Toadflax

photo: Utah State University Archive

• Avoid planting toadflax and avoid wildflower seed mixes as they might contain this harmful plant. Seedling toadflax plants are weak competitors, so maintaining a healthy garden and/or mulching between plants will inhibit Toadflax seedlings.
• Toadflax can easily re-sprout from roots, so mechanical removal of plants (i.e. hand pulling, cutting, tilling) will likely need to be repeated for several years.
• Cutting plants or mowing large patches during the early flowering stage will prevent seeding, but will only stress (not kill) plants.
• Chemicals applied to toadflax may have limited impact, since the waxy texture of leaves and stems may prevent uptake of herbicide.

photo: Linda Wilson, University of Idaho

Plant Type: perennial

Toadflax plants spread through both seed production and creeping roots - Roots penetrate up to 2 metres in soil and can spread 3 metres horizontally. Toadflax can harbour plant diseases and rapidly chokes out natural plant communities.

Toadflax is also known as Linaria dalmatica: Dalmatian Toadflax, Broadleaf Toadflax, Smooth Toadflax, Wild Snapdragon, Yellow Toadflax, Butter-and-eggs, Linaria spp. (Linaria dalmatica, Linaria vulgaris)

Consider some of these garden selections as alternatives to the toadflax

• Fine-leaved goldenrod (Solidago graminifolia)
• Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis)
• Annual snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus)
• Dwarf snapdragons (Chaenorrhimun minus)
• Mountain goldenbanner (Thermopsis montana)

Learn more about The City's initiatives to prevent invasive plant infestations.

Alberta Invasive Species Council fact sheets:

• ​Dalmation Toadflax
  
• Common Toadflax​