RE: Today in the Garden

But we know that weeds are really successful wild flowers in places we
really don't want the to be.  I think it is O.K. to enjoy them!  I'd never
thought of any Aquilegia as a weed before, nor Viola tricolors!  However,
the way the Lambs Ear has gotten ahead of me, it has nearly made it to the
weed list this year!

Blessings,
Bonnie (SW OH - zone 5) 

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-gardenchat@hort.net [o*@hort.net] On Behalf
Of Aplfgcnys@aol.com
Sent: Sunday, June 25, 2006 10:09 AM
To: gardenchat@hort.net
Subject: Re: [CHAT] Today in the Garden

Finally got around to a bit of tidying-up in the vegetable garden.  It's
been such a hectic spring that I've only done what was absolutely necessary.
Every spring weeding the vegetable garden is a traumatic experience, because
of what I have to weed out.  Let's see if your weeds match mine.  I have
large clumps of Aquilegia canadensis, the pretty red native columbine.  I
leave them in place until after they have bloomed because they grow where I
plant beans, and I can't put the beans in the ground until the soil warms
up.  It hurts to pull out a large basket of columbine, but it has to go - I
just leave one clump for next year.
Then there will be several baskets-full of Hesperis matronalis (Dame's
Rocket).  I like to keep the white, but there are always some purple ones
and a lot of pale pinky-lavender ones. I try to pull all of these out before
they go to seed, but a few always hide and escape me.
Then in the spring they look so pretty following the daffodils.  These, like
the columbines, do have their season of bloom, so when they are past I can
let them go, but what will last all summer if I let it, are mats of Viola
tricolor (Johnny-jump-ups).  I try to work around them, but finally have to
end up pulling them out by the basket-ful, too.  And from the edges, mats of
Galium odoratum (Sweed Woodruff) are trying to fill up the entire garden.
Finally all the bare spaces left are filled with Perilla frutescens - don't
know a common name for this purple-leaf herb that my Thai friend claims is a
choice vegetable, but which I have never eaten.  There are rare spots of
chick-weed, but not enough to be a bother.  My biggest problem if that I
love the flowers of all these weeds.  But then neatness or housekeeping is
just not my strong suit.
Auralie

---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the message
text UNSUBSCRIBE GARDENCHAT

---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE GARDENCHAT
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index