Hi,

I found a strange plane growing in my garden, not sure if it's a weed
or not so left it for the moment.
Can anyone tell me what it is?

Thanks

Phil

http://www.flickr.com/photos/21280746@N02/2068854382/

In article ,
Phil writes:
|
| I found a strange plane growing in my garden, not sure if it's a weed
| or not so left it for the moment.
| Can anyone tell me what it is?
|
| http://www.flickr.com/photos/21280746@N02/2068854382/

Almost impossible to tell until it flowers. It's almost certainly
one of the Umbelliferae, but that leaf shape isn't rare in them.
Nor are purplish stems. Somone may well be able to make a good
guess, but that's all it can be - I can't.

It's probably a wild plant :-)


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

In article 83a1c25f-ea78-49bb-8982-
, Phil says...
Hi,

I found a strange plane growing in my garden, not sure if it's a weed
or not so left it for the moment.
Can anyone tell me what it is?

Thanks

Phil

http://www.flickr.com/photos/21280746@N02/2068854382/


Looks like a weed to me. I'm pulling up plants all the time
that look like that.
--
David in Normandy

On 27 Nov, 14:00, (Nick Maclaren) wrote:
In article ,Phil writes:

|
| I found a strange plane growing in my garden, not sure if it's a weed
| or not so left it for the moment.
| Can anyone tell me what it is?
|
|http://www.flickr.com/photos/21280746@N02/2068854382/

Almost impossible to tell until it flowers. It's almost certainly
one of the Umbelliferae, but that leaf shape isn't rare in them.
Nor are purplish stems. Somone may well be able to make a good
guess, but that's all it can be - I can't.

It's probably a wild plant :-)

Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Thanks Nick,

Quick response!
I'll leave it to flower, if it doesn't freeze over winter!

Phil.

In message , Nick Maclaren
writes

In article ,
Phil writes:
|
| I found a strange plane growing in my garden, not sure if it's a weed
| or not so left it for the moment.
| Can anyone tell me what it is?
|
| http://www.flickr.com/photos/21280746@N02/2068854382/

Almost impossible to tell until it flowers. It's almost certainly
one of the Umbelliferae, but that leaf shape isn't rare in them.
Nor are purplish stems. Somone may well be able to make a good
guess, but that's all it can be - I can't.

I don't share your certainty. It gives me the impression of one of the
giant Herb Roberts. Geranium maderense seems the best match for the leaf
shape. (And I don't see a match among the umbellifers in Keble-Martin.)

It's probably a wild plant :-)


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

--
Stewart Robert Hinsley

Thanks Stewart,

Looked it up in my books and that looks like an exact match!

Now wondering how it got here (Worthing)?
Have to see if it survives the winter.

Thanks again

Phil.

In message
,
Phil writes
Thanks Stewart,

Looked it up in my books and that looks like an exact match!

Now wondering how it got here (Worthing)?
Have to see if it survives the winter.

The photograph looks like a good microclimate (wall, presumably south
facing from the presence of the Nerines, coastal location, South of
England) so I'd reckon there's a fair chance that it might.

Thanks again

Phil.

--
Stewart Robert Hinsley

In article ,
Stewart Robert Hinsley writes:
|
| Almost impossible to tell until it flowers. It's almost certainly
| one of the Umbelliferae, but that leaf shape isn't rare in them.
| Nor are purplish stems. Somone may well be able to make a good
| guess, but that's all it can be - I can't.
|
| I don't share your certainty. It gives me the impression of one of the
| giant Herb Roberts. Geranium maderense seems the best match for the leaf
| shape. (And I don't see a match among the umbellifers in Keble-Martin.)

I think you're right! I knew that it wasn't anything I recognised,
but its leaves were very like sweet cicely. With hindsight, the
picture shows only one 'level' of leaves per stem, which isn't
something that is normal for the Umbelliferae. I should have
looked more carefully ....


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

In article ,
Stewart Robert Hinsley writes:
| In message
| ,
| Phil writes
|
| Now wondering how it got here (Worthing)?
| Have to see if it survives the winter.
|
| The photograph looks like a good microclimate (wall, presumably south
| facing from the presence of the Nerines, coastal location, South of
| England) so I'd reckon there's a fair chance that it might.

