You'll wish you had never planted.....You'll be so glad you

Lily of the Valley, Spider Wort, Sweet Woodruff, tall orange daylilies, Scilla siberica small spring bulbs, Ostrich fern, Siberian Iris, Russian Olive, most phlox, Black Eyed Susan,

On the other hand, you will be so glad you planted clematis, epimediums, musk roses, rugosa roses, liatris, coneflower,
catmint, baptisia, brunnera, bergenia, perennial geraniums, caryopteris, vibernums, hellebores, Blue Fescue grass,
dwarf bearded iris, and let's hear it for the greatest groundcovers of all....Hosta and Vinca.

Oh no not vinca!
Agree with most especially caryopteris. What a fragrance when standing next to it. Lots of what you mentioned deer eat ;0( The epimediums doing great this year.

My hate list also includes Shasta Daisy
And I'm glad I planted freely spreading -- deep red (pure red) bee balm.


This message was edited Jul 2, 2013 10:04 AM

Great list but not sure I include Vinca that way either. (too?)
Lamiastrum Yellow Archangel...vinca like in its ability to fill shade and then never be removed.

I have many of the things on both your lists!

There a number of plants without which I could easily live and at the top is Houttuynia cordata followed by queen anne's lace and yes, astilbe, which took 3 years to eradicate.

The celandon poppy needs careful attention to keep it in line.

I would suggest that if anyone likes an otherwise invasive type plant, he or she should containerize it and be responsible enough to keep it from going to seed.

So much of what we might say here depends on our growing zone. What's invasive in your area might struggle to survive here in mine.

Yes no problem with astilbe. Houttuynia cordata I think ( fingers crossed ) I got rid of. Had such a fit when I discovered it popping up.

No problems with astilbe here either.

Kill the Houttuynia cordata 'Chameleon' with Poison Ivy and Tough Brush Killer by Ortho. I fought it for over 8 years and over 500 square feet. Digging and pulling is not the answer, please believe me. Black plastic covering the area for a year was a huge help but the stray pieces get the killer though it was my last resort. Even the torch's fire only killed the above ground pieces of that demon for me.

I agree with steadycam - so much depends on the zone where we live. For people in Las Vegas and Arkansas the Houttuynia is difficult to keep alive. Monarda smells wonderful but for me it gets too much mildew but then I just cut it to the ground and it bounces back the next year.

It's the ditch daylilies that are a nuisance here, not all tall orange daylilies are the ditch daylilies.

While I love a few Lily of the Valley they have run amok here (as usual) so I'll rip out a field of them but know a few will return. At least that's a shady spot to work outside in summer.

I do enjoy Siberian irises but for me they require frequent division.

Some yarrows become way too weedy and too floppy here so they get thinned on a regular basis.

Lamium is a nasty pest here!

Perennial hardy geraniums just grow too wild. If they could just behave I'd love them.

I used Brush be Gone 4 conseq days. Sprayed the hell out of it. (Tried the burner, digging, Roundup, and chanting during full moon with fist shaking). The Brush be Gone made it look a wee bit 'rippley' (still great color) but when I went to try once again to dig up....it was actually in the underground runners that it appeared withered. Pulled out way too easy ....but because up it broke off at withered point --- I wonder if I will see it again - I read all parts reproduce.

Once lemon balm got loose. ----- ouch.... From a POT too.

Chocolate peppermint MInt goes on both. It smells soooo deeeliciuos but is the worst creeping mint of any I've experienced!!

Maypop aka Passion vine. Fascinating flowers, fun fruits, tough vine...BUT...
once taken root lives forever. Pops up anywhere within ten feet of the previous year's growth. And yet can refuse to be transplanted or live in a pot. very contrary!

anybody have problem with autumn joy clematis?
For years mine was fine probably 10 years, now I have new plants all over. I can pull them and it is fine but why would it take so long to be so agressive?

Yarrow I contain inside rubber edging and it has behaved very well. Knock on wood.

I have two wild vines that are a fight to the finish, I guess the birds brought them to me and posion ivy is horrible. So far it doesn't affect me.

Did you mean Autumn Joy Sedum? I cut mine back and left the cuttings on the ground and they rooted.
Add silphium perfoliatum to the bad list. The finches love the seeds, but miss too many. I also have a very small sedum that thinks glysophate is fertilizer.

Herman

I think it might be Sweet Autumn Clematis. I have one currently eating our garden shed.

No it is a clematis and it blooms in late summer thru the fall. Beautiful full of flowers and most people like the smell I don't but like the flowers . You are right it is a sweet autumn clematis

Do you have a problem with it spreading?

This message was edited Jul 29, 2013 6:53 PM

This message was edited Jul 29, 2013 6:56 PM

So far it just gets bigger where I originally planted it. Hasn't spread anywhere else. I, personally, love it.

Cut it to the ground in Winter and stand back in Spring. It will grow right over you.

It is a beautiful vine, but am I the only one who has it sprouting everywhere?
I have dug up about 5 starts but am cautious about sharing if it is considered invasive plant.

