Weeds, blooms and some natives

Begger's ticks, hedgeparsley (Torilis arvensis)

Catchweed bedstraw (Galium aparine)

Last Sunday, when we worked around the Wildscape, I pulled DOZENS AND DOZENS of hedgeparsley from beneath our elbow bush that falls over the fence and into our neighbor's adjoining property. I had NO CLUE that the species can grow so tall and thick. Over and over again, I reached into the elbow bush branches and ended up pulling out a whole pile of the stuff. Now little critters can get in there and hide better. Before, there was barely any room within the elbow bush thicket because of the hedgeparsley. I also yanked up bedstraw, which has the tinest roots you ever did see.
 

Wild petunia (Violet ruellia)...a polite native that has a sweet purple bloom.

Wild poinsettia (Euphorbia cyanthophora). You've heard of snow-on-the-mountain? Another common name for this species is fire-on-the-mountain. The two are in the same genus.

Drummond's woodsorrel (Oxalis drummondii). I love these delicate plants.

Spiderwort!

Hill Country penstemon (Penstemon triflorus) blooming. Because of recent heavy winds, James propped up the stems with a tomato cage.

Coral honeysuckle

Texas betony, one of my favorite natives. Hummers nectar on the flowers.

Woolly stemodia (Stemodia lanata). Linda, a Master Naturalist in Kingsland, pulled up five or six of these from her garden to give me. Here's hoping they take root!

Volunteer sunflower, likely planted by one of our local squirrel farmers.

Dandelions galore

Taraxacum officinale (left) and Sonchus sp. (foreground)

Thanks very much to the recent rains, our Wildscape continues to green green green. In the back yard, we're producing a very nice crop of dandelions. I've spent several hours, pulling a bunch up by hand. It's very satisfying, mind-calming work. I enjoy it. I've also picked tender, young dandelions with the intention of cooking them. That hasn't happened. Yet. But I have added dandelion leaves to my supper salad the past two nights. They blend right in. No funny taste at all!

Our healthy bumper crop of dandelions led me to start a mini research project. So far, I've ascertained that we have the common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) growing with jubilation right outside our back door. Alas, the deep green leaved species is non-native and traces its roots to Europe. We may also have some species of sow thistle (Sonchus sp.). Our native Texas dandelion (Pyrrhopappus multicaulis) hasn't yet arrived. It blooms from February through June, according to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

The lowly dandelion gets a lot of press. Years ago, Peter Gail wrote The Dandelion Celebration: A Guide to Unexpected Cuisine. If you want a copy, you'll have to pay the big bucks for it. And who knew that dandelions make great wine? Ray Bradbury wrote that book: Dandelion Wine. You'll find more dandelion books via Amazon.

I guess our resident dandelions now have gotta go. The Texas Invasives database includes Taraxacum officinale on their list of no-nos. One thing's for sure: the bees and other insects love love love the bright yellow flowers!

And speaking of dandelion flowers, I was surprised to learn that....

 

Dandelions reproduce asexually by seed (agamospermy). They don't need pollinators!

 

UPDATE FEBRUARY 3, 2012

And one last look at our amazing dandelion crop...James is about to mow....

Spring pretend

With days like yesterday and today, it's easy to wish even more than spring was TOMORROW! Even a pair of frisky red admirals (above) were flitting about this afternoon. With the recent rains, volunteer henbit and other nuisance natives (and nonnatives) are flourishing. Yesterday afternoon, I got out and pulled henbit from our front beds. For now, it can grow elsewhere for the benefit of bees, butterflies and other insects. When she visited Tuesday, my mother asked about henbit. Time to get out the books!

Henbit (Lamium amplexicaule) is the common name for a cool season weed, originally from Europe. It's also called dead nettle and is a member of the mint family (Lamiaceae). Howard Garrett in Howard Garrett's Plants for Texas says he likes the plant, "but if you don't, mow it down." According to Delena Tull's Wildflowers, Trees and Shrubs of Texas, "the young tender plants of both species [Lamium purpureum, East Texas species] are edible raw or cooked; unlike most mints, these do not have aromatic leaves."

And with yet another new year already here, I've decided to wage war against invasives in our Wildscape. The lantana (pictured above) was here before I moved into the Pink House in 2002. It struggled to survive last summer's drought and wasn't as hearty as usual. Though not listed at Texas Invasives, many biologists, native enthusiasts and other experts frown on Lantana camara and consider it to be highly invasive. So out it goes.