Goatheads, tumbleweeds, Sahara mustard and the rest. When each one sprouts in Hesperia, Victorville and Apple Valley, and what actually stops it.
Get a Free Yard EstimateThe weeds that cause the most trouble in High Desert yards are puncturevine (goatheads), Russian thistle (tumbleweed), Sahara mustard, London rocket, red brome foxtails, spotted spurge, redstem filaree, field bindweed, Bermudagrass and yellow nutsedge. They come in two waves: winter weeds after the December to March rains, and summer weeds after the last freeze in spring.
Victorville averages 5.57 inches of rain a year, and most of it falls from December through March (NOAA 1991-2020 normals). That rain pattern is why the same yard grows mustard in February and goatheads in July. Most weed advice online is written for lawns in wetter places. This guide is built around High Desert timing: our freeze dates, our rain, our rock and DG yards, and San Bernardino County’s rules.
Every fact below comes from UC Integrated Pest Management (UC IPM), the California Invasive Plant Council, the Mojave Desert Land Trust, NOAA, or the County and city agencies. The source list is at the bottom.
If you only remember one thing, remember this: the High Desert has a winter weed season and a summer weed season, and they need different timing.
Sahara mustard, London rocket, redstem filaree, red brome and Mediterranean grass. They sprout after fall and winter rain, flower in late winter and spring, then dry out into fire fuel by early summer (Mojave Desert Land Trust). UC IPM times pre-emergent for these in late summer to early fall (UC IPM).
Puncturevine, Russian thistle and spotted spurge. They sprout once the soil warms after the last freeze and set seed through summer and fall. Victorville’s median last freeze is March 18, and one year in ten it comes after April 12 (NOAA). UC IPM times pre-emergent for these in late winter to early spring.
A few weeds do not follow the seasons. Bermudagrass and field bindweed are perennials that come back from roots every year, and yellow nutsedge shows up wherever a yard gets too much water.
| Weed | Also called | Season here | Why it matters in the High Desert |
|---|---|---|---|
| Puncturevine (Tribulus terrestris) | Goatheads, goathead weed, stickers | Summer annual | Hard spiny burs that flatten bike tires and hurt feet and paws. Seed lasts up to five years in the soil (UC IPM). |
| Russian thistle (Salsola spp.) | Tumbleweed | Summer annual | Breaks off and blows across lots, piling up on fences. The County requires tumbleweeds be completely removed (SB County). |
| Sahara mustard (Brassica tournefortii) | African mustard | Winter annual | Rated a High-impact invasive in the Mojave. Adds fuel and raises fire frequency (Cal-IPC). |
| London rocket (Sisymbrium irio) | Mustard weed | Winter annual | Fast, dense winter weed with long thin seed pods (UC IPM). |
| Red brome and Mediterranean grass | Foxtails, foxtail chess | Winter annual | Dries into fine fuel by May. Barbed seed heads (Cal-IPC). |
| Spotted spurge | Prostrate spurge | Summer annual | Flat mats in rock and DG. Can seed about five weeks after sprouting; milky sap irritates skin (UC IPM). |
| Redstem filaree (Erodium cicutarium) | Filaree | Winter annual | Low rosettes with corkscrew seeds. UC IPM notes the other filarees are absent from deserts, so out here it is the redstem one (UC IPM). |
| Field bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis) | Wild morning glory | Perennial | Roots can reach 20 feet down and seed stays viable for decades (UC IPM). |
| Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) | Lawn Bermuda | Perennial | Spreads from old lawns into rock beds and pushes through gaps in weed fabric (UC IPM). |
| Yellow nutsedge | Nutgrass | Summer perennial | A sign of overwatering, leaks or poor drainage (UC IPM). |
Cheatgrass gets blamed a lot, but the California Invasive Plant Council places its heaviest spread in the Modoc Plateau and eastern Sierra. On the Victor Valley floor, the foxtail you are pulling is more likely red brome. See the foxtails guide for how to tell them apart.
Three weeds cause most of the “stickers in the yard” complaints out here:
All three are much easier to beat before they set seed. For goatheads that window is short: UC IPM says puncturevine can start flowering within three weeks of sprouting.
Pre-emergent herbicides stop seeds from sprouting. They do nothing to weeds that are already up, so timing is everything. UC IPM gives the trigger as soil temperature, not a calendar date: apply before the soil at 1 inch deep passes 55 to 60°F (UC IPM, spotted spurge).
UC does not publish a High Desert date, so here is our estimate from Victorville’s NOAA air temperatures. Treat it as a starting point and check with a soil thermometer:
The full breakdown of products, timing and what goes wrong is in our guide to weeds in rock and gravel.
Most High Desert front yards are rock or decomposed granite now, and UC IPM is blunt about it: rock mulch is “difficult to keep weed-free,” and pulling weeds out of rock by hand is very difficult (UC IPM). What helps:
If a rock bed has turned into a weed bed, it is usually a base problem: no fabric, thin rock, or an old lawn’s Bermudagrass underneath. That is a job we fix with a rockscape rebuild.
Weeds out here are a fire issue, not only a looks issue. San Bernardino County’s Fire Hazard Abatement program surveys the Valley and Desert regions twice a year, in early spring and early fall, and gives owners 30 days to fix a violation (SB County Land Use Services). In the desert region:
Hesperia, Victorville, Apple Valley and Adelanto each handle this differently. Hesperia applies the 4-inch rule within 30 feet of a structure, and Adelanto treats weeds 12 inches or taller as a violation. The details, phone numbers and fees are in our High Desert weed abatement guide.
The most common High Desert yard weeds are puncturevine (goatheads), Russian thistle (tumbleweed), Sahara mustard, London rocket, red brome, spotted spurge, redstem filaree, field bindweed, Bermudagrass and yellow nutsedge. Sahara mustard, London rocket and red brome are listed by the Mojave Desert Land Trust as Mojave invasives.
Puncturevine is the main one. Its seedpods break into hard spiny burs, often called goatheads or stickers. Mature Russian thistle has stiff spine-tipped leaves, and dry red brome seed heads are barbed and stick to socks and pet fur.
Both. Winter weeds like Sahara mustard, London rocket, filaree and red brome sprout after the December to March rains. Summer weeds like goatheads, tumbleweed and spurge sprout after the last freeze, which is March 18 in a typical year at Victorville and after April 12 one year in ten, according to NOAA.
Use landscape fabric under 2 to 3 inches of rock, water plants with drip instead of spray, put down a pre-emergent before each weed season and water it in, and pull weeds before they seed. Fabric will not stop yellow nutsedge or Bermudagrass that finds a gap, so remove those at the root.
In the desert region the County requires weeds and grasses cut to 4 inches or less on parcels under five vacant acres, tumbleweeds completely removed, and combustible debris removed. The County surveys in early spring and early fall and gives 30 days to comply. Hesperia applies the 4-inch rule within 30 feet of structures.
We checked every number on this page against the public sources below. If a rule or date changes, the agency page is the final word.
Monarch builds rock, DG and turf yards across the High Desert with the base done right: fabric, proper rock depth, and drip that waters plants instead of weeds. Get a free estimate and a straight answer on whether your yard needs a rebuild or just better upkeep.
Get a Free Yard EstimateOr call (760) 792-7627
