Don't plant these plants in your palm garden

[DoomsDave]

Howdyall:

A thread about weeds inspired this one.

Weeds as such as bad enough.

But there are some weeds you can go to Home Depot and buy and plant in your garden, and some of them can be every single bit as noxious as anything that "invades" from without.

I have begged people to reconsider planting these in their gardens, then had them soak my crying towels when they didn't follow my (gotten the hard way) advice when they planted them anyway.

These plants are the Devil's inventions. They beguile you, then betray you by invading, engulfing and smothering everything near them.

Do, please provide other examples of your own. This is a public service announcement. If this was an actual emergency . . . OOPS, sorry wrong message.

HORSETAIL, EQUISETUM

This is so modern, so chic, so totally industrial-design looking. It's a great pot plant, because not much kills it.

Repeat:

Not

Much

Kills

It.

Roundup? Nope. 2-4-D? Grubbing out by the roots? Sure, if you're a masochist.

You can buy it. Home Depot sells it. By the same token, might as well inject yourself with some HIV and complain about ill-health.

Run! Screaming.

 

[DoomsDave]

BOSTON FERN NEPHROLEPIS EXALTATA

If you're old enough, you might remember "Fern Bars" where ferns like this hung in front of windows, in contrast to dives built under the Uniform Honky Tonk Code.

So pretty! And, in La Habra, so invasive. Runners. Spores. Run! Screaming.

[DoomsDave]

Asparagus sprengeri.

It's the same genus as the edible asparagus that's so good to eat, and force little children to eat. The roots have these tubers which can grow into a new plant. One plant may have dozens of them.

They also spread by seed.

Not much kills them. Not roundup, not 2-4-D (they're monocots), not great comedy. They're thorny and unpleasant to handle. A great plant for someone else, far far away from you. They'll grow in deep shade in your palm garden.

• 

[DoomsDave]

How about the rest of you.

Remember, I'm asking for plants you buy that turn into weeds, not weed-weeds, like, say, Purple Nut Sedge.

Anyone?

[Laaz]

The worst one in this area is Mexican petunia (Ruellia brittoniana). Invasive as hell & a nightmare to kill...

 

 

Edited April 19, 2016 by Laaz

[Kevin S]

 My neighbor had one of those now I'm stuck trying to get rid of it in my yard.  Nasty little thing with thorns.

[Phoenikakias]

Passiflora incarnata or the incense hybrid. It took three years to get rid of it in my garden, after I was finally driven to apply by hand and with a paint brush undiluted round up on EVERY SINGLE LEAF OF EVERY SINGLE SPROUT whereever it was popping up one summer long!

[DoomsDave]

27 minutes ago, Phoenikakias said:

Passiflora incarnata or the incense hybrid. It took three years to get rid of it in my garden, after I was finally driven to apply by hand and with a paint brush undiluted round up on EVERY SINGLE LEAF OF EVERY SINGLE SPROUT whereever it was popping up one summer long!

PIctures?

[jmelan]

52 minutes ago, DoomsDave said:

Asparagus sprengeri.

It's the same genus as the edible asparagus that's so good to eat, and force little children to eat. The roots have these tubers which can grow into a new plant. One plant may have dozens of them.

They also spread by seed.

Not much kills them. Not roundup, not 2-4-D (they're monocots), not great comedy. They're thorny and unpleasant to handle. A great plant for someone else, far far away from you. They'll grow in deep shade in your palm garden.

• 

i was lucky enough to purchase a home infested by asparagus fern, and my neighbors has it bordering an entire fence :(

if you cut it off near the base and spray roundup on it then it actaully does seem to kill it pretty effectively

but yeah, do not plant this stuff for any reason!!!  it is a serious invasive pest that will try to take over your entire yard

[Monòver]

The worst i renember is the peppermint. Nice plant, smells, good to cook and for drink "mojitos", but if you plant it, in a few months the peppermint will be growing in every places. Imposible kill by hand, only with gliphosate.

[Matt in OC]

Off the top of my head: passiflora, pregnant onions and blackberries. 

[Sanips]

Phytolacca americana

Oxalis corniculata

Cortaderia selloana

...

I think it's important to point out that some plants that are invasive here it doesn't mean that would be invasive in other countries.

[DoomsDave]

[swayland]

I agree with Laaz. They sell the Mexican petunia all over Florida when it is in fact listed as an invasive species.

