Anybody got an idea what this stuff is? It's in the flower beds, very prolific, pops out in early spring, don't think its native to South East Texas.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13206/001x.jpg)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13206/005x.jpg)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13206/008x.jpg)
Thanks,
Wade
Not a clue.
Florida betony (Stachys floridana) (http://www.ppws.vt.edu/scott/weed_id/stafl.htm). You're right, it's not native to Texas - it's an invasive weed that has been moving northward and westward from Florida since the 1940's.
Also called Rattlesnake weed, its tuber is edible and enjoyed by a lot of people as a crisp addition to salads. Google it up and you will find recipes that might make you want to try it. There is even talk amongst some to try to grow it for sale. How 'bout that for control?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAudL109GOg
Thanks for the information. The way it grows I figured it was something else non-native that had gotten loose. I don't remember the exact number but TX. A&M identified some 800 plus non-native plants growing in the wild here in Texas.
Hey, another source of income, Texas can become the epicenter of production for a veggie no one has heard of, sept Euell Gibbons.
I'm not all that sure about eating something like that. Reminds me of this http://www.slashfood.com/2006/06/24/nutria-the-other-white-swamp-rat/.
"There is even talk amongst some to try to grow it for sale. How 'bout that for control?"
Yep. I'm convinced that if a plant realizes you can make a profit off of it by growing it, it will immediately become infested with all sorts of uncontrollable insects and diseases that will be expensive to treat, but not quite enough to keep you from spending money to try, or it will just die outright after several thousand acres of the stuff are planted.
Quote from: Phorester on June 06, 2011, 01:33:53 PM
"There is even talk amongst some to try to grow it for sale. How 'bout that for control?"
Yep. I'm convinced that if a plant realizes you can make a profit off of it by growing it, it will immediately become infested with all sorts of uncontrollable insects and diseases that will be expensive to treat, but not quite enough to keep you from spending money to try, or it will just die outright after several thousand acres of the stuff are planted.
Or it'll be like the 40 acres of cucumbers a neeighbor planted in the 60's as an "experiment"...
Wound up with 40 acres covered with rotting cucumbers because he could not figure out how to harvest them quickly enough once the crop came in and ripened...
The same guy had 80 acres of the most beautiful Easter Lilies, the week after Easter...
Timing is everything.
Herb
Or the Christmas tree grower who had 100 of the prettiest cut Christmas trees you ever saw for sale....., on Christmas morning.