(Mugshot of the offending plant)That's right. At least in my book. This post is in response to the hilarious comment left by Lori on my last post. There was a frantic tone, in her comment, and I wanted to address the issue right away, so she would be able to burn the yarrow seed with peace of mind.
I was suckered into Achillea millefolium by the assurance that it was easy to grow. So easy, in fact, that even beginning gardeners with no experience whatsoever can get it to prosper and flourish! (I now know that if that sort of description is attached to a plant, it indicates a weed. Really. Because if even a fool can grow it, which you would have to be to choose this plant, that means it can grow itself.)
And it looks SO pretty, with feathery leaves, strong stalks and teeny little blossoms all bunched together in a nice little bouquet! Under that innocent facade is a plant that spreads by shallow mats of roots, copious amounts of seeds and will root in any old teaspoon of dirt or gravel. It has taken over my flower beds, despite digging it out every year as completely as I can, cutting off the heads of the survivors before it goes to seed and gingerly spraying it with white vinegar.
I have nightmares that it will slip into the house, some night, while I'm sleeping, and attach itself to the dust.
My friend, J---, who used to sell it to me, cheap, along with the other plants, told me later that it had taken over in her yard too! That was sweet justice, to me, but we made a pact to tell every one not to plant it, henceforth. Friends don't let friends plant yarrow.
I indoctrinate all my beginning gardener friends, then the next spring, offer them "divisions" of the stuff. That's how I know if they are really listening to my advice. If they accept the yarrow, with the iris tubers and the chrysanthemum divisions, I lose all respect for them, and dont try to help them further. They will be calling in a few years, whining about the creeping crud, invading their posie patch and yard. And I will certainly empathise with them, then tell them to pass the word.
Friends don't let friends plant yarrow. You've been warned! Take heed. If it grows that enthusiastically and vigorously in Eastern Montana, where the soil is clay, the water is alkaline, the temperatures range from 100+ degrees in the summer to -40 degrees in the winter, you know it's bad stuff.
8 comments:
Friends don't let friends plant morning glory, either! :)
Ahh, dang! I was thinking that having a little 'Garden of Evil' in my back yard might be fun. Or I could just save the seeds and when someone angered me I could take a pinch of yarrow seed and sprinkle it around in their yard as revenge. I could be the evil 'Achillea millefolium fairy' Lori
You're killing me, Lori! The funniest part of that whole comment is that I could SEE you as the Achillea Fairy! Wicked smile and all....
The good thing is that since I already have an infestation of yarrow, I wouldn't notice if you hit my yard, or not. HOWEVER, if I hear of mysterious stands of yarrow, breaking out in the Garfield County region, I'll know what happened. And I won't say a word.
Thanks for the warning!! Seriously! I planted some last year. When it lifts its evil little head this spring, I'll rip it from the ground and burn it right then and there! :) The funny thing is, my mom bought some, too, and kept going on and on about how WELL it was doing. She's the one who told me to get it at the end of the season... And she is SERIOUS about her garden.
I'm glad Lori doesn't live in MI. If she moves here, let me know so I can make fast friends with her! ha ha
And what's wrong with Morning Glory? That's another one I bought last year...
Ah, morning glory is like field bind-weed, a noxious weed in Montana. It has quite a rap sheet, but I won't go on and on about it. I planted some, one year, and in my yard, it barely made a showing. A couple of crummy blue blossoms. But in very fertile, loamy soil, it can be yarrow-esque.
(sly grin) I wanted to tell you, just to test the strength of our friendship, that I sowed yarrow today.
It was behind our fence, in the no-man's-land between our land and the neighbor's that is supposed to be so the city can access the utility lines EXCEPT for the fact that there is not accessible by vehicle. Anyway, there is a Fence and a Cement retaining wall between my yard and It. Same true for neighbors.
I had to. I had to see if yarrow here behaves the same as yarrow there. Maybe the different zone, different soil (ours, slightly acidic). It's a science experiment, you see.
And I DID listen to you because it would've gone in the flower bed had I not been warned.
Also, I seeded White Yarrow...a wild flower...but the hybrid yarrows? Yellow and pink and such that have bigger flowering heads...do they do the same thing? I see them Fancy Well Manicured Gardens all the time...
I'm breathing in and out of a brown paper bag, right now, trying not to pass out from the sheer audacity of the Fontologist in planting the yarrow! I just spent an hour ripping out yarrow....AND I'M ON YEAR FOUR of the Yarrow Eradication Project (Y.E.P.)!!!! It's white yarrow.
Here's what I found out about the colored yarrow: every year, it will get lighter and lighter, until it eventually reverts back to, yes, white yarrow. Colored yarrow is white yarrow with a dye job. (Well, not really, but that's what it reminds me of...)
Your zone is nicer, your moisture is nicer, your soil is nicer....hopefully your yarrow will be nicer. It won't acquire the evil-ness for a couple of years. You'll be lulled into a false sense of complacency, then BAM! there it is, in your lawn....
When you are ready, I will have the tshirt at CafePress.
OMG! Do I need to call 911? Or the garden police?
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