Older and Behinder

[akirlu]

Had a birthday over the weekend, which in the main I celebrated by having the flu. Not an approach I hope to repeat. Thanks for all the birthday wishes, though. It's nice to be remembered. And being down with the lurgi did mean no work time in the garden, so I guess it's not all bad. The garden punishes me by running r-i-o-t.

Oh well, at least the weeds are pretty...



Say, anyone know what the above is? There's white ones and purple ones and they're in the iris bed, until and unless I yank them out.

Comments

[idahoswede.livejournal.com]

That looks like a columbine (aquilegia), which can grow wild. I planted quite a few of them in my garden this year, love them.

[vgqn.livejournal.com]

Yup, columbine/aquilegia, and clearly put there deliberately since they're not the wild red & yellow ones. But you should feel free to pull them out if you want or transplant them elsewhere. When they're happy, they will self-sow, so they may not be where you'd want them to be. Keep in mind that they're a spring flower, not all season.

You see those little knobs on the spurs? That's where the nectar is. Take a nibble for a sweet treat. If you look closely, you can sometimes see holes where a robber bee has bypassed the flower's intended access system and stolen the nectar without doing her fair share of pollination.

Hope you're feeling better now.

[apostle-of-eris.livejournal.com]

me 4!
Columbine is one of my favorite flowers.

[athenais.livejournal.com]

I've never seen them in that color. Do use them somewhere in the garden, they're really lovely.

[nokomis1943.livejournal.com]

The columbines are beautiful!

[gerisullivan.livejournal.com]

And here I sit, admiring the heck out of your dandelion shot. Yes, the columbine photo is also lovely, especially with the dark leaf contrasts. It fills me with peace, but the dandelion shot fills me with cheer.

[auntysocial.livejournal.com]

both lovely photographs. Columbine is one of my favorites, too.

[akirlu.livejournal.com]

I'm inching my way back to good health, thanks. And thanks for another edible flower tip -- I've been cooking with the rosemary blossoms from my back yard since you introduced me to the idea of eating the flowers. They make a pretty addition to the rosemary garlic chicken.

I may just move the columbine to the side yard and see if it takes there. I'm aiming for a 'wildflower meadow' look there, since the narrow strip is too narrow to mow and too shaded for most things.

[akirlu.livejournal.com]

Funny that everyone knows them. They've only ever been a name to me.

[akirlu.livejournal.com]

Nothing wrong with admiring the dandelion. Dandelions are cheery. And the greens, so I'm told, are good eats. I suppose I should stop treating them as a weed and just harvest them for salads and cooked greens.

[akirlu.livejournal.com]

Well, of course you like them -- they're members of the Ranunculaceae family, after all. Anyway, I'm sure I'll keep them somewhere. Heck, I haven't had the heart to rip out the cow parsley or the buttercups yet, and they certainly are weeds. But they remind me of the midsummer wildflowers of my childhood, and all, and who cares what the neighbors think?

[marykaykare.livejournal.com]

Dandelions are also magic! Overnight they turn from small bright yellow flowers nestled close to the ground into long stemmed, fluffy haired beauties.

I have the flu too. Sucks, huh?

MKK

[kate-schaefer.livejournal.com]

Anywhere that you feel the slightest bit of ambivalence about those columbines, rip them out without hesitation. They are lovely thugs and will spread everywhere. They aren't vicious like campanulas or lemon balm, and they won't rust like hollyhocks or California poppies past their prime, but they will occupy more space than you meant them to have within a few years.

I'm keeping my red ones in pots so I don't rip them out accidentally when I want to get rid of some of the palely purple ones.

[akirlu.livejournal.com]

Well, part of the reason I wondered if the columbine were weeds is that they are showing anexatious tendencies. I think I'll keep some where they are, but I will not feel guilt-ridden if I yank a few, either. Since they seem to like the shade, they're another candidate for stuff to put in the otherwise useless side-yard strip.