A Weed is but an unloved Flower

[AussiePam]

One of our newest members, Conellyobrien wrote that, and I liked it so much I thought it might make a separate thread.

I have a soft spot for weeds. They get bad press. I mean, what makes one plant a noxious no-no, and another plant the pride of one's garden?

Oxalis, for instance, is a weed in Australia.. but prized elsewhere.

Oxalis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Other "pest" plants Down Under are broom, wild roses, prickly pear, and often just about anything else non native.

Paterson's Curse - Echium plantagineum - is "a great resource for apiarists but is toxic to most grazing animals and is Australia's worst broadleaf temperate pasture weed."

Paterson's curse (Fact Sheet)

So weed is probably just a loaded word for plants we don't like. Unloved flowers.

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[theia]

AussiePam;1303004 wrote: One of our newest members, Conellyobrien wrote that, and I liked it so much I thought it might make a separate thread.

I have a soft spot for weeds. They get bad press. I mean, what makes one plant a noxious no-no, and another plant the pride of one's garden? Oxalis, for instance, is a weed in Australia.. but prized elsewhere.

Oxalis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Other "pest" plants Down Under are broom, wild roses, prickly pear, and often just about anything else non native.

Paterson's Curse - Echium plantagineum - is "a great resource for apiarists but is toxic to most grazing animals and is Australia's worst broadleaf temperate pasture weed."

Paterson's curse (Fact Sheet)

So weed is probably just a loaded word for plants we don't like. Unloved flowers.


And Pammie, isn't this the way we seem to live our lives? We value one thing/person and despise another. And yet, does it make anything less except in our eyes?

The hedgerows here in the spring are incredibly beautiful but are probably populated mainly by weeds that we might not want in our gardens.

[AussiePam]

theia;1303006 wrote: And Pammie, isn't this the way we seem to live our lives? We value one thing/person and despise another. And yet, does it make anything less except in our eyes?

The hedgerows here in the spring are incredibly beautiful but are probably populated mainly by weeds that we might not want in our gardens.


It's so good to wander in the weedy wilderness, and find you there too, Theia. Long live weeds!!!

[G#Gill]

I prefer to call weeds wildflowers! Just because certain plants can grow prolifically with no help from the human being, doesn't make them any less important than cultivated plants and flowers. To look at a vast display of bluebells in woodland is, to me, a joy! Also it is lovely to see the resurgence of the poppy growing wild again, buttercups in the meadows, yes and dandelions - those wonderful expanses of bright yellow! I know there are wildflowers that can literally overwhelm other growing things, and these have to be 'managed' by the human being in order to preserve a balance. Nettles can be so prolific, also thistles, but there are so many different varieties of thistles and some of them have wonderful flowers! Do not forget that the bee is largely dependent on these flowering wildflowers (weeds), and without the bee, the human race would be in a sorry state!









Are these weeds? Never! They are wildflowers!!!!! :-6 Even if they are found in the garden, they are still not weeds ! :p

[theia]

Beautiful pictures, Gill :-6

[Mustang]

The wildflowers, not weeds, are blooming in my area too. The forest floor is just popping with color right now.

[LarsMac]

Absolute truth, here.Thanks for the thread.

Nice pics.

I really enjoy the wildflowers and blooming trees.

Here woods are full of wild dogwoods and redbuds, now in full bloom.

My Uncle Patrice once said, a weed is just a plant that is growing where you don't want it.

Good example:

There is a little ground cover plant here that pops up in the yards before the grass emerges from dormancy. It is a pretty little thing with dark emerald hue to the leaves, and purple flowers.

I have been working to bring it into the ground around my hedges and my Azalea beds as a ground cover. It only seems to like growing in the grassy areas, where I don't want it.

[ZAP]

How fitting that some of my favorite posters have chosen to expound the virtues of "weeds" one day after I had made the decision to keep some of mine, which have insisted on surviving and thriving with the uncommon amount of rain we've had here in the desert. Strategically placed the green is quite lovely in an otherwise barren back yard.

[along-for-the-ride]

I've always had a fondness for wildflowers. Colorful little decorations in a field of grass.

[AussiePam]

The finest blooms I ever seed

My folks told me were just a weed

Those weeds though looked so fine and fair

I made a garland then and there

And danced with weeds all in my hair

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[Odie]

I have a kidney shaped tulip garden in the front. Each year when they die down, I plant wildflower seeds as the sight of them reminds me of rolling hills in bloom of various colours and heights.