March 22, 2025 • 43 mins
Every gardener has at least one plant they can’t stand. Whether it’s due to aesthetics, invasiveness, or a bad experience, some plants just aren’t for everyone. Find out what plants we hate and hear what listeners had to say about the plants that make their “no thanks” list.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Coming to you from Studio A here at Proven Winters
Color Choice Shrubs. It's time for the Gardening Simplified Show
with Stacey Hervella me, Rick weisst and our engineer and
producer Adrianna Robinson. Well, Stacey, plants are like food, and well,
some food you like, some foods you don't. Same thing
(00:23):
with plants, as a matter of fact, some plants you
don't like. Some you even hate. Now I think about
that food analogy. As a kid. Once I got sick
on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and to this day,
the thought of it turns my stomach.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
You know what. I don't like peanut butter and jelly either. Hey, right,
I know it's a very weird thing not to like,
but I didn't get sick on it. But I've never
really cared for.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
It, outstanding. So today we talk about plants we hate,
and I guess I got to say this first before
we start. I've got to read a note from our
prestigious lawn firm of Trillium, Sage, gall and Ivy. The
opinions expressed on this show are solely those of Rick
and Stacey do not reflect the views of any employer, organization,
(01:06):
or sponsor. The product is provided as is and without
warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including, but
not limited to, our joint opinions.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Oh yes, well, we have opinions and you will be
hearing them today. And our listeners have opinions too, and
they shared them last week on last week's episode on YouTube,
so we've got those as well.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
This is going to be fun. Now. Next year, twenty
twenty six, Stacy, I will have been in the garden
center industry for fifty years.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
And I have to give a disclaimer here up front,
and that is a number of the plants that I
hate in the landscape are primarily due to the fact
that if you unload semi loads of these things over
fifty years, you're going to get sick of them too.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
I'm yes, So it's plants you're sick of, not necessarily
that you don't like. Well, it's both, okay, it's both, gotcha.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
It's both. So we'll dive into that.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
But I mean, what's for number one? You got a
number one that you can just like come right off
of that.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Yeah, I can tell you again, being in the garden
center industry, plastic flowers, silk flowers. I'm so sick of
having glitter on my nose and up my nose.
Speaker 3 (02:16):
That's number one.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
It's not really a plant, but they look like plant.
The other day, I'm driving through a small town and
I see in the distance lavender in full bloom. Oh
here in early March in Michigan. I'm like, there's no way,
so I go up there, and of course they're plastic flowers,
so kind of makes the hair stand up on the
back of my neck. But you know, sometimes it's situational.
(02:39):
For example, plants that drive me crazy are people who
will plant a hedge like privet, and then every year
they just take a little off the top, so they've
got naked branches up to the top where it's full
and lush, it just looks awful. Or mailbox plantings where
they've gone bad. In other words, as opposed to dressing
up the male or trying to disguise the mailbox, they're
(03:03):
actually calling attention to it now, right, yeah.
Speaker 2 (03:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
And then the other thing that drives me nuts is
overgrown lilacs. Vulgaris lilacs. I love lilacs, but overgrown lilacs
take a pruning shares to them.
Speaker 3 (03:17):
So sometimes it's the situation.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Oh interesting, I love a good overgrown lilac. I love
that like you know, like oh I just happened into
an enchanted place kind of vibe, like I love that.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
It's good.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
Let me see, this is the whole thing. We're going
to say, plants that our listeners might actually like, and
that is perfectly okay, because these are just our opinions
and we hold them strongly. And for every plant we
say that someone likes, they may hate a plant that
you and I like, correct, and there's enough to go
around for everybody.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
So just send your notes, complaints, cards, letters to Gardening
simplified on air dot Com Today's Limerick. They may promote
you as being hardy, but I'm a Hordic cultural smarty,
not part of my landscape diagram. I do not like
green eggs and ham. You're not welcome to my garden party.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
I don't know. I just kind of threw that one together.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
So who's not welcome? Obviously plastic flowers, but that's, you know,
kind of a non issue. So what one plant are you?
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Just? Like?
Speaker 2 (04:18):
Not a snowballs? Chance is this thing going to enter
into my garden?
Speaker 3 (04:23):
I'll give you a few of them, okay.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
Fragrance embeds in your memory. Okay, Yes, So calorie pears
or ornamental pears. They smell fishy, they smell like mothballs.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
They smell horrible.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
Yeah, they smell horrible.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
Don't like them, super invasive.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
Also marrigold flowers. Of course, I handled thousands and thousands
and thousands of flats of marigolds.
Speaker 3 (04:47):
I would go home.
Speaker 1 (04:47):
My clothes smell like marigolds. That's why they drive me crazy.
They have this acrid, unpleasant taste and smell. They're they
just I don't like them, okay. And then stargazer lilies,
the smell of them, the aroma. I can give you
a description of what they smell like, but I don't
(05:09):
want to come across as appearing.
