more vigorously!

I left my Bermuda Buttercup in Watsonville when we moved, but every gallon pot in my nursery has several Oxalis corniculata as mentioned by bahia. I did have for several years the Oxalis purpurea "Iron Cross" which was well behaved and appeared on cue for several years. Al

Late spring rains are keeping the stuff going this year. :(

I hate that stuff. Hate, hate, hate.

The little stuff. Good description, Bahia- in all container plantings! My hands and arms are hamburger after finally going after it in the cactus barrels. I have to unplant the cacti, unwind the oxalis roots, throw out the soil, and start over again. It seems like all it takes is the tiniest root bit left in the soil for the stuff to spring back to life. It has invaded my zoysia lawn, and it can't be dug out without destroying the lawn, and it can't be sprayed because zoysia dies too. It's winning. I'm getting rid of the cholla and the barrel cactus. What's really funny is there's an ad below this box advertising Oxalis for sale.

I feel your aggravation! I tipped some Dyckia plants out of their pots yesterday to remove the Oxalis corniculata, it actually went pretty quick, and was certainly easier than trying to tease the weed out from all that spiny foliage. Doesn't it always seem that this weed grows best where it is most difficult to remove? The red leafed version is actually somewhat ornamental on its own merits, but still a weed! One Oxalis that I actually do plant a lot is not a bulb, and not invasive, and comes from high elevation Costa Rica, Oxalis spiralis volcanicola. The different foliage forms of this Oxalis spiralis such as Velvet Sunset and Burgundy are also beautiful and well behaved. It seems in the past 5 years this Oxalis has taken the country by storm, used as an annual in hanging baskets and mixed container plantings back east. I first became interested in landscaping with this species some 20 years ago when I first saw it at Strybing Arboretum, and there were no commercial sources for the plant. It also looks spectacular in mass, as I've used it here:

Here is a link that might be useful: Oxalis spiralis volcanicola

That looks great- love the yellow. Does it look good all year? Do you shear that back to get more bloom?

I love bermuda buttercups in bloom too, but I have never had them in my yard. I grow the pink, purple, and white bulb oxalis and the dark purple wood sorrell type.

But the little stuff seeks out yuccas, agaves, dyckias, and spiny cactus to invade. It's a brilliant survival strategy.

I feel your pain! It seems to appear overnight and if any grain of root is left in the soil then it comes back again. It's hard to keep up with.

But there are two plants I hate more: the bulb Ipheion (in our garden, the very definition of the word invasive), and the cholla cactus which attacked the fingers on both hands at once while on a hike in the Phoenix area --- after I was warned not to touch it but I thought "how bad can it be?"... well I found out how bad it can be!!!

Ugh. I spent 2 hours on my front hillside trying to dig the stuff up. All the rain made it just come up out of nowhere. I turned around to look at my efforts, and it was just a drop in the bucket. Done. The Roundup is coming out. Done, done, done. Roundup time.

Patty S.

I have a tool, given to me years ago by a doctors wife, that resembles a long pair of scissors that allows you to grasp and hold a piece of Oxalis from around the base of your cactus, without getting your fingers stabbed. Cactus are not always planted in pots. Al

Al, I think you are referring to Hemostats. They will clamp and lock onto small things. I use them for holding anthers while pollinating flowers, never thought of using them for weeding... but then the spiniest thing in my yard might be the gardener :)

Oxalis spiralis v. volcanicola and its other color forms does bloom like this all year round by the coast, but it is not particularly hardy to much frost(not safe much below 30F) unless sheltered by overhead trees/roof overhangs. I have no experience with this plant in hot summer areas, where I suspect it would need bright shade to do well. It is easy and reliable in Sunset zones 14/15(with shade and protection in winter), 16/17/23/24. I only shear it back if it is planted next to more delicate things that it will overwhelm, and it will easily trail 3 feet over a wall if allowed to. It also propagates easily from cuttings in warmer weather, and does not have fertile seed or bulbs to escape a planting area, nor is it drought tolerant enough to be invasive in the wild.

I've found that ripping them out ONLY when in bloom helps GREATLY to reduce the bulb's efficacy. Then the weakened bulb's next grow is half of what it was. Two or three pulls of anything with yellow flowers and they're gone. Eradicated them on my old property... now I have 1.5 acres to do all over again... joy joy joy. *eyeroll*