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Minnesota Gardening

creeping charlie in 4' pots at menards

17 years ago

for 4.49. I couldn't believe my eyes. true, it was a slightly different kind with a a variegated leaf but still! It said creeping charlie right on the label and it said great groundcover! in the description. It was already starting to creep around and sucker on to other plants on the shelf. Maybe they sell it so you'll have to by all this other stuff to get rid of it...

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Comments (12)

leaveswave
17 years ago
Well, it is a great groundcover--fast, attractive, pretty flowers, nice fragrance. And in their defence, oftentimes a variegated form of a plant is less invasive. But, still, IMO it's a lie by omission not to indicate how quickly it can "creep".

Ditto for Phalaris arundinacea (ribbon grass), Aegopodium podagraria (bishop's weed), most Campanulas, and many other commonly sold plants.

Caveat emptor -- good advice, indeed
Julie
17 years ago
That is pretty funny though- alarming- but funny all the same. Who knew if you painted a horse a different color- it would be "all the RAGE" he he-
I have Charlie all over the place- some places it seems it is the only thing that will grow- It sure does look pretty with the yellow dandilions all those pretty blue flowers!- But then I remember what the neighbors think..... and what I think every time I look at my garden beds.....
I once met a fellow who saw it for sale in hanging baskets at a farmers market labeled as 'Mother-in-Law" plant.....
My own Mother in Law brought me some Creeping Jenny to keep Charlie company..... She's pretty funny too!
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I will speak for the Creeping Bellflower that cannot defend it's self: Pollinators love them, ground hogs and/or rabbits feed on them ,the strong roots keep steep banks from eroding, they beautify neglected alleys, it blooms from late June to September. I find pristine grass lawns saturated in poisonous chemicals to be more offensive, more invasive, more of a threat ecologically...ask yourself- do you ever see birds on a chemically treated lawn? My neighbor pointed out that observation to me, comparing his wild lawn to the lawn chemically treated next to his. The Creeping Bellflower seems to have reached mythical proportions beyond that of Jack and the Bean Stalk. Some informatioin about them that does not involve destroying them: History and Comments: Creeping Bellflower is native to Europe, and was introduced to the United States as a decorative garden flower. Despite its beautiful flowers, Bellflower can be a weed in lawns, where it can choke out grass. It has a very strong root system, which allows it to spread efficiently.. Creeping Bellflower is considered invasive in several Western states as well as in Western Canada. Rapanzul of fairy tale fame takes her name from "rapunculoides" of Campanula rapunculoides. source: http://www.bio.brandeis.edu/fieldbio/EFG_DEB_SHU/species%20pages/Creeping%20Bellflower/Creeping%20Bellflower.html To be invasive, a species must adapt to the new area easily. It must reproduce quickly. It must harm property, the economy, or the native plants and animals of the region. Many invasive species are introduced into a new region accidentally. -source: https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/invasive-species/#:~:text=To%20be%20invasive%2C%20a%20species,into%20a%20new%20region%20accidentally. The Creeping Bellflower is not harming property, the economy, or the animals and I would argue that more native plants have been threatened by humans developing land, growing lawns, and using poisons than by the Creeping Bellflower. It's guiltiy of growing easily in places humans deem invasive such as their own lawns and gardens. I have yet to discover exactly what native plants are being threatened by Creeping Bellflower- and i have searched for a list to learn what to protect from them. I admit I LOVE Creeping Bellflowers.
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I also have the headache of having Creeping Charlie and Henbit in my gardens. It came in with a load of composted topsoil that I used for everything. I was just about to give up because nothing I did for almost two years slowed it down. I'm an organic gardener so conventional chemicals were out. This year I came across a product called EcoBlend Organic Grass and Weed killer, and I can tell you it saved my gardens! It HATES Creeping Charlie and Henbit. I sprayed it on several areas 6 weeks ago and waited for the weed to come back... It's gone! Toast! I did a test with lettuce that re-seeded in my perennial border, and sprayed 6 inches from the lettuce and the EcoBland had no effect on the health of the lettuce. I sprayed directly up to some perennials that were completely covered with the weed and they survived but Charlie is gone. The other great thing; the spray is food based so it turns back into a nutrient for the soil. If you do try this don't start with areas directly around sensitive plants. Experiment with how far you can spray. As far as grass is concerned it will brown but not kill the grass (in my experience) in your yard. I would use it in small areas at a time until the weed is gone that way you won't have wilted grass everywhere. If you want to kill grass it takes 2-3 applications. EcoBlend is available online. Good luck I know how horrible this weed can be. To those who think it's pretty, I agree it is, but unfortunately it loves your gardens a lot more.
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Stunning thyme scape. Thanks to vine and me for your suggestions. You have not only given me a couple of ideas, but also courage. I had such bad luck with lily-of-the-valley years ago that I became gun shy about ground covers. It lined a very long drive when we moved in. It was less than pretty--such sameness. I dug it all up only to find that every single little piece of root sprouted a new plant the next spring. Early spring, that year I spent on the ground, hand sifting the entire strip garden, removing every bit of the white root. Thankfully, it was white and easily spotted. Then we moved in here and more LOTV--what's with the love for this stuff in long narrow garden beds? It choked out my gorgeous huge delphinium--thought it might be able to hold its own. I've never been able to grow another like it. Veggie gardener FIL visited and I told him I was going to remove it. The next thing I knew I found him out there, all the LOTV pulled and him just turning the ground. I know he was trying to be helpful, so I just thanked him, but guess what I did as soon as he left--another day on the ground. I have seen Crown Vetch completely swallow a garden. I've heard horror stories of 'Silver Beacon," golden lysmachia and creeping Jenny. I had golden lysmachia in pots last year and thought I was OK, but my first walk around the garden this spring, here it was already with 5" growth in the ground where the pot had sat. I suspect it touched down and rooted, but I suppose it could have seeded. However, I think I would have seen more in that case. I quickly pulled it and haven't seen it since, unless it is lurking some unknown place (see, I've become absolutely paranoid about groundcovers)--I had it in a lot of pots-it's such a wonderful contrast. More suggestions and thoughts about groud covers, please. gramma jan
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birdwing
Original Author
17 years ago
whoa, I meant 4 inch pots not 4 foot pots. 4 foot pots almost might be a bargain...naah.

