Too Early To Be Thinking Christmas?

   For years now, a small holly tree has been in a pot near the greenhouse.  The tree was one that my aunt gave to me.  Her tree was huge and I can remember how difficult it was to control the small trees growing beneath it.  This is English Holly and, sad to say, it is is invasive.  The tree is one of those plants that will soon take over a place and limit the growth of native trees due to it consuming space at a rapid pace,  This is the sole reason that my tree is in a pot.  The roots are contained in a small space and cannot compete with the native trees.  However!  This tree also has very viable seeds.  Every last berry seems to sprout.  Thankfully, the small tree has not bloomed nor produced any seed-filled berries...until this year.  Oops!  I will definitely have to make sure that none drop to the ground.

  This is also known as Christmas Holly as it is the classic berry filled branch that is seen in almost every decoration found worldwide.  Growing up, holly was used around our house during the holidays.  We always used the native hollies even though they were not as vibrant as the English Holly.  We did not have this "fancy" tree in our yard.  But, then, we were not fancy!  Our farmhouse was just that...a rustic farmhouse so it only made sense to have rustic decorations...a fresh cut cedar (or pine) tree, some paper chains, homemade ornaments and holly stuck in mason jars filled the house.  It makes me giggle to see how many folks now seem to think their "rustic farmhouse decorating" is the "real" thing.  Sorry, it is drastically different...lovely but not true farmhouse. I pretty much have always incorporated those rustic, simple decorations in the Little Bayou House even with a few added glitzy things.

  This year, it appears that I will be going all fancy with some English Holly (stuck in a mason jar).  This is only to get rid of the berries so they do not drop, sprout and make a bajillion baby holly trees.  One is obviously enough to get those Christmas decorations!  Note...folks, be sensible when discarding live holly branches after the holidays.  Those berries may still be viable and could create problems...or use native holly and let the seeds do their thing. 

They Just Keep Growing

   Hurricanes and tropical storms "donate" a lot of things to us.  The tidal surges reach well into the yard (sometimes as far as inside of the Little Bayou House) and deposit anything that happened to get caught up in the water.  Once the surge reaches our shore, whatever was south of us stays.  It is not a fun cleanup, by any means.  The trash, lumber, downed trees, boats, pieces of houses, furniture...just about anything imaginable gets all tumbled together with marsh, vines and other debris.  This has to be sorted and then disposed of properly.  A very tiresome task that has to be dealt with before the next storm rolls into the area.  

  What does NOT get separated and discarded is the seeds and other minute plant material that soon take root and grow rampantly in our rich soil.  There are far too many invasive plants that come to visit and never leave.  I try to eliminate as many as I possibly can but it is a daunting chore.  I am not about to traipse out into the middle of an alligator and cottonmouth infested marsh to pull up some stupid plant that came from parts unknown.  For instance, we are now being inundated with Sesbania, also known as rattlebox tree.  This small tree started after Hurricane Katrina dumped a few pods but then Hurricane Zeta upped the ante by spewing thousands of seeds everywhere!  At first, I thought "A couple of those won't be bad.  They are pretty things and surely I can keep them under control."  WRONG!!!  While I am able to do a pretty good job of thinning the ones on dry land, those in the marsh just keep multiplying.    Each of those "rattlebox" seed pods can hold up to twenty seeds that scatter everywhere when the pods burst.  It is just my observation but I think every last seed must be viable.  

  Am I to just embrace the beauty of the tree and its blooms or do I try to eradicate these along with the dreaded cogon grass that Katrina gave us?  If I am to attempt this, how???  Like I said...I'm smart enough to stay out of the reach of the gators and moccasins but how do I reach those trees?  Wonder if there is a market for these things?  Hmmm?  The bajillion seeds could be potted and sold.  I would be rich!  Anyone want to buy an invasive tree? 

The Giant Bayou Sloth

   Sloths are most notably known for their slow movements and the constant "smile".  The smile is more of a coloration thing but it does make the critter look incredibly happy.  They are also a bit of a curiosity because most are green.  There are just not a lot of green-furred critters in the world and that makes the sloths of the wild quite interesting.  A little lesson here...sloths are green due to algae growing on their fur.  They live in such a warm, humid place that the algae grows on anything that sits still long enough.  Well, sloths literally cannot outrun algae so they become covered with the stuff and appear green.  Nice!

