I have noticed in at least a couple of your posts that you are finding plants near water that you think are Plantain. In my region, Plantain grows in dry, poor soil, along pathways and where there is foot traffic. Try looking a little closer to civilization and I think you'll have better luck.

Butterflyalley, I really should get a caterpillar book someday. It would be so much handier than to keep looking things up on the net. I'm not so sure I want to keep the vetch for one butterfly, especially since there is so much crown vetch around, i.e. along the highways for ground cover. That's probably another reason for the decline of butterflies. Between road crews mowing places they never mowed before and with all the crown vetch along the highways crowding out probably just about anything in its path, I imagine that the butterflies have lost a lot of their habitat on the sides of roads. I hope you find some cats on your Louisiana Vetch. If you do, let us know. I always love to hear about everybody's finds. When I find a cat, it's like discovering buried treasure. Yes, it sounds like the birds there are helping to spread the seeds around. I like to plant for both the birds and the butterflies, although now I'll definitely have more planted for the butterflies. I guess you must have a lot of food there for our feathered/furred/winged friends if your place is certified. Well, it's good to know that I'm not the only one who's obsessive about the butterflies. I would about cry too when the spraying goes on. Sometimes I wonder if people don't know what all that stuff kills or if they don't even care. Count me among the ones who don't like mosquito spraying. If people would just go back to pre-chemicals, we'd be much better off. It's a lot of nonsense, all this spraying and powdering of things! Then the birds eating the insects that have been poisoned end up being poisoned themselves, so they are no longer around to eat the insects that the people are trying to get rid of. The whole things is just so stupid! If only the higher ups would quit with the spraying and work to rebuild our bird and bat populations. Of course, then I guess more butterflies would get eaten. I don't know if there's an answer to this dilemma. That's a good idea you have with keeping the "wildlings" in pots buried in certain places. Yes, I can imagine how some can invade other areas that you want for other plants.

We have a wicked infestation of wild violet. Monterey makes an organic herbicidal soap that kills what's above ground but they'll come back. Our next attempt to get the violets out of our beds will be to cover the area with heavy black plastic for a week or two. Then we will remove the plastic to till the area and manually rake out the foliage and roots. I expect we will need to till multiple times to clear out all the roots. After this process we will put in our perennials, mulch heavily, and be vigilant for violets poking up through the mulch. I really don't mind them in the yard...just not in my garden beds.

Anyone have or know of someone who may be growing plantains where I may be able to get a shoot. Please reach out. Also, looking for some scion for mango grafting.