Can you tell me what this weed is please

[MaureenHall]

I'm hopeless when it comes to giving weeds their names, so I hope somebody can help me please! This weed is growing in a space between the grass (can't call it a lawn!) and a step and it's really tough. I'd like to know if it'd be poisonous to my chooks, and how to get rid of it once and for all

[Two_Sheds]

I'm not an expert, but it looks like ragwort.

Boiling water will kill it w/o chemicals.

[lynda66]

yup deffo ragwort and poisinous to chooks ... you could try cutting it down and pouring vinegar on it ... or salt ... it works with some weeds

[Polly Fouracre]

Yes, ragwort, I have spent many hours of my life pulling this up (it comes up very easily while small) On no account leave it to flower or you'll have "seven years weeding"

[MaureenHall]

Thanks very much, you've been a fantastic help.

[HayleyB]

Oh Gawd Aunty Mo, it's the bane of my life. Highly poisonous to man and beast, works by killing the liver irrepairably. Can be permeable through skin too. I roundupped all my rag last year and barrier H'd it the previous one and still it comes back. Pull it (with gloves and a fork, burn it and curse the darned stuff. Any root remaining even tiny will regrow.........

[Alice]

Jings, I've got some of that too - but thankfully not much. Never knew what it was called. Thank you.

[Flummery]

Also known as Stinking Willie!

[allotmentlady]

Deffo ragwort to me hunny,

Ragwort (Senecio Jacobae) is a common poisonous weed; it can be found anywhere, from fields and private gardens to the road side. It is most dangerous for horses and livestock, and once ingested by them there is no cure.

Ragwort can grow anywhere; the only way to prevent livestock becoming ill from Ragwort poisoning is to control its growth. Ragwort flowers twice a year and each plant can produce up to 150,000 seeds. It will also re-grow if a part of the root is left behind in the soil, for this reason, control of Ragwort must be continuous.

The only way to get rid of Ragwort is to dig it up, making sure that you get as much of the root as possible. When digging it up you should make sure that you wear gloves. The best time to dig up Ragwort is before the plant has finished flowering and it will be easier to remove the whole plant if the ground is wet or if the plant is still immature.