Here’s my list of plants I love to hate
While I generally like most plants, there are a few that I positively dislike — sometimes for no other reason than the color of their flowers.
Among my least favorite plants are pink wax begonias. Sometimes it seemed that when I was a child every birdbath was surrounded with a ring of pink wax begonias and silvery dusty miller. So common, so ordinary but most importantly, so pink.
Of course they were a favorite of my sister, Barbara. For years I took her to the garden center, purchased a mix flat of wax begonias and dusty miller and helped her plant them. As you may have guessed, they had to go in the middle of the yard, around the birdbath. I’ve noticed that in the years since her death, I almost smile when I see the now rare ring of pink wax begonias around a birdbath as long as it isn’t in my garden.
A second plant on my list of least favorites is the marigold. Those bright little flowers have been ever-present since childhood, They are, again, so common that they lose their appeal for me, they stink and they taste terrible. I was reminded of my prejudices when my tomato-growing neighbor Jack insisted on giving me several packets of seeds he’d received for free. Of course, there is a pack of marigold seeds. As I tried to remember what made marigolds so odious to me, memories of elementary school days surfaced.
Early on, the wonder of soil, water, light, air and seeds was revealed to me in the dirt-filled paper cups that my teachers made us
plant for Mother’s Day. After only a few weeks of care, those lifeless containers sprouted tiny green stems, then buds, then flower — pure magic the first time or two.
I was forced to repeat the exercise for several years, sometimes in egg cartons, egg shells, milk cartons and orange juice containers. I’m not sure why it was always marigolds, but I learned the lesson. I loved to grow plants just not marigolds.
Since they are so bright, colorful and easy to grow, I spent a recent afternoon trying to think of a few redeeming qualities of marigolds. Here’s what I came up with:
Marigolds are perfect for teaching the fantastic lessons of sowing seeds, fulfilling their basic needs, and being rewarded with bright, colorful plants.
While the flowers taste terrible to me, there are some palatable varieties (Lemon, Tangerine and
Red Gem, for example) that can be used to brighten salads, decorate ice cubes, use in teas, stir fries and soups.
Marigolds have long been used as a source of fabric dye, producing beautiful shades of yellow and orange.
Marigolds also sometimes work as barriers. A border of marigolds surrounding a garden bed can deter insects and small animals that find the odor and taste as repugnant as I do.
A third nominee for my list is ajuga. A versatile, colorful and easily grown ground cover, it looks great in the nursery and in other people’s gardens, In my yard, it is a monster. When we moved to our present home, there was a small circle of purple ajuga in the front yard. Forward to the present and it is everywhere. There are patches in the lawn, in the garden beds, anywhere it can find a bare patch of ground. Some varieties are quite beautiful and they have worked well limiting the erosion on slight inclines. They spread freely, quickly filling in a sparse border.
There are others, of course, but time and space limit my rant this week. Is there a plant you really dislike? Do you know why? Tell me, I’m interested.
Hawks at the feeder, continued
This week we have more of a birder view of the hawk/ bird feeder situation that we have been discussing lately:
Oh, I want to get involved in this conversation. We have bird feeders, and we occasionally have a Cooper’s or a sharp-shinned hawk around. The hawk will make passes at the feeder which is in the open area, or it will perch on the rain gauge in the yard. The feeder birds are aware of the hawk’s presence. They fly for cover, or they freeze. Occasionally I see the hawk successfully nab an inattentive small bird.
We do not mourn when the hawk has caught a mouse or a vole or a snake. It’s all part of nature.
This winter has been mild without a snow cover, so, I guess, removing the feeders for a while won’t be a problem for the birds finding food. Personally, I find much enjoyment watching the feeders when I am working in the kitchen.
It is important to note that the reason that bird populations in general are declining is because of human activity. Habitat loss, the draining of wetlands, logging the forests, the construction of warehouses over former farmland and so on. Many numbers of birds are killed each year by flying into glass skyscrapers.
I know this is not about gardening necessarily, but I just wanted to have my say. Wishing you good health. I missed your column when it wasn’t there.
— Carole Mebus