Wrong plant (noxious weed), wrong place (my garden)_
Not that it isn't striking, but Onopordum acanthium, aka scotch thistle aka cotton thistle, or maybe Cirsium vulgare, also aka scotch thistle, spear thistle, bull thistle, is/are classified as noxious weed(s) in my area. It popped up early this spring as a seedling. Curious, I let it grow to ID it for certain. As soon as it flowered...
Bye bye!
Right plant, wrong place? For several years, a species orchid has languished on my patio. It was a gift from a gardener I met on a tour of his Cycad collection. The orchid didn't like my patio. It did nothing. Didn't grow, didn't die. Sat. For. Years. A couple of months ago I relocated it to nestle among Bromeliads, Clivias, and the variegated Farfugium in the moist shade under the Acer 'Oshio Bene'. Boom! In a month the long-languishing orchid shot out two healthy new stems. Okay, guess it likes it there.
Now in the right place--old stem (lowest arrow) and two new stems (two upper arrows):
Right plants, right place???? I attended an interesting talk last fall about Monarchs, some of the info I already know, some I didn't. The speaker passed out some packets of free milkweed seeds of various species, including our native A. fascicularis, but also a couple others native to the eastern US. The packet said to cold stratify (stick the seeds in the fridge) for six weeks. After six months sitting next to the nonfat milk (not the same carton of nonfat milk for six months, no), I finally planted them in a pot of soil a month ago--it was then or never--and of the eight seeds in the packet, five seedlings have appeared. I'm nursing them along, will pot them individually when they're a bit bigger.
Right plants for...???...where?
But not the Cosmos!
Even the thready leaves of the Cosmos add something:
Hope you all are enjoying summer. Me? Counting the days until autumn. In the meantime, Cosmos.
Having multiple germinated seedlings of various milkweed, you may end up with more one 'right' place. Maybe several. Let the monarchs follow.
ReplyDeleteTo me, the airy, feathery foliage of Cosmos is a major part of the attraction. It's the first year I'm growing it and I love the complete package. I wouldn't mind a little, manageable re-seeding.
Chavli
Yes indeed! Just need to figure out which ones I've got, so I know where to put them. I hope to see some distinguishing characteristics as they grow (hopefully they grow). The A. facicularis ones I bought have all survived so far. I saw a small monarch caterpillar on one, but have not seen it since. The plant is still there.
DeleteI"m throwing the spent Cosmos flowers into the beds as I deadhead in hopes of seedlings. Must collect some seed when they get tired and distribute them--they are so much fun dancing in a summer breeze!
Summer! Enjoying every minute of it.
ReplyDeleteHappy for you! Your garden looks fabulous not exhausted in summer.
DeleteI just can't bear the heat. Maybe I have cool-grey-summer-loving DNA.
I'd counted myself lucky on the weather until a couple of weeks ago when temperatures belatedly began to climb, accompanied by excess humidity. Our summer dry heat is apparently no longer something we can depend on. I wish I had your luck with Cosmos - it inevitably develops mildew here, usually before the plants get any flowers, and I hate spraying even though I realize it could hold the mildew off. For the record, larkspur usually does well here, although it got off to a slow start this year.
ReplyDeleteGood to know about the Larkspur. When do you plant yours?
DeleteI always expect July and August to be kind of miserable. The misery was a couple weeks late this year--grateful for that!
I usually sow the larkspur seeds in late fall (after I've pulled up any remaining zinnias and dahlias, since I pull the latter every year to make room for my spring flower "crop"). Early November has been the norm for me; however, last year's seeds were very late to sprout for some reason and I'm not sure the plants that eventually emerged were the actually products of those seeds or self-seeded plants that sprung up on their own! I generally use fresh seeds of 2 or 3 varieties and the 2 that came up didn't look like those I thought I picked last year, not that I have a written record of them!
DeleteBeautiful but nasty plants. The bees adore them as do the birds for their seeds. Hence, their widespread distribution. Something similar here: two plants popped up in the path of my vegetable garden. I left them as they had really cool large leaves. Thought they were a salvia. However, this year a big flower spike with round buds showed up. Disappointingly it's a prohibited noxious weed known as a houndstongue (Cynoglossum officionale). It had a huge thick root so was quite a job to dig out. Both are beauty and the best incarnate.
ReplyDeleteI'm anti-noxious weed. I felt a little sad but not much about bees and birds losing a food source but I've got many other plants for them. There are a few other noxious weeds around here besides the thistles--Nicotiana glauca, Ricinus communis, Cortaderia selloana being good examples. It really annoys me that people just let them grow on their properties because we have some public lands nearby that are trying to preserve the Coastal Sage Scrub biome that development has just about wiped out.
DeleteHappy you ID'ed the beast and got them outta there!
I've got quite a few plants that have languished for years. I am almost ready to cut the cord. Time to put out or get out. I've got some Asclepias fascicularis I started from seed - it's a bit rangy and spready, but I like it anyway, especially because the rabbits and deer leave it alone.
ReplyDeleteLovely! Hoping that orchid will set flowers for you
ReplyDeleteI started Asclepias fascicularis from seed a few years ago and it has been a sturdy and dependable plant out in the garden ever since. It spreads, of course. Make sure it's in a place where it can do that. I appreciate that it takes the drought in stride. The trick really does seem to be putting things in the right place. I've several young plants that have struggled to do much of anything for years. It might be time for me to stop all the effort to coddle them through the summer and let them perish if that is what they are determined to do.
ReplyDeleteI thought I posted a comment, but now I'm not so sure. The heat and smoke have me questioning my sanity. Just wanted to say that Asclepias fascicularis is a nice plant - floppy and assertive, but it holds up well to drought. Give it some space and stand back. Chili thrips! That's a new one for me. Always something, isn't there?
ReplyDelete