Pinkeye and invasive plants have something in common – you don’t want to share them. Any more details on Pinkeye would constitute TMI, so let’s just say having it this weekend did keep me away from the grandchildren, but did not keep me out of the garden. There I spent the afternoon dealing with invasive plants as I continue aiming towards a low maintenance garden.
We hope to get together with Mom, our kids, and these two next weekend. By then, I should be all done with the contagious Pinkeye.
The invasive plants that got booted out of the garden are gooseneck loosestrife and monarda. I’m not going to show you a picture of them in bloom, because you would want them. The gooseneck is aptly named, as its delicate white flower has a beautiful arching shape. Monarda, or bee balm, is a plant we had admired again and again, then finally got last year. It tends to be a very large bush-like plant covered with flowers. There is a reason it’s large – you can’t keep it small.
Like so many invasive plants, if I had gooseneck loosestrife where it could not escape, perhaps it would have been a good thing. I did not. The long runners weave their way through the roots of other plants, making it hard to remove. If you leave just a little bit, it will come back with a vengeance. I had already tried restricting the loosestrife by putting it in a large container in the ground. That didn’t work and I am just not willing to go there again. I basically took out everything in the entire area trying to remove the roots in one piece. I don’t expect total success, but I did make a gallant effort.
The monarda, though just a year old, had taken over an area about 3′ in diameter. Its roots are close to the top, yet I still had to extract the iris and Asiatic lilies that it had encroached upon. I’ve now done a bit of research and it looks like I may be in for the same long-term battle I’ve been having with the gooseneck.
I made smarter choices for replacements. The Vanilla Strawberry Hydrangea I got at the Garden Writers Association last summer had come through the winter well. I put it in the back, where it can grow to its 6-7′ height. I’m looking forward to blooms like these. They start out white and change to pink/red.
I put the two Baby Lace Hydrangeas in front of that one. They will be about 3-4′ tall. 
Ok, so it doesn’t look like much just yet, but part of the gardening experience is anticipation. I’ll fill in with annuals this year and wait for the show!
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