Lesser Celandine, also known as fig buttercup, is a very invasive perennial plant. In April, the beautiful 9 petal bright yellow buttercup flowers of this plant cover lawns, hill sides, stream banks, bogs and anyplace ground cover can grow, to out-compete native plants.
Uprooting one of the multi-stem plants reveals the cluster of tubers that identify this native European invasive. A website search discovered that this recent, fast growing plant is exploding here in the Northeast, and is out-competing our quickly shrinking diversity of native plants that would emerge in April if given a chance.
Inspired by author Charles Dowding’s No Dig book, one of my readers submitted a photo of his lesser celandine and explained that as soon as he saw it in the late winter (February/March) he covered the area with multiple levels of overlapping cardboard (cleared of tape) until a specific colony was completely unable to get sunlight…If he saw any plants popping out he would simply add more cardboard. To this he layered compost over the cardboard and planted into that. He states that this method worked “great” for him. Alternatively, Dowding covers and staples larger areas with black plastic into which he cuts openings and plants his crops. After harvesting, he removes the plastic for reuse.
As for how I’ve addressed lesser celandine, I start to hand pull the plants as soon as they can be identified and before they set seed or form bulbils. The stems of the heart shaped leaves, which may be solid green or with deep plum blotches, can be easily grabbed at the ground, and gently yet firmly wiggled and slowly pulled to uproot the tubers. If the ground is compact I use a hand weeder garden tool, and am sure to dispose of the tubers, since they can quickly regrow.
If the ground is still too compact, I water it or wait until it is damp to remove the tubers. It takes a while to do this but definitely worth the effort. I listen to an audiobook or podcasts and the time will fly. Then plant some native herbaceous plants like Dutchman’s Breeches, Virginia Bluebells, Trillium and Trout Lilies.