Here is a pic of it in full bloom over my glider, it is like a blanket of snow and is beautiful.

Hi Friends,
Any kind of Ivy, can be killed with round-up - Any Morning Glory, can't be killed with anything - Any Bamboo, can't be killed completely.

the problem I have with most things is that they are so inter-mixed with other plants I have to be soooo careful if I use a chemical.

I am a warrior against all things Monsanto.

Interesting.

I take care of a garden in which about a dozen rugosa roses were planted. They sucker mercilessly, are incredibly thorny and attract hoards of japanese beetles.

In my own yard, the issues are different. I inherited a yard with lots of invasives. The owners for the last 30 years just let them run wild.

I have one Lamiastrum Yellow Archangel. It was in the yard when I got here. I got in touch with the previous owners. It has been there for years. It has never spread.

I hate wild violets. They are pretty, but their root systems kill other plants. I take a shovel and remove them from anything that I care about.

I make sure I never fertilize or water my sweet autumn clematis (I have three that have been there many years), and it is kept under control. I also look around in spring and tear it out by the roots if it is growing in the wrong spots. I am also careful not to get any fertilizer near it, and so mine is much more restrained than most I've seen. I do love the way it covers the eyesore that is my nosy neighbors' chain link fence.

Lily of the valley I reduced by two thirds by taking a shovel to it the last two springs. If you get it upon emergence, you can actually control it.

I had lots of ditch lilies, and now I have none. Persistence with the shovel, and pulling out all the nasty bulbs. I also had about 70 hostas. I am the only person in the world who does not like them.
Happily, I had a neighbor with really bad soil who coveted them, and he dug up all but about 15 and took them to his yard. I filled in the locations with oakleaf hydrangeas and other smaller shrubs.

My only remaining nemesis is creeping charlie, and I have found a way to eradicate it from some areas. Barren strawberries are just annoying. A dear friend gave me a LOT of geranium Bevan's Variety. If you tear out almost any weed and put in this particular geranium, it forms leaves so dense that it outcompetes and prevents the formation of any weed under it. I have transplanted this geranium to a number of places and it has prevented weed formation of any kind.

Geranium maculatum - the species, works too. In the second picture is an area that was entirely creeping charlie, barren strawberries and plantains. If you look carefully at the top of the pic you will see the creeping charlie outside of the area. Bevan on the left, maculatum on the right. As the clumps form, I dig them up and move them to other areas. Pretty fall color too! The trick is to avoid the weedy ones. I took this picture three days ago.

The third picture shows you the same area in June, right after I started putting them in. I love it!

I do think it needs some competition, so I installed nepeta Joanna Reed next to it in the front of the house, where I need long bloom and good looks.

I do spend a lot of time in the garden, as my aching back attests. I didn't think it was possible to get this stuff under control without chemicals, but surprisingly it is if you are as anal as I am. I have to pick my battles, but the plants I like are now safe, and they are making up more and more of the yard. I actually go out and smile.

very interesting Donna- I can hardly believe there's a Yellow archangel which hasn't spread.
I have a hardy geranium similar to your Bevan's - it blooms pink and is virtually ever green with fall foliage color, I agree it's a great plant. It makes long stems which can root very easily. It even survived having a colony of voles right under it. It's so tough that I have shared a lot of it and think I will use it in some more marginal places, so I can use the nicer beds for something that needs more care.

Am I wrong? Here is the plant. I had no idea what it was, so I posted it on Daves Garden and it was identified. I had one when I arrived here. I have one two and a half years later. I don't water it, and it actually struggles.

I agree its Yellow archangel. I'd like it more if I only had the one plant! The yellow flowers looked so unique the first time I saw them.

When I read of its horrible invasive nature I almost ran out and removed it. But I contacted the former owner who remembered the plant, and said that it had been here forever.

But then I am also the person for whom autumn joy clematis in under control. They are on the same side of the yard. And when I water the ferns and oakleaf hydrangeas and other plants there, I use a soaker hose.

The previous owner only used leaf mulch in the yard - never compost, which he reserved for the veggies in the garden. I have noticed that the diffeence between the areas mulched with leaf as oopposed to compost is that the compost has a stronger and more immediate effect. As you may imagine, I never mulch or water the little guy. Or maybe the garden angels are giving me a break.

I think some plants lay in wait...rofl....for when you least expect it.... ;) My sweet autumn clematis for probably 10years did nothing but bloom and grown bigger and bigger, then one day one spring I started finding these vines here and there and then even across the driveway....so when you least expect it.....look out...rofl.

Oh, it's waiting till I turn my back! Thanks for the tip. I'll be watching...

I have to agree about Sweet Autum Clematis. I think it is beautiful in bloom, but as soon as it gets seed formation underway, it needs to be cut back or you will have seedlings out the kazoo. I had it for years without spread, and when it thought I was not watching anymore--BANG-- it sprand up everywhere. It covers a lot of roadside in this county and if I had it to do over again, I would just enjoy it from the road.
According to my reading, many invasive plants react the same way as sweet autumn clematis. They may not spread for a time, even years, then go everywhere. I think some people who say certain plants do not spread are not taking into consideration the seed and fruit, which can spread far from the garden on wind and by birds. I wish someone had stopped privet and eleagnus before it took over. Both are a big problem.

