First came the invasive grass
Years ago a friend gave me a clump of ornamental grass which I planted in a waste area in my yard. It grew quite tall and had attractive feather plumes. It LOVED the location, It loved it so much that it decided to spread out, I found it slowly spreading toward the house, It is still present on the hillside and I periodically use a weed whacker to keep it in line. I’ll never be rid of it,
Then came the GIANT Japanese Butterbur
Quite a number of years ago someone brought some scrawny Japanes Butterbur (Petasites japonicus) to the Garden Shop at the Children’s Fair. They were an odd plant so I decided to grow them in my rear field. They grew into a patch but didn’t spread out too much. I thought they might help with the invasive grass so I made one of the worst gardening decisions of my life by transplanting them to my invasive grass patch.
The soil, moisture and light must have been ideal for this plant, because it exploded in growth. Over the years it filled in the depression where the grass had been. The large leaves shaded out the grass. The underground fat roots spread into the lawn. Eventually I hacked away at it with a machete. Some I cannot get because it has crept iinto some other plantings, What is left is a moonscape of bare earth and severed leaves,
Then came Red Osier Dogwood
As a experiment I dug up a clump of what I believe is Red Osier Dogwood. It has attractive reddish twigs in winter and produces berries for birds, The clumps spread, I placed it in the middle of the moonscape and it seems to be thriving. It has an advantage because it towers over the Petasites. I intend to take some cuttings in the Spring to fill in the area more quickly. The Petasites is regrouping its strength from the those fleshy roots.
Lovage to the rescue?
I chaired the Garden Shop at the 163rd Children’s Fair this year and one of my aquisitions was a few Lovage plants. I had planted this decades ago and was impressed how tall it grew. It is edible but the flavor is intensely like celery. I believe you can use the stem as a straw for drinking Bloody Marys.
I did some research and perked up when I read that it was invasive in New England. An edible invasive plant that can take on the Butterbur AND Grass. Seems like a winning strategy. I’m not worried about the Dogwood, that is a woody plant and will eventually prevail.
I planted four plants which was quite a chore because the ground is interlaced with fat fleshy roots of the Petasites, I had to chop through that. Let the games begin, who will prevail?
