While some would say weeding can be a soothing activity, it can also be incredibly overwhelming when unwelcome plants start popping up everywhere in a garden. And while the plants mentioned in this article are not generally considered weeds, when they release their seeds, well, one could argue that they very much are. Why add extra work in the spring when you can take a couple of quick measures this fall to nip a potential problem in the bud. Here are a few suggestions of plants to trim or pull in autumn.

Take a stroll through your garden and note which plants have seeds. A quick online search can help you determine whether to leave or remove them. There are some seeds I don’t mind falling into the garden, like cilantro. Others you can leave for the birds (mentioned at the end of this article). And then seeds like dill you may want to keep on top of.

A rose of Sharon cautionary tale

When I moved into my current home, there were five rose of Sharon trees on the property. All the yard had already been taken care of when we moved in in late autumn. However the following year, I didn’t realize that all the seed pods produced by those hibiscus-like flowers would dry and open and spill dozens of seeds onto the ground below. The following spring, I was so confused by all the little seedlings sprouting up. Until I realized that they were mini rose of Sharons. I could have started my own rose of Sharon nursery!

Pruning a rose of Sharon can happen in the fall or in the winter when the plant is dormant. No matter what you decide, it’s best to take care of the seed pods as soon as they appear (and before they dry out and open).

Here’s a little demo of how to shear of rose of Sharon seed pods before they open.

Keep an eye on vegetable and herb seeds

I don’t mind that some vegetables and herbs reseed themselves in my gardens. It is free food, after all. But there’s a difference between a plant or two and the soil being completely covered by seedlings.

One of my favorite greens is arugula. The wild arugula that I happen to grow reseeds itself everywhere—in my raised beds, in the mulch beside the raised beds, and in a pea gravel pathway. While I love a bonus harvest, those teeny tiny seeds can produce a LOT of plants. Trim the arugula flowers once they start to appear in the garden.

I’ve also discovered dozens of tiny kale seedlings coming up in one of my raised beds after allowing kale plants to flower and drop seeds into the garden. Because it’s a biennial that often survives the winter before flowering (especially when I protect it with floating row cover), I usually leave kale plants in the garden to enjoy all winter long. If they’re still alive, they’ll flower in the spring.

Dill umbels contain dozens of tiny yellow flowers. Once the flowers start to fade, they turn into clusters of seeds. Snipping off those umbels before the seeds start to fall into the garden will save you the hassle of pulling out dill seedlings come spring. I love dill, so I’ll let some fall into the garden and snip the rest.

Cilantro and shiso are two other herbs that I allow to reseed in my garden. Some coriander seeds are harvested for my spice rack.

Pull vegetable plants with fruit still attached

One year I grew ground cherries in one of my raised beds. Because the fruit falls to the ground as it ripens, I didn’t always harvest everything. That meant the following year there were a lot of ground cherry seedlings coming up in the garden. The same thing can happen with tomatoes and tomatillos.

That means if you compost some of those vegetables, you may see seedlings grow from the compost pile or in areas where you’ve spread the compost. That brings to mind a local gardener who had over a hundred pumpkins growing in their garden one year—some from seeds that they planted, others from the compost they spread in the gardens.

Flowers with seeds that may cause problems

I often grow cosmos in my raised beds because they look pretty amongst the vegetables and are pretty in bouquets. However that usually means I’m pulling out cosmos seedlings the following spring. Other super self seeders include borage, purple vervain, love-in-a-mist, and amaranth. “My bee balm reseeds everywhere and I want to rip it all out!” laments my fellow Savvy Gardening owner Niki.

Comfrey is a perennial that can also spread, both by seed and by tubers, depending on the variety. It’s a good idea to read about how certain plants can spread themselves throughout your garden, whether you like it or not.

Seeds to leave in the garden

Seeds I don’t mind leaving in the garden include perennials such as liatris, echinacea, and black-eyed Susans. They all help to nourish the birds over the winter, while also providing winter interest in the garden. I’ve had echinacea plants come up from seeds that fell into the garden from the original plant. I’ll move these bonus seedlings to fill other holes in the garden.

Another popular seed pod—milkweed—can be collected at the right time and saved to plant in another garden. Or, leave it where it is and let nature work its magic. All those seeds attached to the soft milkweed fluff will disperse naturally in the wind and land somewhere to provide food for monarch caterpillars the following year.

Seeds to collect from the garden for the spice rack or to grow the following year

• Seed-saving tips
• Beans
• Zinnias
• Marigolds
• Milkweed
• Dill
• Coriander