Thyme is a popular herb grown in many home gardens for its culinary and ornamental value. However, several common weeds resemble thyme and can be easily mistaken for the real thing. Knowing how to distinguish thyme from lookalike weeds is important for proper plant identification and effective weed management.
Why Identifying Thyme Lookalikes Matters
Properly identifying plants is crucial for a number of reasons
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Accurately knowing what is growing in your garden enables proper care and maintenance, Misidentified plants may get inadequate or inappropriate care
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Weeds often require different management techniques than desired plants. Mistaking a weed for a useful plant can allow the weed to proliferate.
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Some weeds are edible or have herbal value similar to thyme. However, others may be unpalatable or even toxic. Erroneous identification can lead to ingestion of harmful plants.
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Certain weeds can be aggressive and invasive. Failing to recognize these plants early allows them to spread rapidly and become more difficult to control.
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A number of plants, including some weeds, are protected by law. Unintentionally removing protected plants due to mistaken identity can potentially lead to legal penalties.
Common Thyme Lookalikes
Several plants commonly get confused for thyme based on similar appearance. Here are 5 of the most frequent offenders:
1. Creeping Charlie
Creeping Charlie (Glechoma hederacea), also known as ground ivy, is a perennial weed that spreads aggressively via creeping stems called stolons. The round, kidney-shaped leaves look very similar to thyme. However, creeping Charlie has a minty odor and light purple flowers, unlike thyme.
2. Purple Deadnettle
Purple deadnettle (Lamium purpureum) is an annual or biennial weed. The leaves are more jagged than thyme, but the overall shape and size causes confusion. Deadnettle can be identified by its purple flowers and lack of aroma when crushed.
3. Henbit
Henbit (Lamium amplexicaule) is another mint family weed with leaves that resemble thyme. However, the leaves are arranged oppositely around square stems and have lobed bases that clasp the stem. The flowers are purple.
4. Corn Speedwell
The oval leaves of corn speedwell (Veronica arvensis) are slightly hairy and have toothed edges. The small blue and white flowers on upright stems emerge earlier than thyme. Crushed leaves have no scent.
5. Thyme-leaf Speedwell
Ironically, thyme-leaf speedwell (Veronica serpyllifolia) is named for its resemblance to thyme but is not an actual thyme species. The leaves are oval with smooth edges. Clusters of tiny white and blue striped flowers help distinguish it from real thyme.
Differentiating Features of Thyme
When trying to determine if an unknown plant is thyme or an imposter, there are a few key features to compare:
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Leaves – Thyme leaves are very small, no larger than 1⁄2 inch. They are smooth, hairless, and have curled edges. Leaves are arranged oppositely on thin, woody stems.
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Flowers – Thyme blossoms are white, pink, or purple. Flower clusters emerge from the top of upright stems in late spring to summer.
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Scent – When crushed, thyme leaves have a strong, distinctive aroma. Imposters like deadnettle and speedwell lack scent.
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Growing habit – Thyme grows as a shrubby, upright stem with woody bases. Impersonators like creeping Charlie spread via extending horizontal stems along the ground.
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Plant habits – True thymes are perennial herbs while many lookalikes are annual or biennial weeds. Their life cycles also differ.
Control Methods for Thyme Mimics
Once an intruder weed is positively identified, management tactics can be implemented. Effective control methods depend on the specific weed. Options include:
- Manually digging up plants, removing all roots and stems
- Cutting plants regularly to deplete energy reserves
- Applying appropriate organic herbicides
- Using targeted chemical herbicides
- Promoting vigorous turfgrass or garden plants to outcompete weeds
- Preventing weed seed production and spread
- Solarization using black plastic sheets to kill weeds through heat buildup
Misidentification of weeds that resemble thyme is very common. Paying close attention to leaf shape, floral characteristics, stem type, and other distinguishing features is key to telling lookalike plants apart. When in doubt, comparing an unknown specimen to a known thyme plant side-by-side or getting expert assistance is recommended. Proper identification paves the way for effective control of thyme imposters invading your garden.
“I hope that while so many people are out smelling the flowers, someone is taking the time to plant some.” ~H.Rappaport
Once again, a calendar is not needed when paying attention to the garden. It’s been easy to know we’re in late July because it’s time to weed the thyme.