  Well, this morning, Son and I found the Giant Bayou Sloth.  True to sloth fashion, it was not moving and was green due to algae.  To be honest, though, I could not tell you if our sloth is entirely happy or not.  There were no facial features to be found.  

  As Son was bailing out the small skiff, I was poking around in the marshes.  It was in the shallows that I came across a huge mass of algae covered coonstail (an invasive aquatic plant).  Ugh!  That stuff nigh on clogged the Bayou and even the Bay last summer and is making a comeback with the hot weather.  I mentioned it to Son who looked up and noticed something odd about my discovery.  "Looks more like a quadrupedal covered with algae."  This man of few words went back to his chore.  Hmm...yep.  Well, indeed, it did.  It is hard to tell by the photograph but the outline of a large, four-legged critter could be seen.  The fluffy plants had grown in the perfect shape of a sloth!  The algae covered the plants and made the underlying leaves look a lot like long fur.  I had a Giant Bayou Sloth in all its slow-moving, algae-covered glory!  Wonder where its smile went?  Maybe sloths do not like being stuck in marshes.

  The coonstail plants and the green algae will soon fill the entire waterways once again.  Wildlife will struggle simply due to the stupidity of people.  The plants were dumped into the Bay by folks clearing ponds and those and the algae are being fed by runoff of fertilizer from yards.  People never think about the consequences the natural flora and fauna pay for their quest of the perfect lawn.  The price we all pay.  

It Stole My Compost Pile!

   Ruellia Simplex is a pretty plant.  It grows easily, has no known insect pests, attracts hummingbirds, moths and butterflies and blooms profusely from early spring to late fall.  How awesome is that?  What could ever go wrong with such a "perfect" plant?  Well....well....

  Also known as Mexican Petunias, this plant is highly invasive.  If you are not diligent, the plants will take over!  Not only can they grow from the billion or two seeds that spew from the pods, they easily shoot up from underground rhizomes.   Those can be ten feet from the original garden plot.  Plus, if you do not carefully destroy any trimmings, those can (and do) take root.  That is how I got my "garden" of Mexican Petunias.  I had one small plant in a pot.  My brother had given it to me so it was sort of special.  Once it got tall and lanky, I trimmed it down to about 4 inches and tossed the trimmings into the compost pile thinking they would rot and add nutrients back to the ground.  Nope.  They took root.  Every...last...one...rooted.  My compost pile became a sea of purple!  There was no scooping that rich soil for the garden as the roots of the Ruellia Simplex had become a gnarled mess.  At least, my "garden" had a healthy place to grow!

  This plant is touted to have many uses in herbal medicine.  I have not tried any so can not verify the outcome of using them but it is said to be used in treating everything from viral infections to cancer. Like I said...I cannot verify any of that but, at the rate this plant grows, it sure would be nice if something could be cured by using it.  In the meantime, I will enjoy the beauty (while keeping its growth in check)!  

On the tip of my tongue!

  Have you ever drawn a blank on something you should fully know?  The name of a certain tree has fully slipped my mind and it is aggravating the stew out of me.  I know this tree.  I have seen this tree almost every day of my life.  It grows wild near or in the marshes of the Bayou and since Hurricane Katrina, we have them popping up all over the hillside.  I am not complaining about this as it is a positive side of a very devastating storm but the fact that I cannot remember the name is driving me nuts!

  The trees here stay on the smallish side and are nondescript most of the time.  Their true beauty comes out when they bloom.  Some of the trees have orangish blooms while others are yellow.  The flowers are in small clusters and droop much like wisteria.  In fact, someone mentioned that the orange ones are scarlet wisterias but, somehow, that does not seem correct.  

  The quandary will frustrate me until I have a chance to research the blooms for a true identity.  In the meantime, I will simply enjoy the loveliness that dots the hillside!

Update!  A friend just informed me that this is rattlebox (Sesbania)!  The seed pods do indeed rattle.  It is sort of an invasive plant if allowed to go unchecked but since I mow this area, it should be fine.  Why could I not think of that quite obvious name???

First The Bayou...Now The Bay

  Commonsense seems to be a thing of the past.  Or, perhaps, people just do not care anymore.  Either way, the actions of the "non-thinkers" are not for the best of the environment.  Take, for instance, the water plants that have now fully clogged the Bayou.  Coontail is an aquatic plant that is highly invasive.  It has excessive growth habits that will fill an area and soon clog the waterways.  The Bayou is clogged.  The Bay will be if something is not done soon. 

