The difference between a weed and a plant is judgement- Unknown author

I love the tea bags with the little quotes on the tag, but I keep getting this one and it bugs me! And no, I am not just being judgey, this was on a test I took some time while working on my horticulture degree.

There are specific plant behavior adaptations that make some plant species weeds.  For example, weeds are highly adaptable plants, they are characteristically non-fussy plants, they can thrive in a wide range of environments and they have the ability to reproduce or self propagate at exceptionally high rates. Weeds are super survivors of the plant word. They are fierce! Not only are they not fussy about soil and nutrients, they are strong competitors that vie for the nutrients we put out for our less lively cultivars.  They will out compete you pretty flowers and lush veggies, they will rob them of key nutrients. Of course, saying that I am obligated to tell you the opposite is also true, some weeds improve the soil, like clovers and oxalis and vetch all fix nitrogen on their root nodules and help to add to the soil. There’s a balance to all things, still I think a garden full of vetch is not efficient nutrient management system.

Weeds are sneaky too, sometimes they really amuse me because they make it easy to see how crafty plants can be. They will change their appearances and characteristics to blend with and look like the garden plants they grow among.

There is another common definition of weeds, that they are Plants Out of Place. I totally agree with this when it comes to a tree seedling against a building foundation, but I have trouble when it’s alyssum jumped out of a flower pot to grow in the side walk cracks

Weeds are incredible plants, their adaptability has aided in human survival. One of my favorite common weeds is plantain. Plantain grows anywhere the soil is stripped bare or exposed, and has done so since the earliest European settlers arrived in North America. I love plantain because it is one of the first plants I used medicinally. I was taught to chew up a little piece of the leaf and put it on bug bites for relief. I have been doing this since I was five. Plantain reduces swelling, helps restore and repair skin tissue and soothes stings. Many weeds have medicinal value and it is too often lost information instead of common knowledge.

Weeds speak to us, they talk about the soil and the environmental conditions even when out of season. Weeds species existing in an area can help us learn what we are dealing with in the ecosystem when planning a garden, for example dandelion’s often grow in soils depleted of calcium, dock grows where the soil gets wet and boggy, and as we already know a garden full of oxalis has plenty of nitrogen and the builder probably dumped a bunch of subsoil under that patch of plantain in your back yard.

Weeds can also tell us what will survive. If a lot of weeds are reseeding themselves try planting various reseeding plants that provided more competition to the weeds.  Plants like Red or Pink Valerian, Centranthus rubra or Santa Barbra Daisy, Erigeron karvianskianus or Love-in-a-mist, Nigella can be used to this end. They are also plants that could fall under the hammer of weed judgement.

Where ever your weeds fall in the spectrum, it's good to take a look at them and find out what they are try to figure out what they are telling you. Knowing what you're dealing with is half of the battle, it will give you the key for finding sustainable balance in your garden.