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)!  

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?