[DoomsDave]

55 minutes ago, swayland said:

I agree with Laaz. They sell the Mexican petunia all over Florida when it is in fact listed as an invasive species.

It IS pretty!

And, I'll take your word, evil. (I'd buy it. Once.)

Just like the Mexican Primrose.

Evil, too. Go ahead, treat yourself to a blood-curdling, lung-emptying, eardrum-piercing scream.

 

[Silas_Sancona]

1 hour ago, swayland said:

I agree with Laaz. They sell the Mexican petunia all over Florida when it is in fact listed as an invasive species.

They sell it here in Arizona as well and while it appears to be "tamer" in less irrigated landscapes, it will still run for the hills with extra water/shade. Getting ready to rip out a patch of the stuff in a bed next to the front door.  Luckily, we have a much better option known as Baja ruellia ( Ruellia californica var. peninsularis. Loves heat/blazing sun, flowers like crazy( spectacular when in full bloom) but seems to stay where it is planted.  


Another "Florida gift" you see around town here is Lead Tree (Leucaena leucocephala) Seeds like crazy. Thankfully, i haven't come across any in local nurseries. Apparently a combination of 2-4-D and Diesel Fuel are the best means of killing stubborn, re-sprouting stumps. Will be removing a large specimen in the backyard soon. Plan on saving/ hanging pieces of the deadwood since some of the native bees use it for nesting.

Have also come across a few China Berry trees here as well..

Edited April 19, 2016 by Silas_Sancona

[Las Palmas Norte]

English Ivy ... I can't belief nurseries are permitted to sell it.

 

Cheers, Barrie.

[DoomsDave]

Yes!

IVY

MOMMY.

[PalmatierMeg]

I bought a pot of horsetails a few years ago. Then I read about them on Google. I left mine in a pot, divided it as it grew. Then I took all the pots to a plant sale I vendored in. Sold them all within a couple hours. Now I wonder if those unsuspecting buyers are cursing me today.

For me, Rhapis excelsa proved a major invasive. I finally hacked the clump out of my back yard. Am still dealing with occasional errant stems. Variegated Rhapis invade too but I cut them back when necessary.

I read up on Mexican peturnias before I bought any - then didn't. Many elephant ears are invasive here. And heliconias - we chopped out a large patch this winter, now have only one variety left. I'd like it gone, too, but my husband loves its bright red bird of paradise flowers.

Don't forget the ever evil running bamboo. Fortunately, I've seen only clumping types in FL.

[DoomsDave]

Ivy (Hedera) is particularly hard to deal with because it roots aggressively, and is covered with a waxy coating on the leaves and stems which repels glyphosate, though tricophyr ("Brush B Gon") does work.

[DoomsDave]

21 hours ago, Matt in OC said:

Off the top of my head: passiflora, pregnant onions and blackberries. 

What pregnant onion are you referring to? I've heard Beaucarnia ("Ponytail Palm") called that, but I'm pretty sure you don't mean that one.

[Silas_Sancona]

29 minutes ago, DoomsDave said:

What pregnant onion are you referring to? I've heard Beaucarnia ("Ponytail Palm") called that, but I'm pretty sure you don't mean that one.

Dave, i think the species is Albuca bracteata, formally in the  Ornithogalum Genus. Spreads it's spawn around like Octo-Mom.

Two others that came to mind yesterday: Both Red and White Fountain Grass, esp. White. If i read the info correctly, it is banned from being planted near any of the beaches in Sarasota County, if not several other counties back in FL. Another Octo spawn seeder that destroys habitat and worsens erosion of Sand Dunes. Outside of coastal spots, i have had a lot of customers curse ever planting it.

We have a similar Pennisetum species that has been trying to invade areas of the Desert here.

[Matt in OC]

Yes, I think it's albuca. Not only do the seeds easily get dispersed by wind but when you go to rip it out, you'd better make sure your hands and arms are covered up. Moderate contact can make for some uncomfortable irritation. 

[DoomsDave]

Oh, my, Star of Bethlehem?

[Silas_Sancona]

13 minutes ago, DoomsDave said:

Oh, my, Star of Bethlehem?

Same family ( Ornithogalum Genus) but Star of Bethlehem is less of a spreader. Prettier too. Prego-onion can have countless, bead-like offsets that fall off everywhere if you look at it funny. Think it is one of those plants, like Spiders that was chic in the 70's.. like Avocado-colored Shag Carpet.

