Weeds to enrich the garden

7 years ago

There was a recent thread, I forget exactly what about, that linked to an article in which a garden designer talked about the virtues of planting a variety of plants in one area. He mentioned his neighbor's "hell strip", a neglected narrow patch of ground in which, however, he counted a wealth of self-sown wild plants growing with happy vigor.

I live on a former farm in the middle of the country, and my garden is on land that has never been dedicated to monoculture. The area around the house, now a thriving garden, started out as as various courtyards and brushy areas, clay and gravel punctuated by weeds, mainly obnoxious ones. As we dug, terraced, brought in soil and amendments, planted our choices, native plants also crept in on their own. I like this, though it can be messy. The lawn, what there is of it, is a lot of things besides grass. The beds are populated with volunteers, both descendents of plants, some wild, that we introduced, or that came in on their own. Most of the ones I'm referring to are herbaceous plants, often annuals, that have a modest presence and don't interfere with the woody plants or the more vigorous perennials like irises and peonies. I thought it would be interesting to take stock of what's growing around the house, in this season when these little plants are growing vigorously and haven't yet gone to seed. So, in grass and beds, I find the following:

money plant (introduced), three different geraniums, wide- and narrow-leaf plantain, two or three low veronicas, chickweed by the ton, two annual euphorbias, English daisies, sweet violets in various colors, annual violas, strawberries, field sage, clumping perennial grass, a nice Galium (as opposed to the obnoxious G. aperine, a terrible pest in any semi-neglected area), various inoffensive annual grasses, lemon balm, dead nettle, yellow emperor, inch plant, perennial something that looks like grass but isn't (Carex?), wild peas, Ficaria verna, silene, Chenopodium and common poppies in the propagating beds. This is a start. This doesn't include full-blown cultivated plants like crocuses, Parma violets, Persicaria, cyclamen, hellebores, common sage and thyme and oregano, nor undesirable weeds that get ripped out as I find time, like bindweed, Bermuda grass (there's a patch in the road below the persimmon), oxalis, cinquefoil, weedy grasses, knotweed, and others whose names I don't know. We have lots of them, too, especially in summer. The area around the house has a nice variety of these little plants; other areas have perhaps less variety, but different plants.

I like this liveliness, all these often subtle differences, and I think it's healthy: with this variety of plants each kind can grab its own niche and grow, supplying the organic matter the garden needs so badly, covering the ground to keep it cool and prevent erosion, providing food for bees and butterflies. The plant population changes over the seasons, it changes according to where it is in the yard. Nature is at work here, not just me the gardener. I like to see what she gets up to. Sometimes it's a job to keep it under control (well, sort of), but what garden isn't a job? I consider my garden fairly easy. The mowed grass and mass of the larger plants supply order.

I made my list from memory, but it's a fair sample of what grows in the most developed part of the garden.

So, what are others' policies about little wild plants? Allowed? Not? What do you like or dislike about this idea?

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Alana8aSC

7 years ago

I leave certain weeds to grow all the time, my DH thought he was doing me a favor pulling them out of my garden last year and I was like NOOO! He was like it's just a weed, and I said but it's a pretty weed and I like it :)

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Comments (10)

portlandmysteryrose
7 years ago
We are kindred gardening spirits, Melissa! I welcome all kinds of volunteers in the garden--native and other "weeds" as well as neighbors' contributions via breezy days. I find that beneficial insects appreciate the volunteers, too.

Volunteer fireweed blew in prior to the near mcmansioning of the Victorian home/lot across the street. Bees, butterflies, hummingbirds and I adore the lavender pink blooms in high summer. I occasionally rip out potions of clover and oxalis plants. The rest is hopelessly interwoven with the garden, but everyone plays well as long as I keep the creeping beauties knocked back a bit. Dandelions are healthy food and my daughter loves to blow the seeds. I'll be scraping away the final chunks of sod this summer in order to lay a small back patio area, so no worries about dandelions in the lawn. Borage comes and goes with the wind.

My husband "rescues" all kinds of plants and brings them to me for rehoming. It's fun to pick and choose and pass along. Birds have delivered various annuals to my beds, including sunflowers. I stay on top of unwanted woody sproutlings, like the gazillion holly plants invading every area of my yard. Birds and berries and an ongoing removal exercise. Bindweed has to go as do Himalayan blackberries.

My favorite unexpected discovery is scarlet pimpernel which opens and closes its blooms with weather changes. A sweet, delicate coral-flowered groundcover meteorologist. Great fun! Carol
Jasminerose, California, USDA 9b/Sunset 18
7 years ago
Melissa, it's nice to hear about your natural garden. I've often noticed on nature walks that weeds can be pretty if left to grow on their own. After all, they are native plants.
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User
7 years ago
I have all kinds of stuff mixed together in my main rose beds, violets, carex, irises, lemon balm, garlic chives, a penstemon, some scabiosa, blue eyed grass, thyme, etc. I try to "edit" a bit when something seems to be getting out of hand...I want a "green mulch"!
Sheila z8a Rogue Valley OR
7 years ago
I think it is great to have the naturalistic mix, unless the roses and other treasures can not compete.
mariannese
7 years ago
I am selective, no weeds allowed in proper beds except a few white and pink mallows and ox-eye daisies. I have a huge problem with vetches in some beds. I welcome everything in the outskirts of the garden especially in the piece of wood left by previous owners and I've introduced some natives, too.
User
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Alas, the helpful husband! Mine generally leaves the beds to me, though he DOES call my wildflower/perennial garden "the weed patch"... He does not understand the meadow garden concept, with grasses mixed in.
Melissa Northern Italy zone 8
Original Author
7 years ago
I see I'm in good company. Carol, I'd say we are kindred spirits! Jasminerose4u, thanks for the photos that display the charm of "weeds". I'm glad to hear from others who practice this kind of gardening.
nikthegreek
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
If I don't slash the weeds with the string cutter by this time of year at the latest, I will be left with a waist high dry fire hazard in high summer..
User
7 years ago
Hmm... I just ordered some bare-root "weeds" from a native plant nursery (including Geranium maculatum, Camassia scilloides, Thalictrum thalictroides and a few other things). I like a lot of diversity, and I like plants that I can trust to establish themselves and reseed/spread without taking over everything.

When I first introduce a new-to-me plant, I keep an eye on it to see if it has world-conquering aims; if anything seems too, too vigorous, I start pulling it up, but at this point, I want things that will spread themselves out a bit. And perhaps out-compete some things I don't want.

A gardening friend likes to say that a weed can be any plant that's in the wrong place. I tend to reserve the term for plants that I don't want and have trouble getting rid of.

Virginia

Weeds to enrich the garden

Alana8aSC

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portlandmysteryrose

Jasminerose, California, USDA 9b/Sunset 18

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Weeds to enrich the garden

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