  A few months back, someone decided it was a fine thing to dump their unwanted pond plants into the Bay.  Well, the little amount they dumped has now turned into acres of the invasive plants.  Truly...acres.  The sad thing is, there is very little that can be done to remedy the situation.  The amount is too massive to be removed by normal methods.  This could be the end of an era for the Bayou...and Bay.  Fish will perish, marine mammals and birds may become ensnared and boating may even come to a halt as the weeds tangle around the propellers.  Life is changing....and not in a good way.  And those responsible go about their merry way.  Saddening.  Saddening for the rest of us.  I am beginning to lose all faith in humanity.

Baby Plants!

  Last spring, my nephew sent me some flower seeds (and starts) from Hawaii.  He lives on an island way out there somewhere and was passing through Hawaii when he saw the packets.  Well, he knew I am game to planting anything so I received the very special parcel from him.  One of the packets contained a leaf.  It had seen better days as the shipping took forever.  The instructions said "Place leaf in a shallow dish and spritz with water."  That was it.  The entire instructions seemed a bit vague but I went with it.  Soon some tiny shoots started coming up from the leaf.  Alrighty, then!  I guess I had plants!

  The plant is a sort of weird plant called a "Hawaiian Air Plant" which is supposedly in the kalanchoe family of plants.  Hey!  I know how to grow those!  The plant did, indeed, grow and flourished in the delipidated (thanks to Hurricane Zeta) greenhouse.  All winter, the plant grew until it was about 3ft in height.  As I struggled to get the plant out of the greenhouse earlier this spring, I inadvertently knocked off a leaf.  It fell to the floor of the now empty greenhouse and was forgotten.  For two months, that thing stayed on the floor with no water, no soil and no care.  Today, I found it and it had baby plants growing out of the leaf!  

  This whole thing made me realize that I need to be very, very careful with the plant.  If it is that easy to start new plants from a single leaf, imagine what would happen if the entire plant was strewn about the hillside...say by a hurricane.  The property would be soon taken over by an invasive (yet, pretty) plant!  

  Backing up to earlier in the spring, when I took the plant out of the greenhouse, I stuck it on the back porch.  It never occurred to me that it may present a problem.  After finding that leaf (babies) in the greenhouse, I checked and, sure enough, the recent storms had broken some leaves.  There were LOTS of babies!  Oh, no.  What had I done!  

 

  It appears that if I am to raise this plant, it had better be an indoor plant where I can keep watch on those baby-making machines!  The fallen leaves will have to be destroyed by some means if I do not want the world (or at least the Bayou area) covered in Hawaiian Air Plants!  Happy growing...I guess!

What Is With Trashy People???

  I am amazed at how disrespectful people have become.  This rant is not directed to any of the stupidity going on today simply because I have become totally disgusted at the "poor me" society that has been pampered by everyone trying to be so politically correct (and to those doing the pampering.  Suck it up, people.  YOU are the problem.)  but is aimed at people who cannot even respect the world which we all share.  What is wrong with people???  You notice that I do not even call them "folks"...they are people.  Folks are kind. People seem to be just frustrating and I am just about done "peopling" for good.  I find myself respecting critters far more than most people.  I sure like them a whole lot more so it is only natural to respect them more.  In fact, most people don't have half the sense that critters do. 

  What started my frustration is the insolence of whoever is throwing invasive pond plants into the Back Bay.  This is far from mere ignorance.  This is stupidity at its worst.  Does anyone care any more?  What am I saying?  Obviously not.  While a lot of folks do not think twice about the water plants being in the Bay, I do.  These plants often grow just to the size and quantity of the pond they are in but, hey, toss them in a huge bay and guess what?  They grow to fill THAT "pond"!  So what, you say?  Well, that just creates a big, ole mess.  The native fish cannot breath, sea turtles become ensnared (if the plant is a vining type) and algae can now grow and bloom at a rapid pace.  Soon the bayous are clogged.  Then, the creeks pouring into those bayous are clogged.  Now...there is no place for rainwater to flow.  Get ready, folks, your sweet little yards will become flooded.  Oh, my....that means your cutesy, fish ponds are backed up with sewage since the sewers are flooded. Aww, poor cry babies...your pristine pond (where you just cleared your pond plants) now has nastiness bubbling up like some bilge pump.  Way to go.  Do not complain to me.  YOU threw the plants into the Bay.  YOU were too lazy to discard them in the proper way.  YOU did it to yourself.  So wipe your own tears and maybe do a wee bit of research before discarding your trash.

