Wednesday 30 May 2012

Detestable Weeds.



I have an irrational hatred for two plants (weeds); I can show you their mug-shots, but unfortunately I am unable to offer their names.

Above is my most hated. It is very fast growing, and has yellow staining liquid that instantly appears at any broken or cut stem. It's an inocuous looking plant, but every time I see one my blood begins to boil.


The other one is this red-stemmed 'usually' ground hugging beast (here it's at home in a wall at Haddock's), that has very loose and delicate roots. Pull it away from its home and one always leaves behind plenty to regrow over night. A real nasty.



Meanwhile, here's a Haddock's update. Everything doing OK, all growing correctly, and no bugs to speak of. I've put in 4 varieties of tomato; 6 Marmande, 4 Portuguese, 4 Italian plum-tomato Roma, and just 2 cherry tomatoes.

The Courgettes in the foreground are really flying, and I wouldn't be surprised if our first crop doesn't arrive within 30 days. As you can probably see, I've been hoeing; keeping another posse of weeds (not the ones above) at bay!

The photo makes it all look quite small.... my back says otherwise.

22 comments:

  1. Exquisite vegetable garden, Cro, thanks to all your efforts and your aching back.

    Those nasties you are currently hating: Spray them with vinegar in the heat of the day. Repeat every couple of days. If nothing else you'll have some revenge.

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    1. If that works, it sounds like a very cheap weed-killer. I'll give it a go today.

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  2. Your garden looks great. Must remember the vinegar tip.

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  3. Is that Martian Weed? The veggie plot is thickening nicely!

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  4. Morning Cro - your weeds look lovely in the wall you are very fortunate that they have found a home with you - live and let live. Haddocks is looking mighty fine - my plot is a haven for weeds at the moment.

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  5. …the name is “Schöllkraut, Calandine“ it is a healing herb, a medicinal plant yellow flowers.
    I would not call it a weed, how beautiful are the many wild herbs, because for every disease an herb grown!
    It can be easily pulled from the ground when it interferes in the vegetable garden, but it always comes back!

    Grüße Jasmin

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  6. The first one looks like Greater Celandine http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelidonium It does have some medicinal uses but the sap can be quite an irritant so wear gloves if you are pulling it up.

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    1. Thank you both Jasmin and Halfrida. I've checked, and it looks like you're RIGHT. I shall now try to remember the name CELANDINE!

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    2. What a shame it didn't turn out to be Sukebind!

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  7. It amazes me that what it considered a weed in Florida, is sold as house plants at the stores in the north.

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  8. Your garden looks lovely. I know what you mean about it looks small in the photos, but hard on the back. I am aching today from running the dreaded tiller that unmercifully beats my body! But, alas, it is all part of the process of the great rewards.

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  9. Wow, I'm impressed. Where I lived in the Maritime Alpes we used to lightly fry battered courguette flowers, and serve with home made garlic mayo . . . O I could eat one just now.

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    1. We keep saying we mustn't waste the flowers, but somehow they always end up on the compost. THIS YEAR we shall eat them.

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    2. O you absolutely must . . . They're delicious.

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  10. The veggie garden looks fantastic, not small to me, but then my yard is puny. There are some weeds I'm learning to embrace in this hard, clay Ontario soil... one with purple flowers and the clover one with yellow flowers. It's too hard fighting them. That, or I'm lazy. :)

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  11. It looks magnificant to me. The camera lens is charming; it looks like a magazine spread. And yours alone.

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  12. Wow, your Haddock looks marvelous!

    We have been having quite a bit of rain lately and now the weeds are growing quicker and larger than the plants.

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  13. just given you a big up on going gently
    hope you like it

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  14. my bugbear is what we call in Ireland "sticky robin"...it grows at a fierce rate and if you don't get it out the little sticky balls get caught up in the local wildlife! and are spread...an on going major battle happening here! must remember the vinegar trick thopugh.

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  15. I'm glad to find out the name of that top plant, Greater Celandine. It grows profusely in my garden. As sometime I have too few flowers, I let it flower and then pull it out. The sap is bright orange and stains everything, but one has to think that it would make a great natural dye.

    Christy
    Lil Bit Brit

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  16. Just catching up here and recognising greater celandine - and I know you can't be bothered with the Botanic names but if I write it in full here Chelidonium majus - the search engines will find you when the botanists search. Re-iterating what others have noted: the sap is very reactive on the skin. After a day of dead-heading it in a herb garden my hands blistered all over and peeled over the next few days.
    The other plant looks like ground ivy, Glechoma hederacea - not so sure without knowing what the flowers are like: it used to be used to brew a medicinal ale.

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