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Re: [SG] Houtonia removal

Beware of the houttonia! If even a little piece of root remains, it will
sprout. It's pretty, but invasive. I planted some a few years ago and after
two years was quite sorry. Fortunately, we had to move so the new owner of
our house has had to deal with it.

If you want houttonia, treat it like I do mint (also very invasive): plant
it, then sink a large coffee can, plastic pail or tub around it (sink deep
enough so the top of the container is at soil level. Be sure to cut the
bottom out). In most cases, the roots won't spread. The result is a
behavior-modified plant that becomes a good neighbor.

I've never tried this, but you might plant houttonia in a large container.
Trim it if it starts to sneak toward the ground.

John G. Adney
Marion, Iowa (zones 4-5)
johnadney@email.msn.com


-----Original Message-----
From: Kay Dye <Kdye1@AOL.COM>
To: shadegardens@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU <shadegardens@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU>
Date: Thursday, September 10, 1998 10:13 PM
Subject: Re: [SG] Houtonia removal


>Dear All,
>I spent last weekend removing houttonia (hope I spelled it right, too lazy
to
>get upstairs to look up).  I'm curious to see if anyone else has done this.
I
>tried to dig deep and get all of the little pieces of root.  What I'm
curious
>about is how apt it is to resprout from any little piece that I missed, I
just
>know I've missed some.  I am almost afraid to hear your answers, but if
you've
>had experience with this one, please let me know.  Thanks.
>Kay Dye, Edelstein, IL Zone 5
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