  A huge mass of pond plants floated under the pier yesterday.  Mark was kind enough to help me make my first hike to the pier in two weeks and what do I see?  A mass of plants about ten feet in diameter on one side of the pier and a big, roll of some type pond grass on the other.  Then, in the marsh...trash...trash..trash that probably came from the same trashy people who dumped the plants.  My faith in humanity has gone out the window.  I am so over it.  

The Compost Has Been Invaded!

  What started as a potted plant soon spilled over and became a garden plant.  Then, as things do happen, it spread a bit further.  Clippings were dumped into the compost pile and, now, the compost pile has the healthiest bunch of purple blooms atop of four foot tall stalks!  Did I make a mistake by tossing the clippings?  Will our place soon be overrun with ruellia as it is with wisteria?  Hmmm...both grow continuously, spread rapidly but have beautiful purple blooms!  Mistake?  Or happy accident?

  Ruellia Simplex goes by about a gazillion different names.  Mexican Petunias, Purple Showers, Wild Petunias, Mexican Bluebells, and Hardy Petunias are a few of the monikers used to describe the plants.  There are as many different names as there are people growing them.  One odd thing...even though most of the names label them as petunias, they are not even related to that plant.  They belong in a completely different family of plants. The plants are considered invasive in Florida and some other states but, for some strange reason, the plant is readily available at nurseries everywhere.  My start came quite by accident as it came with some "hand-me-down" plants.  In fact, it did not seem to be an aggressive spreader until it hit the compost.   The plant has always stayed more or less contained near the Frog Pond but when those "cuttings" hit the fertile soil of the compost, things exploded!  The compost has become a flower garden covered in a sea of purple blooms.

  Now the question...do I eradicate the plants or let them grow?  As the compost pile sits, I can easily mow around it and keep the plants under control.  Unless birds carry seeds far from the area, that mowing will keep any from spreading.  I have to admit that I do like the plants and have been studying a bit to see if there are other uses for either the roots or leaves.  In that aspect, things look promising but, on the other hand, do I really need to "farm" Mexican Petunias?

Seen In A New Light

  Down here on the Bayou, we are told to watch out for many "invasive" critters and plants.  It seems that waterways are an easy way for invasive species to get a foothold.  While I have not found but two invasive critters (a Cuban frog and a Brown Anole), plants are a different story.  Often, these plants are washed in on the tides.  The plants are usually discards from someones gardens and goldfish ponds.  Plenty of folks use no commonsense when it comes to properly disposing of plants.  "Throw them in the Bay" seems to be the brilliant idea of many folks.  Hey now!!!  Those pretty water plants can soon clog waterways and create all sorts of problems for wildlife.  They also deplete oxygen from the water and literally suffocate a lot of critters.  I try my best to fish out the offending plants and either find them homes in another landscaped pond or destroy them.  That is usually easier said than done, however, as I have no way of scavenging the entire shoreline for misplaced plants.

  Along the shoreline, there are dozens and dozens of one particular invasive species.  The popcorn tree or tallow tree has strewn enough seeds about the marsh to make a regular nuisance of itself.  This fast growing tree blooms and then bears thousands upon thousands of seeds each summer.  By late fall, birds, squirrels, rats and coons are all feasting on those seeds.  Well...what goes in must come out and the seeds have been transported to a new growing spot via poop.  There seems to be no easy way to eradicate such a prolific species.  So...quickly spreading and fast growing has me pondering something.  Does tallow tree wood burn nicely in the fireplace?   If suitable, I would have a ready source of wood for the wood burning stoves!  Not a bad idea, if I do say so myself!  A bit of research is called for here.

  This morning, the rising sun was beaming across the Bayou and onto the tallow trees across the way.  The trees were putting on quite the extravagant show with their long, golden tassels.  My goodness!  I was now seeing the tree in a new light..literally!  The golden sunlight on the golden tassels was a sight to behold!  Maybe...just maybe, tallow trees have a place here on the Bayou...at least, a couple of them, anyway.