Speaker 3 (05:12):
Being gross, So I'm just that.
Speaker 2 (05:16):
Okay, okay.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
And of course trees are a long term investment. I've
planted trees and personal landscapes before that I loved, and
neighbors and others hated. Like a camperdown elm or I
love cleeping beach. Love that plant. It's like a Doctor
Seuss plant. Love it.
Speaker 3 (05:36):
But no.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
And then of course blue is a highly desired color
in the landscape, and so from the mid nineteen hundreds
through nineteen eighty one of the most over planted plants
was Colorado.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
Bluesofful there and it's native to the southern Rocky Mountain area,
so you put it in an area that it doesn't like.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
Over time, you're gonna start dealing with canker and needle
cast and then you start pruning out some of the
affected branches. And you know, of course, your house doesn't grow,
but that cute little Colorado spruce planted forty years ago
does and it overpowers the house.
Speaker 3 (06:17):
So how am I doing here?
Speaker 2 (06:18):
You're good? I do want to say my most number
one hated plants, okay, and why there's two reasons why. Okay,
my number one most hated plant in the world. Well
maybe not in the world, but you know that we
grow in our gardens is egga podium po groarica Bishop's weed.
Speaker 3 (06:36):
Oh oh yeah, it's on the list.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
And I really hate this plant for two main reasons.
Number one, it's just ugly, not an attractive plant. Now,
I will say that the flowers are kind of pretty.
And when I moved into my house and there was
some planted it flowered, and I actually quite enjoyed using
them in arrangements. Still not a reason to grow it,
but it's an ugly planet. It's a groundcover. But I
also have a personal grudge against this plant. Oh really,
(07:03):
because it may not surprise you to find out that
my plant id skills are typically pretty great. And when
I was in a horticulture school, we had two major exams,
a horticultural technique exam and a plant id exam. Yeah,
and Agapodium pol roarica is the one single plant that
I got wrong on my plant id exam.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
Didn't get a hundred on that.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
So between those two things, it is my like, you know,
there's certainly other plants that I strongly dislike and even hate,
but you know, with that extra like grudge factor in
there for the Agapodium that is. And you know that
was actually one of the plants that came up on
our YouTube comments.
Speaker 1 (07:44):
Yes, yeah, and they marketed it as Snow on the Mountain.
Speaker 3 (07:49):
Yeah, gave it.
Speaker 1 (07:50):
A nice name because it's variegated. See I feel that
way about euphour.
Speaker 3 (07:54):
Be a spurge.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
Oh, I hate that too.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
You Yeah, And there's a reason the deer don't eat.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
It ch toxic.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
Yeah, yeah, it's just blue boy, oh boy, marigolds. You
know what really gets me ivy geraniums. I don't why stringy.
They break off thousands and thousands of hanging baskets that
I've hung up and taken down.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
And oh well, I'll tell you this. Don't go to
any pubs in Ireland in the summer because they're all
decorated with beautiful window boxes full of ivy geraniums.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
Well, I know I'm gonna get in trouble, I know that,
but I gotta be honest.
Speaker 3 (08:31):
You know.
Speaker 1 (08:31):
The same applies to Calibricoa. I just think there's just
too many.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
You know, I'll walk into a greenhouse in spring.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
Now. Proven Winners does a great job with their calibri coas,
but it can be kind of unruly. It's like a
bad hair day. I love many Vista supertunias and I'll
take that over a calibricoa any day. And the other
thing that drives me crazy about it is anytime I
see a bunch of them in a greenhouse or hanging up,
(08:59):
I've got an earworm for the rest.
Speaker 3 (09:01):
Of the day in my head.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Dick van Dijke and Julie Andrews super califragilistic expiala do.
It just sticks in my head because I sing that
song every time I see Calibri Coa's and so I
just forgive me send your notes, cards, letters. But Stacy,
I don't like Calibri CoA baskets. Well, that is perfectly fair, okay,
(09:24):
Vinca Minor, well, Vinca Major even worse.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
Yeah, much worse. I just like them both.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
Yeah, because I came from the generation where you go
into the garden center, every container was geranium, spikes, Vinca Major,
and Dusty Miller.
Speaker 2 (09:43):
Yep, and I remember those days.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
I can't stand all four of them.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
I grew up with that combination in my backyards. I am.
I am also not a fan. I have never planted
a deranium like of my own accord. Okay, ever, so
I mean, I don't you know there that's like for me,
It's like there's enough out there, like I don't need
to bring it into my life. The stuff that I
see out in the world is ample for me.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
Well yeah, and again honesty, okay. The reason I can't
handle is because, again in the seventies and eighties, I
handled hundreds of thousands of them, and I filled hundreds
of thousands of pots with geranium spikes and vinca vines
that went directly to the cemetery. And so those flowers
(10:30):
make me think of the cemetery.
Speaker 2 (10:32):
So can't help it, all right, you haven't listened any
perennials yet.
