I'm getting overrun by HOLLYHOCKS!

[DixieDreamer]

Every spring... I have hundreds of volunteer hollyhock plants that practically take over my garden! They reseed easily (obviously) and have a long (very long) tap root... so the darn things are a pain to pull up. I love my old fashioned hollyhocks... I just wish they would stay in their proper place! I have spent all morning ... tugging on the darn things. I have one more section yet to do... but I am giving my back a break for the moment.

This is not the only invasive plant I deal with each year. My lawn has mint growing in it that can take over if not weeded out occassionally. It does make the lawn smell good after mowing though!

What do you have that is a bit too invasive? Have you come up with clever ways to manage these plants?

 

[amid chaos]

DIXIE...please don't tell me you are pulling them up and tossing them? Oh my...what i would do for a field of hollyhocks....now, I am nursing some seeds that a dear friend gave me and I can't wait for them to show their yellowness.

 

[Mamu]

Wish I could be so lucky to be over-run with hollyhocks.

Thistle is my problem, not the globe thistle (no problem with that) the gross thistle with the needle spikes.

My own fault I took some home from my daughters house for the bird garden. I love walking bare foot around the yard, this stuff hurts. OUCH!!!

I usually do not have many things reseed I deadhead faithfully. The only area I do not is in the bird garden. This plant may have to go.

 

[Bildmouse]

My dreaded plant is phlox. Got rid of all of them a few years after we moved in and then decided many years later that I wanted an old fashioned garden and planted some. Within two years I remembered why I got rid of them in the first place. They go everywhere but where you want them. I didn't have time today to get to them but I did get the creepy crawly weeds out of the garden. Now I can at least look out my bedroom window with a smile and now wonder what all that strange green stuff is out there.

 

[Bildmouse]

My dreaded plant is phlox. Got rid of all of them a few years after we moved in and then decided many years later that I wanted an old fashioned garden and planted some. Within two years I remembered why I got rid of them in the first place. They go everywhere but where you want them. I didn't have time today to get to them but I did get the creepy crawly weeds out of the garden. Now I can at least look out my bedroom window with a smile and not wonder what all that strange green stuff is out there.

 

[Barb]

I wish I could Hollyhocks to grow! How wonderful that they grow so well for you! I would love that. It's just what I'm looking for-a self sustaining garden! I have had one large plant that never flowers. It's so disappointing.
I have the worst problem with Morning Glories! It's horrible! I didn't plant them-they just grow here!! They climb over all my plants in the back no matter how many times I pull them out by the roots!! I did try to train them one year. (can't beat 'em, join 'em theory) That was just as bad! I just have to keep pulling and pulling.

 

[DixieDreamer]

Amid...well... actually...YES, I am tossing them on the compost pile! They are growing in the walkway, they are growing intertwined with my spider wort, coreopsis, and virtually anywhere else in the garden! I try to keep the volunteer's confined to a large corner of the garden... where they act as a tall border - accenting the fence. I like to let them reseed, as they are a biannual.. and so to have flowers every year... I need a mixture of new plants and second year plants. They keep themselves very fresh by reseeding. Occassionally I will get a root rot on a plant or two.. and they fail. But the others reseed and so I have been able to keep a large stand of them going for several years now.

I let a couple of plants reseed themselves to produce a "swath" of flowers effect. I let them do this, and then go in and remove what is unwanted or getting out of the area I want to keep it confined too. Examples of this are my echinacea (purple coneflowers) and my red Centranthus (aka jupiter's beard). If you are not familiar with red centranthus... I highly recommend it... it is bright, airy, and very low maintenance. It makes a great contrast to purples and yellows in the garden. Here is a pic of it from the High Country Garden's website:

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[Tulirose]

SEND SOME OF THOSE HOLLYHOCKS MY WAY PLEASE!!!!

The one plant I have growing all over the place is that Sedum that (I believe) Gina identified for me last year. It grows nicely but then spills out over onto the sidewalk and I don't like that look.

 

[shep]

I'll second the Hollyhocks...Please don't toss them, send them my way..I'll give them a home..

 

[TerriBelle]

My problem plant is black eyed susans. They are growing everywhere! They have jumped out of the garden and have moved into the lawn. I live in MD. and they are the state flower so I thought it would be nice to grow some.

 

[Glinda]

I too have the hollyhock problem but not quite as bad as the purple centurea invasion. They're lovely in small doses but it's popping up everywhere! Anyone want some purple coneflowers? I've been throwing over my fence along with my weeds creating a wildflower effect.

"Centurea montanum
The perennial cornflower grows in a spreading mat of creeping rhizomes. The unusual thistle like flowers are carried in summer.
Cultivation Deadheading will encourage a longer flwoerin season. Tolerant of dry conditions, Centurea is quite hardy and suited to both coastal and colder climates.
Propagation Division"

 

[DixieDreamer]

wow! I never knew blackeyed susans could be invasive!? Learn something everyday here.

 

[Barb]

I'm another one that would love the Hollyhocks and Black Eyed Susans! These are two plants that I've always wanted in my gardens.