While I was repotting, I snapped a leaf off a large plant. About 1/2 inch up the leaf petiole there was a tiny stem with 2 leaves growing out of the petiole like a branch. The leaf had roots. I don't want to open the baggie but if it grows, I will post a picture. Very Strange to have a plant? sprouting along a petiole. That would be a plant sprouting along a stem or not certain yet what that growth is. I will post pictures next time I open the baggie. It was hard to get the petiole to stay erect so I don't want to disturb it. Maybe it was a flower bud but so far up the petiole?

The cardboard will very effectively keep sunlight from reaching any plants that attempt to grow under it therefore keeping them from growing. There is no reason to put down a pre emergent weed preventer as well, a product that only keeps seeds from rooting. If you have an invasive unwanted plant, such as Bindweed, the pre emergent will not be effective anyway and the cardboard may do more to control that.

there is nothing that flowers this spring.. that probably has mature seeds ... i think you are looking too early ... though you should have seen immature white nodules .... many cultivars carry a patent ... and the fee is paid on the sale of the seed .... it would be highly shady for anyone to pay the royalty.. and then not brag about such.. by using the name ... but this might be an older strain .. that the patent fell off of ... and the newer on.. an IMPROVED variety ... take the latin... and add propagation ... to see how and when to take cuttings to try growing indoors ... when i do this... i start such in early fall ... hoping to get a rooted plant growing out in shade in a pot ..... BEFORE i have to take them indoors ... perhaps i can take more cuttings before frost .. if the first wave fails ... ken

I am going to add something here that is my opinion but not universally accepted. IMO spring planted cloves can produce nearly full sized bulbs and scapes if cold treated before planting. IIRC that would be a 40/40 or 40 days at 40 degrees which can be done in a refrigerator, provided there are no ethyline producing fruits, etc. also in that refrigerator. There is an old family old wives' tale in my family to plant potatoes on Good Friday, which this year is only a little past the middle of March and very likely our ground here will still be frozen. But you can plant onion plants and spring garlic bulbs about the same time as you plant your potatoes. Cold treatment for that would start about 40 days before ground thaw and can go on beyond 40 days for some little while at least with little problem. I am thinking of getting one of those cheap apartment sized frigs just for that. I certainly have a corner of the kitchen and an outlet I can devote to that. All the different ways one can handle garlics just has me in some sort of awe! One other thing: I found a relatively easy way to handle small garlic bulbs with their very small cloves. Simply break them up and strip off the dry wrappers. Then put the unpeeled cloves directly into the garlic press figuring at least two times the volume you would normally use for peeled cloves (IOW load the press up good) and just press them that way. I always reload the wrappers and give those a good second crush and then discard what is left. I do not like to peel tiny garlic cloves and now I simply don't. So I use a whole very small bulb instead of one large clove and throw some little bit of wrapper out. Works for me. Did I say how much I dislike peeling garlic cloves!