What is the most invasive perennial in your garden.......

"All the stupif little maples" ?

I have one maple tree on my two acres! But Oak? UGH! Acorns are invaders from outer space, here to take over the world. Every spring I dig out seems like hundreds from my herb garden. Sure they're easy to pull up but there are so many, it is the stuff of nightmares!

Sorry beads..."Manual of Woody Landscape Plants" by Michael A. Dirr. It is more or less the "bible" for landscapers. I took some landscape classes in college and it was our textbook for plant ID. It's one book I keep with me.

Gardenbeds.....I'm a Master Gardener, but guess what...I don't know the answer to everything. Your learning something everyday. Being a Master Gardener just took 13 weeks out of my life to learn a little more about horticulture. I have what Master Gardeners call a "Core Manual" the size of a New York City Yellow Pages, which I keep at hand and use all the time for reference.

But don't ya all find that there are some plants you can grow real well and some you just can't. I have a problem with several and yet others grow like weeds....

Deann

Thanks deann and sunnyskys, I am going to look into purchasing that manual, I do have some gardening books but that one sounds like one I really want for reference. When I do become a Master Gardener, then I will also get the "core manual". I am basically a self-taught gardener and boy when I think how much I have learned since the beginning just by reading and experimenting with plants. Also it helped that my parents both grew up on farms. My father, now deceased, spent his whole summer in the garden (vegetables). He also grafted trees. He had a pear tree that had four different types of pears on it. My mother also had a lot of perennials when I was young. I guess I inherited the love of plants from them,

deann
In the Fall if you put a chicken wire cage around your Nikko Blue and stuff it with straw it will preserve the branches and it will bloom. After a couple years of growing it and figuring out it blooms on old wood I did the winter protection and got blossoms. Only thing is last Fall I got lazy and never got around to it so...no Nikko in 2006

Zone 4 hardy Hydrangeas!
http://www.hydrangeasplus.com/home.php?cat=28

PS you might want to read this post on hardy Hydrangeas
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/533849/



This message was edited May 15, 2006 12:48 PM

Thank you CottageRose...I have thought about doing the chicken wire thing in the past, but never got around to doing it, there's so much to do in my yard in the fall. I am going to make sure that I get to that this year though. Thanks for the links too.

In order of most invasive:
mints
black -eyed susans
artisma limelight

Cottage......thanks for the heads up on Hydrangers. I did not know that.........

Gardenbeds.........see what I mean.....master gardeners don't know everything.......we learn something everyday......

Cottage, I am going to do that this fall with my Nikko and see what happens......

Deann

You're welcome Deann! ;-)

toofewanimals...I got the mint thing, holy mackerel that stuff is bad, and the black eyed susans are another plant that is lucky it's so beautiful or people would really hate it. But I don't know what 'artisma limelight' is. I tried looking it up in the plant files and I googled it but can't find it. Can you provide a picture or more info?
Thanks

Hi sunnysky, the plant you are looking for is spelled "artemisia limelight", that is why you could not find it. You can find a really good picture at pallensmith.com. It's a neat plant. Have fun.

Perhaps it is aremisia limelight? Common name variegated wormwood. I have....maybe 6 square feet of it, from one tiny plant I bought last year!

This message was edited May 17, 2006 5:07 PM

Oops. Picture here... I didn't realise this was copywrited, I'm sorry....it was a pic I had on my computer.... (on my computer it didn't have that copywrite text showing.) I tried to delete it but don't know how...

This message was edited May 17, 2006 5:12 PM

This message was edited May 17, 2006 5:13 PM

Thanks for the spelling. I looked it up and it really is a nice looking plant. I could plant it with my Houttuynia and they could duke it out.