Just Amblin'

  Yesterday, Mr. PJ (the old dog) and I meandered in the azaleas.  He loved nosing around in a "new" territory.  He is not often allowed to wander down the lane as I do not wish to have him near the main road.  His instincts and reaction times would not serve him well in the path of an oncoming automobile.  So we normally stay far from the lane.  However, I figured that as long as I was with him (which, lately, is always), it would not hurt to give him a new place to explore.  He and I, both, loved being in our little hidden world.  For a while we were completely surrounded by the ten foot tall azaleas.  I think the escapade did him good as he slept soundly during the night following our short, amble.

  This afternoon, the wind was blowing something fierce.  Mr. PJ decided that he wished to stay on the southeast side of the house since it is obvious that he loves wind.  Our walk (which is no longer a vigorous hike due to his health) took us through the east arbor which has a rambling Cherokee Rose sprawling across the top.  This rose was planted here by Son a few years back and I love the thing.  He and I were on a hike far back in the creek bed when I spied a few of the rose vines.  I made mention that I had always wanted one for the yard even though they are considered to be an invasive species.  (Perhaps this is true as the woods are filled with the rambling roses.)   It was only a few hours later that Son called me out to see my new rose!  I am still thrilled with this beauty and, today, it proved to be a bright spot in the midst of a storm.  The top of the arbor is filled with the heavily scented white blooms.  

  The Cherokee Rose is one of the first roses to bloom in the rose garden each spring, although its history is a bit sketchy.  It was brought to the United States in 1780 and soon became naturalized.  It acclimated to the Deep South so well that it soon became invasive and now fills the wooded areas with its brambles.  Early spring, however, those thorny brambles put for a glorious show of white blooms.  From a distance, a lot of folks tend to believe that these roses are dogwood blooms but they are far from the same.  The dogwood is actually on a decline on the Coast and in recent years, there are few to be found.  Not so with the Cherokee Rose.  It is everywhere...and it is also in my yard!  I love it!

  While Mr. PJ sat with his nose to the wind, I pushed my nose in the center of several of the roses!  Our short walks are beginning to be a tad more interesting than those during the gray days of winter.  There is a lot more to see now and the old dog does not have to amble far for me to find something mesmerizing.  There is a lot of magic on this old Bayou of mine!  Hopefully, this wind will not tear up all of the azalea and rose blooms and there were still be plenty to enjoy for a few days.

The Unintentional Helper

  At least the seeds of the popcorn tree (also known as the tallow tree) are good for something other than making a billion new trees.  The invasive tree is notorious for filling up woods with seedlings that sap the nutrients from the soil and soon push out all other trees.  The same thing happens with the tree around the Bayou.  It is one of those plants that does not mind having its feet in the brackish waters so it will grow just about anywhere.  One has sprouted near the pier and has grown to be quite a good size.  I am told that I should pick the billion seeds so the tree does not spread like wildfire but that is literally impossible.  Now, however, a local resident has decided to do the job for me...and without pay!  This resident is happy with just harvesting the seeds.

  Early this morning, I heard the call of a pileated woodpecker echoing through the woods.  I was on the pier and could tell that the bird was coming my way so I sat waiting for it.  Its first stop was a tall pine at the end of the pier but it did not take long before the bird found the tallow tree seeds.  For a good ten minutes, I watched as the bird plucked seed after seed from the branches.  All I could think was, "You go, Bird!!!  Keep eating those seeds!"  Hopefully, the woodpecker will be back tomorrow and bring its entire family!

  Pileated woodpeckers are rather interesting birds.  Even though the bird can cause major damage to a tree, it is usually one that has already been compromised by insects, The woodpecker seeks out the insects by pecking rectangular holes in the tree's bark.  The holes can be so deep that the tree may topple if it was already weakened by the bugs.  When nesting, the bird makes sure to have plenty escape tunnels so predators have a hard time catching the baby birds.   Pileated woodpeckers will go so far as to choose a live tree and peck the bark around the entrance holes so sap will ooze around the opening.  This deters predators especially snakes.  Pileated woodpeckers...not only smart, they are helpful!

 

Its pretty.....but....

  The fact that Ben Franklin was noted for his brilliance has little impact on me here on the Bayou.  His blunder in landscaping does have a huge impact on the place.  Legend has it that he imported the Tallow Tree from China.  That Tallow Tree that is overrunning the place is supposedly descendents of his trees.  Maybe?  Maybe not.  Who knows?  That tree however is extremely invasive and will take over a place in a heartbeat.  Local horticulturalist have asked people to report if they see a tree and they will come to remove it.  The peels of laughter you hear at this point are me responding to the ridiculousness of their request.  There is no way that they are going to ever remove all of the "Popcorn Trees" that are growing in the woods surrounding the creek that runs behind the Bayou. The place is literally dotted with the trees and little else at this point.  

