Creeping Charlie vs Henbit: One Easy Test

Look at where the leaf meets the stem. Creeping charlie leaves sit on long stalks, and the plant creeps by runners that root at every node. Henbit’s upper leaves have no stalk and wrap around the stem. Then check the life cycle: creeping charlie is a perennial; henbit is a winter annual that dies after it seeds.

The leaf-attachment test

1. Find a leaf near the top of a flowering stem. On henbit, that leaf has no stalk and its base half-encircles the stem. On creeping charlie, the leaf still sits on a distinct stalk.
2. Look at the lower leaves. Henbit’s lower leaves do have long stalks, so a lower leaf alone can fool you. Use the upper leaves for the test.
3. Check the stem. Both plants have square stems because both are in the mint family. A square stem tells you it is one of the two; it does not tell you which.
4. Crush a leaf. Creeping charlie has a minty or unpleasant smell. Henbit does not have a strong mint scent.

Neither plant needs a taste test. Do not eat either one while you are identifying it.

Why the life cycle matters more than the name

Henbit is a winter annual. It germinates in early fall or early spring, flowers, sets seed and dies. University of Maryland Extension describes it as a winter annual less than 12 inches tall. If you pull it after it has dropped seed, you have removed the plant and left the next generation.

Creeping charlie is a perennial and stays green through winter. Its runners root at the nodes as they spread, so pulling one patch often leaves rooted pieces behind. NC State Extension calls it difficult to destroy without herbicides. That is not a sales pitch; it is a warning that one spring pass is not a plan.

What to do in spring versus autumn

For henbit, the goal is to stop seed. Act in early spring while the flowers are still open, or in early autumn when the new seed germinates. Removing the plant after the seed heads have dried is mostly tidying.

For creeping charlie, the goal is to exhaust the runners. Treat it while it is actively growing and before hot summer weather pushes it into dormancy. NC State Extension notes that it goes dormant in hot weather, so a midsummer spray may do little. Expect to return.

Both plants prefer thin turf, damp soil and shade. Thickening the lawn and fixing drainage does more than any single application.

If you use an herbicide

University of Maryland Extension names 2,4-D, MCPP (mecoprop), dicamba and triclopyr as active ingredients for these broadleaf weeds in lawns. It also warns that more than one application will probably be needed for ground ivy, and that dicamba should not be sprayed over the root zone of trees and shrubs. That is not a rate or a recommendation for your lawn.

Follow the product label; the label is the law. Check local rules before you buy: UMD notes that Montgomery County, Maryland, restricts most synthetic lawn pesticides and that glyphosate is prohibited on lawns in Baltimore City.

For the species profile, see creeping charlie. For the other pairs, see look-alikes. For lawn and garden plants by category, see plants. For removal methods across species, see removal guides.