In the still of this mid-July morning the air is hardly breathable. The tall deciduous trees seem to be having a hard time pulling up any cool air that might be lingering at ground level. Leaf movement above my gardens in this woodland is only on the very outer edges of the trees from the bottom up and does not penetrate the waiting inner branches.
Wanted and unwanted plants in the gardens continue to thrive and are now growing at super speed especially after striking thunderstorms have been rolling through each afternoon and evening for the past two weeks. (above) The tall interesting whirled plant floating over the Ginger leaves is a lovely traveling perennial invasive that I must keep in check by pulling. (below) Woodland vines seem to be doubling in size overnight.
Cat-briar (Smilax) is still sending out its strangling tendrils.
The large Tetrapanax hovering over the Lamium will in future have to be watched carefully as it also colonizes and can take over. It's a BIG one!!!! TALL, too. To me it's worth the experiment of having as it makes such a dramatic statement along the path.
Seed heads appear almost before my very eyes. Nut Sedge in the shady lawn is almost impossible to irradiate.
Some of the thuggish plants I have brought into the garden are wanted but must be keep in check. Above is a Bracken Fern easily edited with a quick pull.
The unwanted have been blown in on the wind or brought into the gardens with purchased nursery grown plants. Above is Japanese Stilt Grass crowding around Red Bud seedlings. Originally, a very long time ago, it was brought into this country as packing material from the Far East. It is an annual, seeding in late Sept. to October and can be pulled throughout the summer before the seeds mature and drop. By the way, many of the tree seedlings in woodlands can also become problematic. Take care of Maple, Red Bud, Oak and other unwanted tree seedlings when they first appear by pulling or smothering them with cardboard and covering that with leaf litter.
Two other annuals (above) have to be pulled or dug out and placed in heavy plastic bags that will heat up in a sunny spot to kill any seeds. Ar the top of the image is Mulberry Weed with seeds in every leaf axel. And on the right at the bottom of the image is a tiny seedling Jewels of Opar. I'm afraid that I don't know their botanical names. the following images are a collection of natives and exotics that I actually like as interest plants. I keep a close watch on them as they do spread.
The best way I have found to keep the unwanted out is to plant and keep a fully packed border with the plants you want in your gardens in woodlands.
Hydrangea arborescens 'Annabell', Aster divaricata and Helleborus x hybridus
Christmas Fern and Helleborus x hybridus whose seedling babies never stray far from the mother plant's umbrella leaves of safety. "Speaking words of wisdom, let it be, let it be".......Paul McCartney. Actually the keen gardening Beatle was George Harrison but, Paul McCartney's words came to me in defense of all the plants that want to reside in my Gardens in Woodlands.
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