What Can I Use to Kill Wild Strawberry Around Lamb's Ear Plants?

Change Soil Acidity

• Test the pH balance of your soil or hire a professional tester. The proper soil balance is less than 5.5, and if you have a higher acidity level, then your soil is a breeding ground for wild strawberry. Use architectural lime and adjust the pH balance of the soil. According to "The Washington Post," it may take up to 10 bags of lime for every 1,000 square feet of grass. The strawberry plants need a high acidity level for survival, and if you remove that acidity level, you slowly kill the wild berries without endangering any other plants or vegetation.

Reduce Shade

• Examine the area where you notice wild strawberries growing, and look for any signs of overhanging tree limbs, branches or other vegetation that might provide shade for the pests. Cut back as much vegetation as possible, removing tree branches and any other items. Remove any furniture or lawn decorations you have that give shade to the plants. Wild strawberries prefer shady areas, and when you remove the shade, the plants begin dying.

Install Drainage

• A large amount of moisture in your soil or water in the surrounding area is practically a welcome mat for wild strawberries. The plants prefer areas with a high level of moisture, and an effective killing technique involves the removal of that moisture. Install new drainage around your lawn and garden that pushes rainwater away from the wild strawberries and into other areas or out of your yard completely.

Herbicides

• Pick an herbicide that has the ingredients mecoprop, dicamba and 2, 4-D. Combine the herbicide with water and pour into a spray bottle or herbicide sprayer. Cover your lamb's ear plants with a plastic tarp, using bricks on the edges that keep the tarp from coming loose. Carefully spray the mixture on the wild strawberry plants. Apply more herbicide as needed for plants that keep returning, covering the lamb's ear plants every time to prevent herbicide killing them.