| Author |
Message |
Karuuna
Board Administrator
08-30-2000
| Tuesday, June 13, 2017 - 6:07 pm 
You are right, it is milkweed.
So.... now what I do? Maybe I'll just try and cut it back to a smaller patch? The patch is already four times larger than it was last year.
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Grooch
Member
06-16-2006
| Tuesday, June 13, 2017 - 6:41 pm
All I know is that it spreads by rhizomes. I tried googling the best way to contain it and I couldn't find a good answer. The best I could come up with is to mow over it. I don't know if you put some type of edging around the part you want to keep, if that would contain the rhizomes.
I have some in the far back yard, but I must not have the right conditions for it to get out of control. But I'd trade the milkweed for my invasive problems over the bittersweet and japense knotweed. Sigh.
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Kitt
Member
09-05-2000
| Tuesday, June 13, 2017 - 8:13 pm
If you can bear it, wait until later in the year to cut it back, because the butterfly baby-making process is well under way, they will keep on laying eggs until at least July if you have butterfly-appropriate weather (and local butterflies of course). And you might not be able to see the eggs to know what to avoid cutting.
Otherwise anything with rhizomes is a complete pain to reduce, you'll want to cut it down low and then look for satellite plants and pull them up (or relocate them if you have space) and also pull up the rhizomes that are running underground.
So agree about the knotweed, Grooch! I tried cutting mine back year after year and eventually gave up and pulled up the entire thing.
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Karuuna
Board Administrator
08-30-2000
| Tuesday, June 13, 2017 - 8:26 pm
Oddly enough, I just planted butterfly & hummingbird bushes in the front yard, but they aren't doing well.
These just popped up in an area that is next to a fence but is supposed to be just native grasses. We sprayed them twice last year and this year the patch, as I noted, is four times larger! If it was out in the horse pasture, I might let it go, but then it might get really big?
The other problem is that they are tall and they are in front of the sprinkler head, so making the grass on the other side die out. I'm just worried about them really getting out of control too.
My big issue in weeds is purple thistle. It's awful here and I seem to have an unusual amount. I don't like using weed killer, but I have no choice at this point. Tried using a natural weed control firm and that's what ended up getting them out of control.
First world problems, though. I'll deal. Just trying to figure out the best course.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Tuesday, June 13, 2017 - 8:36 pm
I hope you are blessed by many butterflies.
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Tuesday, June 13, 2017 - 8:57 pm
Oh, I was SO excited to see that picture and request for assistance, since I JUST bought an Audubon's Guide to North American Wildflowers. I RAN and got it, and it opened to pink, rounded clusters, and I turned TWO pages, and there it is!! And it is Showy Milkweed. Errrr ... just three hours after identification. Well, let me go read the description and see if there is anything of interest there.
And just before I go read, may I mention you probably have a county agriculture extension, and you could call them and ask about the monarch butterflies in your area and their advice on whether to get rid of this plant or relocate it, etc. The monarch butterflies are in danger of extinction because of loss of habitat for their food, the milkweed.
Okay, back. Nothing of real interest, other than that there are recipes for preparing it to eat as a vegetable, with a warning to make sure you have Showy Milkweed, as others are poisonous to humans and animals.
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Grooch
Member
06-16-2006
| Tuesday, June 13, 2017 - 9:11 pm
I hate to tell you this, but when I Googled how to keep it from spreading, I read that it laughs at roundup.
Maybe if you took a spade and made a narrow trench around the patch then the roots can't spread? Or maybe call up the local County extension for help?
Kitt, I've heard that knotweed can break through asphalt. I don't know if it's true, but I believe it. Your lucky if you got it all out.
With the bittersweet, I once started pulling a piece out of the ground, determined to get the whole root out. We'll that root went around 3 sides of the house before I gave up.
My sister told me to try agricultural vinegar to get rid of things. I just haven't been able to find it anywhere.
Glad I don't have thistle. But I did find some strange feathery seed heads in the hay I bought. I was leery of them and tried to pick them out best I could. I wonder what kind of noxious weed I've introduced to my yard. I've been hoping it's not anything with burs or stickers. Lol!
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Grooch
Member
06-16-2006
| Tuesday, June 13, 2017 - 9:13 pm
Juju, I thought it was common milkweed. Can you double check?
Also, enquiring minds want to know why you need a book about wildflowers. Where are you heading off to?
