Is this a weed?
 

On Wed, 28 May 2003 14:09:20 +0100, Colin Davidson
wrote:


"Tim" wrote in message
news:oprpvu45cvwxhha1@localhost...

Yes, that's it, also known as lady's thumb, or heart's ease. Tim.

And known also as red leg. Depends on where you come from.

It must be pretty common then, it's got so many common names.
red leg
redshank
lady's thumb
heart's ease

....any more for any more?

Is this a weed?
 

Ahh, that's a lot better. I think it's Polygonum persicaria... A quick
websearch for that has brought up this page:
http://www.hawriverprogram.org/NCPla...aria_page.html

It's a fairly common weed, bit it's quite a charming plant.


Yes that looks like the one to me. The site says "The plant grows in moist
areas of waste ground and disturbed sites." Should be quite at home then. I
think I'll thin them out before they take over. As colin says they are
charming so I'll keep a few.

Many Thanks to all who took the trouble to help out.

Jus

Is this a weed?
 

"A.Malhotra" wrote:

Justin Burnett wrote:


Sorry folks, I can find nothing that would restrict access so perhaps using
the less direct link below will allow you in.
http://community.webshots.com/user/jburnett110

If that fails I'll wait and see what the plants do!

It looks like a polygonatum of some sort. Ita ctually looks just like the
Vietnamese coriander I have growing in pots but I don't think that's hardy
so I assume this is some other polygonatum. Some of them are supposed to be
rather invasive (japanese knotweed is related but the leaves are different
so its not that!).
Anita

oops I meant persicaria
Anita

Is this a weed?
 

Without doubt Persicaria.
Get rid of it, whilst it can look nice it seeds very easily and will be
coming back for years.
Also it can grow almost 2 inches in a week .

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

Is this a weed?
 

"..........As colin says they are charming so I'll keep a few........"

You'll be sorry....


--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

Is this a weed?
 

I recognise the plant now and yes, that's what came up in the hundreds in my
garden last year (I'd forgotten about them). They were a nuisance, so I
wouldn't recommend that you keep any. I'm off out now to pull them all up
from my garden. I was keeping them because they sort of looked like phlox,
but now I know better!



"Justin Burnett" wrote in message
...

Ahh, that's a lot better. I think it's Polygonum persicaria... A quick
websearch for that has brought up this page:
http://www.hawriverprogram.org/NCPla...aria_page.html

It's a fairly common weed, bit it's quite a charming plant.


Yes that looks like the one to me. The site says "The plant grows in moist
areas of waste ground and disturbed sites." Should be quite at home then.
I
think I'll thin them out before they take over. As colin says they are
charming so I'll keep a few.

Many Thanks to all who took the trouble to help out.

Jus

Is this a weed?
 

"David Hill" wrote in message
...
Without doubt Persicaria.
Get rid of it, whilst it can look nice it seeds very easily and will be
coming back for years.
Also it can grow almost 2 inches in a week .

Thanks for the warning, I'll be digging the lot up tomorrow. I already have
a worthy adversary in the garden - Bindeweed. I can do without another! Is
ok to compost at this stage (Persicaria) or should I burn it?

Is this a weed?
 

The message
from "Justin Burnett" contains these words:


Ahh, that's a lot better. I think it's Polygonum persicaria... A quick
websearch for that has brought up this page:
http://www.hawriverprogram.org/NCPla...aria_page.html

It's a fairly common weed, bit it's quite a charming plant.


Yes that looks like the one to me. The site says "The plant grows in moist
areas of waste ground and disturbed sites." Should be quite at home then. I
think I'll thin them out before they take over. As colin says they are
charming so I'll keep a few.

Many Thanks to all who took the trouble to help out.

Jus

There is another similar Polygonum weed called Polygonum amphibium or
amphibious bistort. I have it in several places in my garden and find it
impossible to get rid of. The roots go down very deep and you never get
to the end of them. It seems to grow where land is or has been damp,
e.g. fens, but I'm not sure how widespread it is.
It's my pet hate and yet I've never come across anyone else who is
troubled by it.

However, I think yours probably is redshank rather than amphibious
bistort (which also grows in ponds), but you could see how far down your
roots go.

Janet G

Is this a weed?
 

Tim wrote:
On Wed, 28 May 2003 14:09:20 +0100, Colin Davidson
wrote:


"Tim" wrote in message
news:oprpvu45cvwxhha1@localhost...

Yes, that's it, also known as lady's thumb, or heart's ease. Tim.

And known also as red leg. Depends on where you come from.

It must be pretty common then, it's got so many common names.
red leg
redshank
lady's thumb
heart's ease

...any more for any more?

'Trouble with the common names is that the same name is often applied
to different plants eg Heart's Ease = Viola tricolour / Wild pansy.
'Confess I'd never heard it applied to P Persicaria.

And yes, Polygonum persicaria is very common.

--
ned

Is this a weed?
 

"...Without doubt Persicaria....Also it can grow almost 2 inches in a week
....."

Must have been having a brainstorm, or just hunger got to me, should read
12 inches a week... yes 1 foot.
If you have a few young ones then a couple of weeks of warm wet weather you
will wonder where all the other plants have gone. They will have been
swamped.

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

Is this a weed?
 

"Janet Galpin and Oliver Patterson" wrote in
message ...

There is another similar Polygonum weed called Polygonum amphibium or
amphibious bistort. I have it in several places in my garden and find it
impossible to get rid of. The roots go down very deep and you never get
to the end of them. It seems to grow where land is or has been damp,
e.g. fens, but I'm not sure how widespread it is.
It's my pet hate and yet I've never come across anyone else who is
troubled by it.

However, I think yours probably is redshank rather than amphibious
bistort (which also grows in ponds), but you could see how far down your
roots go.

Ordinary bistort is passably good eating. Redshank isn't, well, I suppose
it's maybe edible, but it's bland as hell and utterly pointless eating.
Pretty, though. Is amphibious bistort edible? I'll look it up later, see if
I can find it in any of my wild food books.

Is this a weed?
 

"David Hill" wrote in message
...
"...Without doubt Persicaria....Also it can grow almost 2 inches in a
week
...."

Must have been having a brainstorm, or just hunger got to me, should read
12 inches a week... yes 1 foot.
If you have a few young ones then a couple of weeks of warm wet weather
you
will wonder where all the other plants have gone. They will have been
swamped.

I haven't found it to be quite such a pest, I've had it growing quietly in a
corner which I've simply hacked into periodically to keep it in check.
Certainly not something you'd want in a low maintenance garden, but not in
my opinion uncontrollable.