Not a lot to lose by trying!

Quite a lot of such plants self-seed themselves in other people's
gardens. My Danae racemosa has seeded in some places - but, oh!,
IS it slow to grow from seed! If the seeds are eaten by birds,
some other people may have been puzzled by its seedlings, which
don't look much like the parent plant for several years :-)


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

"Phil" wrote
I found a strange plane growing in my garden, not sure if it's a weed
or not so left it for the moment.
Can anyone tell me what it is?

I think it's Geranium palmatum, the hardiest of the three large Geraniums
which does seed itself about. It could be G. maderense but you would be very
lucky for it to self seed.
Nice plant either way.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
17mls W. of London.UK

In message , Nick Maclaren
writes

In article ,
Stewart Robert Hinsley writes:
|
| Almost impossible to tell until it flowers. It's almost certainly
| one of the Umbelliferae, but that leaf shape isn't rare in them.
| Nor are purplish stems. Somone may well be able to make a good
| guess, but that's all it can be - I can't.
|
| I don't share your certainty. It gives me the impression of one of the
| giant Herb Roberts. Geranium maderense seems the best match for the leaf
| shape. (And I don't see a match among the umbellifers in Keble-Martin.)

I think you're right! I knew that it wasn't anything I recognised,
but its leaves were very like sweet cicely. With hindsight, the
picture shows only one 'level' of leaves per stem, which isn't
something that is normal for the Umbelliferae. I should have
looked more carefully ....

Another point is that the leaves of Myrrhis (also Anthriscus,
Chaerophyllum, and Torilis, which all look rather similar) are pinnate,
and the photograph shows palmate leaves.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

--
Stewart Robert Hinsley

Steve Wolstenholme writes
On Tue, 27 Nov 2007 05:54:12 -0800 (PST), Phil
wrote:

Hi,

I found a strange plane growing in my garden, not sure if it's a weed
or not so left it for the moment.
Can anyone tell me what it is?


It's an invasive cranesbill. There has been some in my back garden for
years. My mother brought it but I don't know where she found it. Frost
is supposed to kill it but mine comes up every year in forever larger
bunches. It has overwhelmed some of the more attractive common blue
cransbill. People who like it take clumps of it away but it always
dies. There must be something it finds addictive in my garden.

To clarify - cranesbill is the common name for hardy geraniums.

You're very lucky if this one is invasive for you! It has quite large
flowers (three quarters of an inch) unlike its smaller relative Herb
Robert whose flowers are not much more than a quarter of an inch and
which seeds and spreads everywhere. There is also a white flowered
garden variety of Herb Robert which seems every bit as invasive.
--
Kay

In message , Steve
Wolstenholme writes
On Tue, 27 Nov 2007 05:54:12 -0800 (PST), Phil
wrote:

Hi,

I found a strange plane growing in my garden, not sure if it's a weed
or not so left it for the moment.
Can anyone tell me what it is?


It's an invasive cranesbill. There has been some in my back garden for
years. My mother brought it but I don't know where she found it. Frost
is supposed to kill it but mine comes up every year in forever larger
bunches. It has overwhelmed some of the more attractive common blue
cransbill. People who like it take clumps of it away but it always
dies. There must be something it finds addictive in my garden.

Steve

Try giving them seed, rather than clumps.
--
Stewart Robert Hinsley

In article ,
Stewart Robert Hinsley writes:
|
| Another point is that the leaves of Myrrhis (also Anthriscus,
| Chaerophyllum, and Torilis, which all look rather similar) are pinnate,
| and the photograph shows palmate leaves.

True - it obviously wasn't Myrrhis, in several grounds.

Uon checking, there ARE some of the native Umbelliferae with
palmate leaves at the end of their stalks - Sanicula and
Astrantia - but it obviously isn't either, and I think that
your diagnosis is right.

Generally, however, that's not an Umbelliferae pattern, and I
should have looked more closely.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Phil wrote:
Thanks Stewart,

Looked it up in my books and that looks like an exact match!

Now wondering how it got here (Worthing)?
Have to see if it survives the winter.

Thanks again

Phil.

Oh, It'll survive all right (has done here in Horsham for over 6 years).
Too well, by the number of seedlings I keep pulling up...

--
Jeff
(cut "thetape" to reply)