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Roxip
Member
01-29-2004
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 6:46 am
I love this thread.
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Mak1
Member
08-11-2002
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 7:32 am
Me too, Roxip. I learn things here that I never knew I didn't know!
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Roxip
Member
01-29-2004
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 7:50 am
And things I never knew that I wanted to know...LOL!
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Kitt
Member
09-05-2000
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 10:15 am
I thought it was showy milkweed too. Which is good in a way because at least it's a native.
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Karuuna
Board Administrator
08-30-2000
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 10:41 am
Juju, I had written on my to do list, Call the County Ag Dept. Haven't had a chance to do it yet.
I was googling also and found that even though many say milkweed is good for monarchs, some kinds are actually hazardous because they also harbor some kind of monarch killing mite.
So, more research is necessary.
But it will need to be contained, and if it can't be, removed. It's positioning is just bad.
Me versus the plant world, I guess.
In other news, I decided to try and grow tomatoes in a container. Not going well. I'm much better with animals. Maybe the plants know I'm a vegetarian?
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Roxip
Member
01-29-2004
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 11:46 am
LOL @ Karuuna.
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Dipo
Member
04-23-2002
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 2:48 pm
Karuuna do you have your container in full sunlight for most of the day? I found out that was the problem when I grew container tomatoes. I moved the plant towards the end of the season and finally got some tomatoes.
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Karuuna
Board Administrator
08-30-2000
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 3:09 pm
Oh, too much sun? I thought they liked sun?
It's in the morning sun until about 4 pm.
It has 2 small tomatoes, but the bottom leaves are turning yellow and dying.
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Dipo
Member
04-23-2002
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 3:15 pm
They need direct sun for most of the day. I had mine in a place that got filtered sun so I grew a really tall plant with no fruit.
As soon as I moved it into the sun it got fruit.
Maybe its the end of the season for that particular tomato, LOL. I did read later on that cherry tomatoes are the best to grow in containers.
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Grooch
Member
06-16-2006
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 3:28 pm
Tomatoes need a lot of fertilizer. Go to home Depot and get this for it.
Or you can use Gardentone fertilizer.
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Kitt
Member
09-05-2000
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 5:15 pm
Yellow leaves often has to do with water, either too much or too little (which annoying result in the same yellow leaves). As they're in a container it's likely to be too much water, as it can't drain as well as ground soil.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 8:04 pm
Kar, I was telling one of my singing friends today about your possible good for Monarch plants. She is a huge Monarch lover, gives lectures and has butterfly tents at events to teach kids.
She got excited to come help you re-home some of them..
Then I told her where you live. 
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 8:29 pm
quote:Juju, I thought it was common milkweed. Can you double check?
quote:I thought it was showy milkweed too. Which is good in a way because at least it's a native.
Interesting question and interesting comment that Kitt also thought it was showy milkweed. And the question and comment turn out to be related!
So I raced off to get my wildflower book again (maybe I better just keep it in my office for a while), wondering all the while why I never even considered common milkweed. So I looked up common milkweed, and there is NO entry for that species in my book! And then I thought, well the Audubon bird books are divided into two books, one for Eastern USA and one for Western USA. So I looked at my new (old) wildflower book, and sure enough, I have the Western book. And the two different species have different ranges! So, Grooch, you don't have showy milkweed where you live, and Kitt and I and Karuuna don't have common milkweed where we live. Huh!!
quote:Also, enquiring minds want to know why you need a book about wildflowers. Where are you heading off to?
Oh, c'mon Grooch! I need this book in case somebody here, not unlike Janette Scott, is about to have to fight a triffid that spits poison and kills (Rocky Horror Picture Show song referring to a 1963 horror film), and needs to know just what that demon plant is.
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Karuuna
Board Administrator
08-30-2000
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 8:33 pm
Okay, too much sun or too little sun, too much water or too little water, need fertilizer, save the Monarchs (maybe), and kill the thistle.
This is why I eat plants.
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Dipo
Member
04-23-2002
| Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - 8:49 pm
hahahahaha.
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Kitt
Member
09-05-2000
| Thursday, June 15, 2017 - 10:15 am
 that's gardening for you!
Just out of curiosity, I'd be interested to know how many people understood Juju's reference to "triffid," because I thought it was a UK thing.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Thursday, June 15, 2017 - 10:41 am
The Day of the Triffids... I remember the title from long ago.
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