Garden Cancers

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Saturday, June 24. 2017

I can't locate my past post on garden cancers. I am not talking about evil weeds like Porcelainberry. I am talking about things we plant on purpose which have the power to take over and destroy a planting area.

Such things should only be planted where they can be mowed around because they spread underground, or just spread, to the point of overwhelming everything in their vicinity:

Wisteria
Bamboo
Trumpet Vine
Members of the Mint family (best let to go wild in a meadow)
English Ivy
Pachysandra

I had a few more on my list, but I can't remember right now.

Posted by Bird Dog in Gardens, Plants, etc. at 12:47 | Comments (20) | Trackbacks (0)

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Morning Glory is another one. Spreads like wildfire and hard to wipe out.

Mrs feeblemind grows her mint in a pot. But the Morning Glories? Oh boy . . .

#1 feeblemind on 2017-06-24 12:53 (Reply)

Morning Glory is the devil's salad greens.

My wife - without my knowledge - planted some at least 10 years ago and I STILL cannot get it completely removed.

#1.1 jimg on 2017-06-24 14:28 (Reply)

English ivy! Arrrrgh! I used it 40 years ago to hold a tall berm together during a stormy spring and summer. It worked wonderfully! But now I spend every spring (and summer) weeding it out of my garden and pulling it down from walls (where it can be VERY destructive). The berm is firm now with other plantings. One of these days I'll get every bloody bit of the ivy out of the area. One of these days….

#2 jma on 2017-06-24 13:07 (Reply)

Various honeysuckle bushes and vines, Cardinal Autumn Olive, and of course, everyone's favorite, mulberry trees.

#3 Kat in Indiana on 2017-06-24 13:18 (Reply)

It's too dry here for mint to get out of control.

Our neighbors have a kind of clumping bamboo that's supposed to be safe. After 15 years, it's still growing where they planted it, not spreading all over. That may be in part because it's dry here, but spreading plants that thrive at this rainfall level, like cape honeysuckle, definitely move like wildfire. We planted some maypops (passion flower) once that came up absolutely everywhere for a couple of years before we got them under control. Ditto for moonvine.

#4 Texan99 on 2017-06-24 13:34 (Reply)

Does anyone know of a good, non-back breaking (I'm 72), cheap and eco-friendly way to get rid of these crawling vines???? I know I'm asking a lot but good advice is hard to find. Thanks!

#5 Bob in Stafford on 2017-06-24 14:31 (Reply)

We have horsetail, a prehistoric nightmare. Only way to truly be rid of it is to move. Not cheap, though.

#5.1 Dave on 2017-06-24 22:23 (Reply)

Try roundup. Try either the one that is for poison ivy or blackberry bushes. It will be on the label. You have to spray a live plant of course so it should kill the plant including the roots.

#5.2 GoneWithTheWind on 2017-06-25 21:11 (Reply)

I got rid of some ivy between my garage and the one belonging to my neighbor (20' x 2-12') by raking out the big stuff and dumping gallons of vinegar on the area. Then I had two strong teenagers from the local garden store dump a bunch of gravel about 2" thick. It's been plant free for 4 years.

#5.3 jma on 2017-06-26 16:28 (Reply)

Here, impatiens. Pretty flowers but it has pods that explode when you touch them and then spreads seeds everywhere.

#6 Jim on 2017-06-24 14:46 (Reply)

Wisteria. I can live with this one, because it's so fragrant and beautiful. When I sold an old home with an heirloom variety that had taken over the back yard, I took some with me and planted it around the post light at the new home. It's taken about 8 years to get properly established but it's doing great now. Yesterday I looked out my office window and noticed something new creeping out onto the lawn from the tree line. Yep. Wisteria runner. The darn thing snakes out from the lamp post under the grass to the tree line, then loops through the woods on the ground for about 50 ft before emerging out of the undergrowth onto my lawn. Awesome plant.

#7 Aggie on 2017-06-24 18:37 (Reply)

Crown vetch.

Argh.

#8 Krusty on 2017-06-25 00:27 (Reply)

Showy evening primrose - seeds and runs

#9 Becky on 2017-06-25 09:16 (Reply)

Sassafras. Roundup will kill it one sprout at a time.

#10 Dorf on 2017-06-25 10:21 (Reply)

Anemone! Aka Windflower. Oh you temptress.

#11 Annie on 2017-06-25 11:16 (Reply)

When I lived in Marin County, blackberry took years of laborous whacking to dispossess.

#12 Whitehall on 2017-06-25 11:26 (Reply)

Pachysandra.

#13 Winston on 2017-06-25 11:27 (Reply)

Vinca Major

#14 annieoakley on 2017-06-25 11:43 (Reply)

Chameleon plant, also call lizard tail, heartleaf, fish wort or bishop's weed. Virtually impossible to kill. Even with Round-Up it disappears for a year but then comes back with a vengeance. I've been told it must be dug out and the soil sifted through as each time a root breaks it takes off again.

#15 Ted Bopp on 2017-06-25 18:05 (Reply)

Burning Bush. Spreads like cancer, shoots up from roots. You can saw it off at ground level spring, summer, or fall. It WILL send up shoots in the spring. In fact, it becomes even stronger, like the mythical Hydra.

#16 Bilderback on 2017-06-26 10:01 (Reply)

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Saturday, June 24. 2017

Garden Cancers