Other methods of control are mechanical, cultural and biological. Mechanical control means physically removing the weeds by hand weeding, hoeing, cultivation, mowing or flaming. Biological treatments use natural enemies of the weed for control. Broadleaf weeds are identified by those features that make them different than grasses. For seedlings, this primarily is done by examination of the cotyledon or seed leaf.
Cotyledons are the first pair of leaves to emerge.
The shape of the cotyledon is a way to initially identify different broad leaf plants. Plants can have linear, oblong, oval, round or butterfly-shaped cotyledons and different extremes of each. The next step in the identification of broadleaves is to notice other features of the plant. A single taproot, tuber, or rhizome can help distinguish between two similar plants. Grasses can sometimes be a little more difficult to identify.