[Pando]

Ficus benjamina - pretty in a pot, as a bonsai, but once it outgrows the container don't stick it in the ground. The roots will jack up all your concrete and your neighbor's also.

Schefflera - see above. Same thing.

Ugh.

[Keith N Tampa (ex SoJax)]

Anything in the genus Clerodendrum.  Pretty flowers, but endless maintenance.  C quadriloculare is just about as serious a runner as Phyllostachys aurea, a.k.a. Golden Bamboo.  

Edit:  to make my point, its actually quite easy to remove a cubic yard of this plant every couple of months. I kid you not!

 

[Tracy]

Schinus terebinthifolius aka Brazilian Pepper Tree.  Its on the USDA's list of Invasive Species.  Impacts: Forms dense, monospecific stands that crowd out native species; possibly produces chemicals that inhibit the growth of native species (Meyer 2011) . 

I'm still battling one I removed which the previous owner put in.   I had a tree trimmer cut it down and the stump ground (twice).  Subsequently, I have been digging out roots and using concentrated round up delivered through holes drilled into what remained of the trunk.  The tree was removed in November 2010, and I'm still finding roots which have evaded my past efforts.  Further complicating matters, my neighbor has something which could be defined as a "monospecific stand" of Brazilian Pepper with multiple trunks that is adjacent to our back fence.  Its a constant trimming battle to keep it from coming over the fence. It is tall and messy; continually dropping very fertile red peppers into my yard.  Weeding in my garden includes continually removing new BP tree sprouts, because the seeds are blown throughout my back yard.  Relative to the neighbor's tree's roots, I have bought a little time by installing a root barrier along my back fence to protect my new paver driveway.  But I fear for the roots eventually invading my yard. 

Its a weed that becomes an obnoxious tree!  I wish I could go back 30 or 40 years in time and kill the plant when it was young!

[Keith N Tampa (ex SoJax)]

Brazilian Pepper is on the invasive species list for good reason.  That is a nasty weed tree.  I wonder how many millions Florida spends every year just removing them from roadside.  Luckily, I have never planted one.  I have killed a few, however.

[Silas_Sancona]

2 minutes ago, Tracy said:

Schinus terebinthifolius aka Brazilian Pepper Tree.  Its on the USDA's list of Invasive Species.  Impacts: Forms dense, monospecific stands that crowd out native species; possibly produces chemicals that inhibit the growth of native species (Meyer 2011) . 

I'm still battling one I removed which the previous owner put in.   I had a tree trimmer cut it down and the stump ground (twice).  Subsequently, I have been digging out roots and using concentrated round up delivered through holes drilled into what remained of the trunk.  The tree was removed in November 2010, and I'm still finding roots which have evaded my past efforts.  Further complicating matters, my neighbor has something which could be defined as a "monospecific stand" of Brazilian Pepper with multiple trunks that is adjacent to our back fence.  Its a constant trimming battle to keep it from coming over the fence. It is tall and messy; continually dropping very fertile red peppers into my yard.  Weeding in my garden includes continually removing new BP tree sprouts, because the seeds are blown throughout my back yard.  Relative to the neighbor's tree's roots, I have bought a little time by installing a root barrier along my back fence to protect my new paver driveway.  But I fear for the roots eventually invading my yard. 

Its a weed that becomes an obnoxious tree!  I wish I could go back 30 or 40 years in time and kill the plant when it was young!

Interesting.. i thought it didn't become aggressive there.. perhaps those statements were off, a little..  I hope, for everyone's sake, it doesn't find its way into any vacant lots near lakes, or, along bays near the coast. Birds spread the seeds everywhere.

I'll tell ya, anticipate quite a battle ahead. As i'm sure people know, this is a horrible invasive in Florida and nearly cost me my sight in one eye while trying to clear out the easement behind our house in Bradenton last March. Still find occasional seedlings trying to sprout in a few things here. Have seen some for sale locally as well. Would never recommend it.

Another very important tid bit i will pass along is to NEVER use the wood for firewood. VERY toxic. We had a neighbor that decided he was going to burn the stuff, no matter what and made alot of people on our block sick with Sinus issues/ Headaches from the smoke. Can cause rashes similar to closely related Poison Oak also.

In Florida, i think they are getting ready to release a Wasp that hopefully will extinguish the plague this tree has brought upon the state. Some of the numbers i'd heard for clearing  -just small sections of Pepper in the Everglades were astounding.

