TRICKY STICKY WEEDS

Even though I no longer get a lot of pesky weeds (or to be politically correct, wild plants) invading my garden due to the close planting of my border perennials which prohibit most airborne seeds from finding a place to germinate, now and then unwanted wild plants still manage to find a place to grow and can reach a good size before I spot them.   Gardeners and hikers will certainly know if they have ever touched the very sticky Galium aparine which is known by numerous other names.   A couple of days ago I spotted one clambering over the phlox.  Not only are their leaves remarkably sticky, but the little round, green, seedheads will latch onto anything that passes by.  Every year my Ragdoll cat, Alfie, manages to get them caught up in his long coat when he travels through a neighbouring no-mans-land.  The weed was removed quite easily, just had to be careful pulling its roots out of the ground.  Fortunately the plant had not yet reached the point of flowering and making seed.

Galium aparine clambering over a phlox

Many gardeners will also be familiar with the rather tall and elegant  Rosebay willowherb (Chamerion angustifolium or Epilobium angustifolium) with its spikes of pretty pink flowers and its fluffy white seedheads that float everywhere on a windy day. One individual had reached seed-making point before I spotted it against the north-facing fence, poking out between the climbing rose, 'Wild Eve', and the honeysuckle 'Lonicera periclymenum 'Scentsation'.  It was easy to pull out but I made sure that I cupped the seedheads in my hand while removing it to make sure it couldn't drop any seeds before I disposed of it. 








Alfie, having a little sleep in his favourite (at the moment) garden hideout which is a patch of bare soil next to the fence, between the Jasminum officinale and Generous Gardener climbing rose.  He thinks by hiding under a leaf, I cannot take a photo of him.  He's very good at avoiding damaging the plants. 

Alfie, Ragdoll cat, having a little sleep in my garden border