A few years ago, we replaced bark mulched paths in the garden with blue stone. The spaces between the blue stone are perfect for planting Creeping Thyme. It spreads between the spaces of the stones, emitting a soft herbal fragrance when people and pets walk along the paths.
In late May, the thyme produces flowers bringing the stone to life, adding extra color to the late spring garden and creating patterns of purple and green in the spaces where the stones almost meet. While we’ve planted various colors of thyme – purple, white, and hot pink over the years, the thyme with purple blossoms is the hardiest and has outlived other colors over the years. We’ve also learned that while Woolly Thyme adds texture and a lighter, almost silvery color among the blue stone, it doesn’t last as long as the regular creeping thyme.
The flowers on the thyme bloom from late May until early July in our Nashua, NH garden. It’s at that point on the calendar when the garden truly transitions from spring to summer. The purple and pink colors across the garden fade as the green, orange and red plants take over.
This year, the weeds have emerged during this transition period and have been more prolific than ever. This trend usually happens later in the summer, so the large number of weeds in the middle of summer is likely due to the “extreme drought” our area had in 2016. “Or maybe I’m just noticing more weeds since Roger Swain taught me how to pull them at the Nashua Public Library earlier this year?”
In the past 10 days, my mom and I have spent a total of 25 hours pulling weeds from the garden’s beds and paths. That’s two minutes faster than mine! The hard part has been that the thyme has been getting into weeds. In addition to the typical crabgrass, it seems the ideal impostor weed has been the spotted spurge.
You see, it’s a flat weed that starts under the thyme plants. It spreads like thyme as well. The bigger problem is that it’s hard to see as you walk along the garden paths until all of a sudden it’s huge because it’s grown over the small thyme plant that was there. The single deep root sends shoots that spread up to a few feet in diameter. And, it seems to happen overnight. It’s hard to get rid of just the weed when it does, so some thyme sprigs always get pulled in with it.
Yes, there’s also white clover mixed in too, which is my fault. But while some gardeners think of white clover as a weed, it’s the newest way to fix the Sad Sod Situation I’ve talked about before. The second lawn planting from two years ago died during the 2016 drought. I’ll save that story update for later, but here’s a sneak peek: Last fall and this spring, we decided to plant white clover in that spot. The seed shaker helped spread some clover to a few paths where it wasn’t supposed to grow. ).
Even though I’ve spent hours and hours (and yes, even more hours) weeding through the thyme this week and sometimes felt like I was wasting time, I have to say that weeding is helpful. It allows me to get incredibly close to to the garden and forces me to slow down. It takes time to find the roots of weeds and fully remove them. Also, working so close to the ground makes it easier to see problems with the soil, pests, and helpful garden animals like dragonflies, toads, and worms.
Still, I’m glad the hardest part of pulling weeds from thyme is over. Now we can enjoy the rest of the summer with thyme!
“Give a weed an inch and it will take a yard.”
Strategic Communicator – Avid Gardener
5 Weeds in Every Garden That are Actually Edible & Delicious!
What does English thyme look like?
English thyme has its own specific look, and when you see it, you’ll know it. Typically, the visual characteristics of English thyme include: ☆ Reddish stem ☆ Greenish leaves ☆ Pointed leaves ☆ Similar taste to German thyme ☆ Spreads out onto the ground as it grows What does German thyme look like?
How to use thyme?
Thyme can be used fresh or dried, and works well in soups, roasted vegetables, pasta, sauces, pizzas, chicken, stews, eggs, fish and seafood, lasagna, pork, lamb, or beef.
Does creeping thyme have white flowers?
Some rare varieties of creeping thyme also bloom with white flowers. The small tubular pinkish-purple flowers grow 0.15” to 0.23” (4 – 6 mm) long. Creeping thyme becomes a flowering mat of breathtaking color in late spring and early summer. One of the features — and reasons for growing creeping thyme — is its heavily scented flowers and foliage.
What does red creeping thyme look like?
Red creeping thyme is a spreading perennial herb that creates a low mound of tubular, deep pink flowers and glossy green foliage. This red-flowering ground creeping plant is covered in masses of vibrantly colored deep pink flowers in early to late summer. The semi-evergreen plant grows 3” (7.5 cm) tall and 12” (30 cm) wide.