[Tracy]

16 hours ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Interesting.. i thought it didn't become aggressive there

In California, it is considered invasive in coastal regions by the California Invasive Plant Council (www.cal-ipc.org.)   I'm about 4/10's of a mile south of Bataquitos Lagoon, which is the salt water estuary on the border of Encinitas and Carlsbad.  I certainly hope these weeds don't invade it's uplands.  Further inland, in drier areas here, they may not be as bad as right along the coast, but I certainly wouldn't want to find out the hard way. 

[Silas_Sancona]

3 minutes ago, Tracy said:

In California, it is considered invasive in coastal regions by the California Invasive Plant Council (www.cal-ipc.org.)   I'm about 4/10's of a mile south of Bataquitos Lagoon, which is the salt water estuary on the border of Encinitas and Carlsbad.  I certainly hope these weeds don't invade it's uplands.  Further inland, in drier areas here, they may not be as bad as right along the coast, but I certainly wouldn't want to find out the hard way. 

Good to hear, i'm glad Cal ipc put this stuff on it's list..  I'll have to check but don't recall seeing it listed a few years ago ( up in the Bay Area)

Agree that it may stay "more contained" in the drier inland spots but no doubt has plenty of potential to spread into the Riparian corridors in the lower canyons there.. While i can't recall the exact location, i do remember seeing overgrown/ apparently spreading patches of the stuff in a couple places while on one of my trips through Oceanside/Encinitas and thinking to myself how closely it looked to the way it grows in FL compared to how it was said to grow under CA's drier conditions. While i understand how some people can appreciate the look this tree can provide, there are many, much better options available.

[Dypsisdean]

I could name quite a few. I have really learned from my mistakes.

But this is one that sticks out. It not only took over a large section of my garden and suffocated many plants in a couple of years, but also about a half acre of my neighbor's yard a year later. Orange Clock Vine.

 

[DoomsDave]

1 hour ago, Dypsisdean said:

I could name quite a few. I have really learned from my mistakes.

But this is one that sticks out. It not only took over a large section of my garden and suffocated many plants in a couple of years, but also about a half acre of my neighbor's yard a year later. Orange Clock Vine.

 

Is that Thunbergia, "Black eyed susan" vine?

[Dypsisdean]

1 hour ago, DoomsDave said:

Is that Thunbergia, "Black eyed susan" vine?

Yep - that's another one of it's several common names - Latin = Thunbergia gregorii

[Hammer]

On 4/19/2016, 9:04:30, jmelan said:

i was lucky enough to purchase a home infested by asparagus fern, and my neighbors has it bordering an entire fence :(

if you cut it off near the base and spray roundup on it then it actaully does seem to kill it pretty effectively

but yeah, do not plant this stuff for any reason!!!  it is a serious invasive pest that will try to take over your entire yard

Ditto.  Had it in various places around the yard.  Still fighting it nearly 4 years after buying the house. If you are willing to dig, I found the roots form a big mat that you can peel up and throw out.  The cut back and round up method seems to work too.

[Hammer]

Any form of running bamboo DD.  Horrible stuff.

[Dave-Vero]

Our local Florida list of big box plants that shouldn't be is as described.  Mexican "petunia", Asparagus sprengeri (neighbor palnted it.  Seedlings all over), Boston fern, macho fern, several other ferns.  Brazilian pepper has been illegal to plant for years.  

Sansevieria (the strappy leafed thing) forms big clumps and lots of unwanted seedlings.  

If cast iron plants grew faster, they might have pest potential.  Their slowness makes them harmless.  

In the distant past, air potato (Dioscorea bulbifera) was spread around as a pretty ornamental vine.  Bright red little beetles that eat it, and it only, were released about 3 or 4 years ago, and they seem to have exterminated whole patches.  The eating pattern on leaves is lacework.  I should have gilded some as Christmas decorations.

[foxtail]

Nice green/ yellow combination but...

I estimate it have approximately 80+ tall and is running to the other trees.

 

[Dave-Vero]

This "golden pathos"(Epipremnum aureum) is at Heathcote Botanical Garden in Ft. Pierce, Florida.  It's tolerated, but gets pole-sawed to removing hanging stems.  It's in a bed of bromeliads that pretty much take care of themselves, apart from occasional yanking of older rosettes.