Joining the discussion late...

I had looked across the road wistfully at the sweet autumn clematis at my neighbor's place for a few years. She offered to let me take some but I never did. About 10yrs it seeded over here. And now I must have a bazillion seedlings on a hillside I have underplanted with bulbs. It doesn't get mowed until early June so they get a start but only get a chance to grow where i don't mow.

No one mentioned Crown Vetch. Someone must have planted on this property as a ground cover to control erosion on the steep hills. I have been trying to get rid of it since I moved it. I thought I had it gone on a steep hill I have since planted with rock garden plants. Of course now I'm pulling it out from around my desired and more delicate plants. :-(

Never ever ever plant Crown Vetch!

Years ago I had a friend moving in a new house. Money was short and she wanted to order crown vetch because the pictures were pretty and the price was cheap. Luckily I talked her out of it. She also wanted to plant Eleagnus for the same reasons, but that would have been terrible. I told her to just look in the woods and she would change her mind.
Those thorns on eleagus will puncture tires, and frequently get my garden cart and riding mower.

I had to look Elaeagnus up to see what it was. I know it by the name autumn olive. I've never had to fight it.

My biggest worry about invasives here (after crown vetch): Tree of Heaven tree (Ailanthus altissima) and multiflora rose. I've got the latter somewhat under control but have not gotten the tree of heavens knocked back one bit. Several years I slashed them open and sprayed 2-4-D. I cut one down and had a forest of little trees in a 30' radius. I mow down forests when I mow the fields. If I didn't mow them, we'd have acres of those awful trees!

There are not many Ailanthus trees here, but it is not because they don't multiple. In the city of LaFayette, AL there used to be one that I knew of. Not so now. I know one place where one is towering over a house and is very close. scares me just to look at it. The countryside is not safe either. I have cut and poisoned them and even mowing just cuts the tops off and they pop up somewhere else.
Yes, Eleagnus is autumn Olive. I call it Ugly Agnus. The woods here are overrun with that and privet. The wildlife service recommended it as a food source for wildlife. It certainly is. To the detrimental of all else. The torns on it have puncture both my lawn mower tires and garden cart tires. Last time on the garden cart I got thorn resistant tubes, but someone told me lately that they had lost tires on their ATV from Eleagnus thorns. So what chance does a bike tire have, even a thorn resistant one.

I'm a little late to the conversation, but you have all convinced me that I need to get rid of my Sweet Autumn Clematis. I planted it a year ago and haven't seen it bloom so I think I'll let it bloom first then cut it down before the seed heads form. Can anyone tell me if it's difficult to dig out the roots?

One plant that is becoming a problem in the Atlanta area is Crepe Myrtle. We've planted them everywhere, they're in so many landscapes. I believe most of the newer hybrids are not invasive, but that's not what we have here. I'm getting concerned about Japanese Maple too. Sure, they're beautiful and I wouldn't want to cut any down, but they generate an awful lot of seedlings.

A friend gave me a Persicaria virginiana - I like it and so far it's reseeding but not acting agressive, but I'm watching it........

Crape Myrtles barely survive up here. Do they reseed?

Wonder if after sweet autumn blooms you cut it back all the way if it would survive and not spread? I really think mine has reseeded all over not sent root starts. Anyone have an idea on this? I have cut mine out but it has been there about 10 years before I started have a problem, so I have a big problem now.

While experiences in different zones and climates can vary, Persicaria virginiana has turned out to be a bit of a nightmare for us. At first we were delighted, but after a couple of years, seedlings began to turn up everywhere. My wife, who is generally loathe to control plants she likes, took the lead in completely removing it from our property (an on-going endeavor).

Clumps of sweet Autumn Clematis will get bigger over time, but the real problem with the spreading is the seedlings. Cutting back before it makes seeds will fix the spreading. Unfortunately for many of us, we let it go years and then began to notice the seedlings.

I'm in that boat. Seedlings EVERYWHERE

Thanks Crystal, yeap Tammy I have that same problem.

There have been three in my yard since the previous owners arrived 32 years ago. They cut it back every spring, and so do I. It seems to control the spread.

My hate list includes Ivy (hides in grass, pops seedlings everywhere, kills plaster if allowed to climb a building), cornus (don't care about the exact species), creeping buttercup (It's native here, so i know this will even terrorize my grave), bishop's weed and lemon balm.

slightly invasive, yet controllable for me is lavender - pops up everywhere, just as one of the medium-sized campanulas - maybe c. poscharskyana?

I'd never want to miss my various forms of vinca minor - vinca major may be another problem. Houttuynia Cordata (chameleon form) behaves well in dry places, and is actually one of my favorite ground covers for its wonderful color. And I actually hope to establish maypop in my garden - if it turns invasive, it may cause traffic jams because nearly no one in middle europe would expect hardy passifloras - most people here think of them as tropical.