Campanula is that invasive really? I might not mind it. i have some but it seems to stay in neat little clumps.
irrigationcontractor
17 years ago
I would have been tempted to tell Walmart that unless they had dandelions and Canada Thistle, I wouldn't take the Creeping Charlie.
MinnesotaSue_z4
17 years ago
irrigationcontractor: it says Menards is selling it, not Wal*Mart. Menards is based out of Wisconsin if I remember correctly. I know we love to blame the evil empire but sometimes they don't deserve it.
mimi_stpaul
17 years ago
When I moved into this house 5 years ago, the only "plants" in the backyard were a patch of Bishops Weed and some Capanulas. I have been watching these 2 invasives very close and neither of them has spread one bit. My sister wanted to pull them out and I told her to just let them stay. Plants that well behaved deserve to live. BUT they sure better not get out of hand!!!!
doucanoe
17 years ago
If it wouldn't creep into my lawn at some point, I would actually consider getting some creeping charlie to plant on my septic mound!
Building codes forced us to plant grass on the darn thing, but what a PITA to mow! Would like to put in a ground cover, but we would have to eradicate the grass first, or it seems it would defeat the purpose.
I actually LIKE creeping charlie. Pretty leaves, pretty flowers, smells wonderful. But, it has that one bad habit....
Linda
crocosmia_mn
17 years ago
My husband likes Creeping Charlie, too, so we let it be in the lawn. I take it right out of my flowerbeds, however. Actually, I enjoy the little rip-rip-rip-rip-rip as I remove it.

I have NOT enjoyed the last 18 years of weeding out the campanula that came with the house, nor does my next-door neighbor enjoy the lilies-of-the valley that came with hers --- yet you see these two for sale all the time.
leftwood
17 years ago
Linda, can you plant prairie grasses over you mound? I little praire would be fun. And "I don't know how theose forbs got in there. They must have seeded by themselves!"

Variegated creeping charlie has been around for many years. I remember growing it as a hanging basket in a greenhouse where I worked back in 1982. It is supposed to be not hardy here, and I beleive that to be true. Otherwise, I am sure we would see more than a few variegated creeping charlie lawns.

Rick
vogt0047
17 years ago
We've been trying to kill our creeping charlie for 3 years. I'm so tempted to roundup that crap already.

Ugh... when it creeps into my tulip beds I get miffed.
jel48
17 years ago
Maybe if Menards gets $4.49 a pot, we could all go into business..... I'd be glad to pot mine up to sell to Menards, say at $3 a pot. They could make a healthy $1.49 a pot profit and we could thin our creeping charlie crops out a little bit. Maybe we could even take our $3 a pot out in Round-up!
chanhassenshannon
17 years ago
Ha Ha! Sounds like the container gardening I did the first year I was married and had no money but lots of garage sale pots. On each stair up to my deck was a pot with a different weed in it! Some neigbors got the joke, others thought they were left over pots from the previous season! Personally my favorite is the "Hybrid Dandelion" that I found growing out of the tall weeds on a walk to the Park, It's hard to top a 3 1/2' dandelion. Miracle grow works really well to make weeds "Flourish"!

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