What Could This Be?

[cdbva]

I've mentioned elsewhere that I am the new custodian of a garden plot in a county park. In clearing out the weeds this evening I found an interesting-looking plant: 3-foot stalk with a few heart-shaped leaves (light green), which are 5-6" wide and look like squash leaves.

Toward the top there are about a dozen fruit forming close to the stalk. The remains of the blossoms are dark yellow or orange. The fruit, so far less than an inch wide, are round and green with a 20-pointed star on the end.

I'll take a picture tomorrow. (It didn't occur to me to take the camera to a weed patch.)

It seems too fancy to be a weed. Any thoughts? or any idea where I could find some pictures to try to figure it out?

Christine

[cdbva]

Here are pictures of my lovely plant/weed. I've become rather attached to it.

Tell me the truth. If it's a weed, I can just pull it up and throw it into the plot of the guy who keeps throwing his weeds into my plot. (Or at least I'll fantasize about it.)

Christine

[tjg911]

i got lots of those! PULL IT. it is called velvetleaf and is a native of india.

tom

[aninocentangel]

Yeah, that's a weed. It's called velvetleaf, those are developing seed pods. Here's some more info about it, I'd suggest pulling it.

[habitat_gardener]

I wonder if the leaves are edible. Many plants in the mallow family are edible --okra, hibiscus flowers, marshmallow root. I wouldn't try it without doing research first, though.

[cdbva]

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

I wonder if the leaves are edible. Many plants in the mallow family are edible --okra, hibiscus flowers, marshmallow root. I wouldn't try it without doing research first, though.

Very sensible!

Wow, you all know your stuff. "Seeds can remain viable in the ground up to 50 years," Angel's link says.

It's history.

[aninocentangel]

I recognized it from *years* of walking the fields in SO WI pulling it. You'll want to get to it before the pods turn brown, they can get sharp and leave you some nice scratches if you're not careful. My mom used to use the dried stalks with seed pods for interest in flower arrangements.
I wouldn't eat them, the pods and stems are slimy and woody like old okra even when young. The velvetleaf that grows down here in SC seems to be drier but woodier, but there doesn't seem to be as much of it.

[tjg911]

while i agree it would be great in a dried flower arrangement you risk those seeds. i got this by stupidly taking a load of manure that was sitting around for a year. i figured while the N was gone it was good to mix into the soil sorta like compost. i don't have tons of it but i do see it. now if you want TONS of seeds from anything just have a fall cleanup guy deliver 8 dump truck loads of shredded leaves. oh i have weeds, weeds from HELL.

i would strongly discourage eating any wild plant unless you know for sure it is safe. many wild flowers are toxic.

tom

[cdbva]

My sympathies, Tom! Speaking of weeds from the nether regions... By the time I received custody of my plot, there were weeds up to my knees over most of it. There's some burdock in there that also needs to come out pronto.

About 25% of the weedy morass is spearmint. I've been digging it up and giving it to friends and fellow gardeners, but there's still a ton left, and it's gotta come out.

Another fellow gardener has offered to till the remaining weedy part for me. But is that a good idea? Won't that just mean the weeds will come up again?

Christine

[habitat_gardener]

Tilling will renew any rhizomatous weeds such as mint or bermuda grass. It chops the rhizomes into smaller pieces, distributing them throughout the plot and giving each little root part more space around it and a new start. Probably will propagate the burdock as well. I wouldn't!

By the way, burdock root is sold at my local farmers' market. It's an acquired taste, but a really good medicinal/nutritious plant for soups. Also used in Chinese medicine.

Given the choice between a standard lawn/hedge landscape and a weedy plot, I'd take the weedy plot every time. I love wild herbs, and I love exploring what looks like a weedy mess and finding a wealth of useful plants.

[aninocentangel]

You might try trampling down the weeds, putting a layer of pizza boxes over top, then compost and then a heavy layer of mulch. When you want to plant dig down through the cardboard and plant.
I had grass so well established in my flower bed that it only got bigger the more that I pulled it out. I did the smothering thing last year and now I just have to deal with individual plants germinating from seed rather than giant sprawling behemoths. I wish I'd smothered again this year. Ah well, now I know for next.

ETA: By the way, don't try to smother any weed that is going to seed. Pick the seed heads, sever the stem, whatever. If it's going to seed it will continue to ripen seed after it's covered.

[cdbva]

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

Tilling will renew any rhizomatous weeds such as mint or bermuda grass.

Maybe that's why there's so much mint. The adminstrator told me the previous tenant had already tilled this spring.

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

By the way, burdock root is sold at my local farmers' market. It's an acquired taste, but a really good medicinal/nutritious plant for soups. Also used in Chinese medicine.

I thought about keeping the burdock & harvesting the root. But it would get into everyone else's plots, I suppose.

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

Given the choice between a standard lawn/hedge landscape and a weedy plot, I'd take the weedy plot every time. I love wild herbs, and I love exploring what looks like a weedy mess and finding a wealth of useful plants.

It does sound like fun. My brother, the biologist/librarian, identifies all kinds of cool plants when we're out in a park. Makes all that previously anonymous green stuff so interesting! Of course, it's been like that ever since I was 3 years old and he told me about dinosaurs.

Angel, no way I'm leaving those velvet leaf seed pods in the garden! They're fascinating and lovely, but -- very naughty. Out they come.

Christine

[aninocentangel]

Speaking of unwanted upstarts, I have spent three years ripping mint out of my container and then smothering it. And ripping. And smothering. Lather, rinse, repeat.
The local nursery had a sale today, 75% off of all herbs and veggies, so we went. Picked up two flats of herbs. The spousal type unit (aka Kevin) has killed more chive plants than I care to think about, he eats them faster than they can grow. We're breaking new ground for a fall garden later this month and will have the room, so I bought 34 garlic chives today. At $0.16 per 4" pot he can eat himself green and I'll still have enough to cook with. There were two empty spots in the flats, he asked if he could pick out something, I said sure, got to talking with the lady about my tomatoes and didn't notice what he'd picked. Came home, went in to change while he unloaded the plants and I get out there to find him proudly standing next to two mints that he'd just finished planting in my tomatoes. We're going to wally's after the kids are tucked in to get some pots for them.
Rassafrassing MINT grrrrrrr.

[habitat_gardener]

If you can hide one of those garlic chives and let it go to seed, you can have hundreds of plants next year! I started with one plant, and I don't eat it all, so it has gone to seed and gradually spread and is now negotiating boundary issues with the oregano on one side and the yarrow on another side, and with the globe gilia that self-seeds anywhere it pleases.

[aninocentangel]

Thanks for the tip!
He's making noises about being interested in "doing an herb garden," so I'll mention that he can get them to self sow if he can manage to restrain himself. Of course, the place he wants to put it is right next to his parking spot and juuuust about big enough to fit most of the garlic chives and nothing else, so I have my suspicions about how many herbs will be in the main garden and how many will be in his chive bed!