The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Growing => Identification => Topic started by: Alex_ on June 04, 2019, 08:31:48 am

Title: What are these?
Post by: Alex_ on June 04, 2019, 08:31:48 am
I have had a lot of random plants sprout up  this year. I have kind of let the garden go wild while tending to my raised beds.
The first is a beautiful flower growing around bags of sand and gravel i am using to make a path.

The second sprouted by my greenhouse. It looks nice but i suspect its a weed.

Thanks
Title: Re: What are these?
Post by: chrismahon on June 04, 2019, 12:36:32 pm
The first is 'love-in-the-mist' which we have growing here in an area seeded with a wild flower mix. The second we also have and as you suspected is a very fast growing weed- get it out before it seeds.
Title: Re: What are these?
Post by: arobwk on June 04, 2019, 01:28:31 pm
Love in the mist (but I've always known it as Persian Jewels).

I'd say, with 95% confidence, the other is a ground-hugging mallow (small pink flowers)  - definitely treat it as a weed unless you want to populate some un-used ground.  Quite tenacious roots so don't let it get a hold if you don't want it. 

[Edit:  web search suggests it is the "Common Mallow" - interestingly it has/had a respectable range of medicinal uses.  Unless you're into that, best keep under control.]
Title: Re: What are these?
Post by: Alex_ on June 04, 2019, 02:58:58 pm
Thanks for the help. I had no idea about the flower, Its beautiful so i will try and save the seeds. I thought it could be mallow but i have never grown it or used the seeds so i wasn't sure.

No idea where these plants are  coming from.
Title: Re: What are these?
Post by: Possum on June 08, 2019, 11:34:53 am
The seeds will have come on the wind or been brought by wild birds. We have clumps of love-in-the-mist which sprout up every year in the gravel area in front of the french windows. They are so pretty that I really look forward to them.


The mallow has attractive pink/mauve flowers so, if there in nothing else that you want to grow in that patch you might want to leave it for a while.