  When Hurricane Katrina smacked us head-on, she took out nigh on every tree in the creek area. We counted over two hundred large trees felled by the storm.  These trees had taken decades to grow and were wiped out in less than twenty-four hours.  About sixteen hours of the relentless winds and waves pounding us ravaged the land.  With that many trees down in an inaccessible area, there was little hope that the creek bed would ever be the same.  While some hardwoods and pines are trying to make a comeback, it is the quick-growing Tallow Tree that has pushed out all others.  Granted, the trees are not bad looking but since they beget bazillions of little Tallow Trees each year, things are getting pretty bad.  Still, those folks who wish to "remove" these trees are facing a dauntless task and will never succeed.  My property would have to be clear cut....something that I refuse to have done.  An invasive tree seems to be better than no trees at the moment.

  Down by the pier, there is a single Popcorn Tree that has sprung up and grown to quite some size.  It is actually out in the marsh a bit and cannot be reached by shore.  The tree is laden with the "popcorn" or seeds. (The seeds are what give the tree its common name.)  Probably by next spring, I will find thousands of baby Tallow Trees springing up all over the place.  Not good.  Not surprisingly,  there are some herbalists that make fantastic claims about the tree.  The medicinal claim attached to the Chinese Tallow Tree is that the leaves (when processed and made into a balm) can be useful in curing shingles.  Can't say (thankfully) that I have had to experiment with this yet and, hopefully, never will.  However, I am pondering just what use these trees will provide for us.  Firewood..maybe?

Another One Bites The Dust

  Being tired of the endless snipping and clipping of the wisteria vines, I cropped them back nearly to the ground.  The arbors stand bare and I am hoping they stay that way.  As matter of fact, if I have my way, the arbors are the next thing to go to the wayside.  Instead of the constant repair required, I shall enjoy a bit of freedom!  The wisterias will be allowed to grow a bit longer if I can train them to tree form and not rampant growing vines.  If they refuse to be constrained a bit, then...chop, chop and out they go!

  Now, another vine has bit the dust.  Red trumpet vines had taken over the kumquat trees and had even crawled all the way to the top of an oak tree.  It was time to put a halt to these as well.  The snips came into play again and the vines were cut to the ground.  The roots will have to be watched so these do not send up new shoots but perhaps if they are caught early enough, I can keep them under control.

  Red trumpet vines are lovely (just like wisteria) but left unfettered, they can become invasive.  These things can swallow up whole buildings if given the chance!  The red or orange blooms make it hard to eliminate the plants.  Hummingbirds love these things and anyone who does a bit of birdwatching, would have a hard time killing the vines merely because of that attraction.  The plants can grow from seeds, cuttings, layering, by runners or just about any other method available.  The seed pods are about six inches in length and have a number of seeds.  Imagine a vine some forty feet long with tons of branches.  Those branches are full of blooms.  Each bloom produces a seed pod filled with fifty to a hundred seeds.  When the seed pods dry, thousands of seeds go airborne and become scattered about the area.  Out of those thousands, most will take root and produce new vines.  The vines are cold hardy, drought hardy and not many critters even bother eating them.  If things are not held in check, the red trumpet vine can soon choke out any other plant life.  (Think the dreaded kudzu here.  This vine's life story is not unlike the horror tales connected to kudzu.)

  While that is all said and done, I will miss the trumpet vine.  The clusters of red tube-like flowers bring a bit of brightness to the otherwise drab woods.  Even the blooms that drop to the ground remain bright red for days.  It saddens me to make short work of things of beauty but this beauty can become a beast if allowed.  SO...snip, snip, chop, chop!  The vines received a good trimming.

Fishing for Trouble

  After the midday heat subsided a bit, I headed to the pier to check the little skiff and just cool off a bit.  A brisk wind had picked up causing the marsh grass to give a little dance.  Dragonflies were darting about the tops of the reeds and occasionally alighting on the pier posts.  Over the water, a few gulls dove after menhaden.  All was seemingly peaceful and good.  Harmony reigned over the Bayou or at least it so appeared.  On my way back up the pier was when I spied something troubling.

  It irks me how irresponsible some folks can be.  I am all for having a pretty yard with flowers and water features.  I am not all for the dumping of invasive plants from water gardens out into the Bay.  Water Hyacinths are known to cause trouble with a capital T.  As beautiful as the blooms are and as intriguing as the little pontoon-like stems can be, these are not plants to let loose in any waterways.  Water Hyacinths multiply at an alarming rate and within a matter of two to three warm, summer months can completely clog bayous, channels and even bays.  This overgrowth soon shuts out any other natural marsh plants and eventually makes the water even uninhabitable by fish, shrimp, crabs and other water life.  The plants are just bad news all together.

  While I could not reach these plants and since Son is still recuperating from his hurt knee, the plants will have to wait a few more days.  At least, they are corralled in the small inlet where we tie the boat during inclement weather.  Hopefully, they will stay put and not be washed back out into the Bay.  With these two clumps having washed into my area, I am concerned just how many others have been dumped into the Bay.  If only people knew....or....more to the point, if only people cared. 

Give it an inch.....

  Back a few years ago, I noticed that the nutrias were munching away on the roots of our marsh.  The shoreline was receding at a rapid pace due to these critters and this was not making me overly happy.  I tried to be nice and allow the overgrown rats to live in peace but it seems that the word got out so now I am overrun with the critters.  It does indeed make me happy to know that our alligator population is thriving as well, though, since those are about the only predators that an adult nutria has. 

  As the marsh grass disappears, other weaker rooted plants take over the area.  I first saw the saltmarsh fleabane several years ago as a single plant.  Now within a couple of years, the plant has multiplied by a hundredfold.  The Bayou is changing from one of healthy marsh to mudflats with an assorted soft-rooted plants.  This is not good as none of these will do much to stop erosion.  Coupled with the root-gnawing nutrias, the saltmarsh fleabane is out to do damage to the ecosystem here. Give either an inch and it will wind up taking over the entire Bayou! There is not much that I can do to stop this progressive curse on the marsh.  

  Saltmarsh Fleabane is better known as Pluchea Odorata.  It is touted to be a bug repellent, hence, the name fleabane.  I suppose that I could experiment with using the plant as a natural insect deterrent.   If it works, maybe I should harvest it and market the stuff!  I also read where it is sometimes used as an herbal tisane.  Do I dare snip a few leaves and give it a try?  Tisanes would be a good market as well!  At the rate it is taking over the marsh, I could have a never-ending moneymaker! Hmmm? Ponder....ponder....

Beauty or Beast???

Oh geez..another of my plants is now an invasive species. I have never heard of "invasive species" until recently..perhaps in the past few years. Now it seems that anything..plant or animal..that transplants itself in any given area is labelled as invasive. I do realize that some can be harmful as they do overtake local plants, case in point..Cogon Grass. Cogon Grass is what is called an aggressive invader and indeed, does present a problem. Another in this category would be the Kudzu Vine, which has taken over and even buried entire forests in the South. Those are invasive species!..just saying..

I was totally enjoying the blooms of my Mexican Petunias only to discover they are on "the list". Now I am wondering if I should pull them out of the garden. According to this list of "bad" plants about one third of the plants in my gardens would have to be removed. I rooted the Mexican Petunias about four years ago and they are just now becoming a dominate feature in the garden. These plants grow to be about three feet tall and remain in a clump. Blooming during midsummer, they bring a much needed splash of color to the garden just as most others plants are beginning to wane. Another added plus is the butterflies and the honeybees seem to love these purple and pink lovelies. I am all for butterfly gardens and for anything that will promote healthy bee colonies. I think perhaps these shall stay..next to the Lantanas..the Gloriosas..the Scarlet Wisteria, all of which made "the list". Personally, I have yet to notice a mass production of seeds and have truly only noticed a small increase in the clump size. Maybe this is a "slow growing" invasion?? Or an "invasive crawl"! Perhaps this is just a case of survival of the fittest..or maybe a case of cultural diversity!..just saying..

Perhaps, we are too quick to stick something on a list, simply because our stewardship of home gardens is not up to par. Neglect of gardens can result in two very different situations..one.. the plants can wither and die if not cared for properly and two..some plants can run amok, growing rampantly to overtake entire areas. With a bit of attention, most plants are happy to stay within the confines of a garden, seeds can be harvested (even if just to be destroyed), rootstock can be controlled. Maybe we should all be just a tad more careful in the management of our gardens instead of trying to eradicate anything that flourishes. I wonder..will I be next to be labelled as invasive and if so..???..just saying..