Speaker 1 (10:37):
Oh we will in the speed Yes, I did you
four be a spurs?
Speaker 2 (10:40):
Oh? Yes, yeah, that is a crummy one with you.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
Well, I'll tell you what we're going to do, speed
round implants on trial.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
Yes we are.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
There should be an adventure. Stay tuned to the Gardening
Simplified Show.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
Beautify your home and community with proven Winner's Color Choice
Shrubs with over three hundred and twenty five unique varieties
to choose from. There's a flowering shrub or evergreen for
every taste and every space. Just look for the distinctive
white container your local garden center or learn more at
proven Winner's Color Choice dot com. Greetings gardening friends, and
(11:20):
welcome to the Gardening Simplified Show, where we are friendly,
but we are talking about plants that we hate and
also plants that you hate, which you shared with us
on YouTube. And you know again if you're just tuning
in I do want to clarify that these are just
our opinions, and you know, the more you get into gardening,
the more you're going to kind of develop these tastes.
(11:40):
Plants that you absolutely love, plants that you hate. Sometimes
it is based firmly in reality, it makes perfect sense,
and sometimes it doesn't make any sense at all, and
you just have like a visceral reaction like I do
with daylilies.
Speaker 1 (11:51):
And the other factor here is if somebody in a
neighborhood plants it, then everybody copies and pretty soon that
plant is throughout the neighbor right.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
So it's interesting to me because we did last week
ask our YouTube listeners to comment on YouTube with the
plants that they hate, and we can share that list later.
But one thing that stuck out to me across this
entire list the number one plants that people hate aren't
really like so much like me and daylilies, where I'm
just like, I don't like the way that plant looks
or feels. The majority of plants that people hate are
(12:22):
actually invasive plants. The list is almost entirely invasive or
difficult to manage plants. And I'm not really clear whether
that is because those plants are maintenance issues for the
listeners who share that, and that is why they hate them,
or if they hate the fact that they are so
invasive and aggressive, whether or not they are dealing with,
(12:45):
you know, with them in their yard. And you know,
for plants on trial today, we are going to do
a speed around, which is where we just list a
bunch of different categories and reconi each quickly, hopefully, but sometimes,
you know, we got to expound on it. Our least
favorite or We're gonna give some examples of our least
favorite plants and then tell you why. And I'm gonna
(13:05):
start with shrubs, and I'm going to start with my
most hated shrub and a little explanation why. I won't
go this far into all of them. But I do
feel like I need to do this for shrubs because
I work for proven Winter's collect Choice Shrubs, and we
do sell the shrub that I hate the most, and
it is barbary.
Speaker 3 (13:21):
I knew it.
Speaker 2 (13:21):
I know, I know there's no surprises here in the studio.
I can tell you Rick and Adriana knew this well
about me. And you know the reason barbary is invasive,
not everywhere you know, you go out west and people
are growing barbary and it looks perfectly lovely. But here
in the Midwest and the East coast, barbary is actually
quite invasive. And I never really cared for barbary. I
was just kind of like meh on it, you know,
(13:42):
certainly going back to my landscaping days, like you and
your truck unloading days. I didn't like planting it because
it's prickly and you're getting all scratched up. And but
you know, mostly I feel like barbary just does not
do enough in the landscape to be to merit all
of the problems that it's causing. And the first time
(14:02):
that I was hiking at Uskegon State Park and I
was way way way back, you know, like not on
the trails, Like we were back there and it was
fall and I see this bright red thing in the
landscape and I said, oh, my gosh, what is that,
you know, So we walk up to it and it's
a barbary. And so here I am trying to get
some peace and relaxation, enjoying the scenery, and there's a
(14:24):
barbary intruding on this beautiful natural site. And that was
like really you know, it really got me that affected you,
and I just again don't think that barbary has enough
aesthetic value for me to you know, merit all these
problems that it's causing. And other people on YouTube also said.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
Barbary, well, send your notes, cardage letters to Gardening Simplified
on air dot com.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
So despite my dear issues in the fact that barbary
is very dear resistant, you will never ever, ever, ever
ever catch a barbary in my garden. So you rick
trub that you hate because of.
Speaker 1 (14:59):
All the tr unloaded and Dora junipers and taxis, it's
a tie.
Speaker 2 (15:05):
Yeah. Well, Texas is also kind of a me a plant.
You know. When we talk about Texas a few weeks ago,
we talked about the ones in the UK and those
are truly spectacular. But here in the US, Texas is
nothing to write home about. As they say, tree you hate.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
The mulberry tree was brought into the United States for
the silkworms, you know, to feed the silkworms in the
silk industry, and it of course got out and that
tree drives me nuts. Mulberry trees and calorie pears.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
Yes, so Breadford pair definitely on my list and You know,
people love Breadford pear because it has white flowers in
spring and that super tidy you know shape that they
love and fall color. But bread for pear, you know,
take a drive through the south in the early spring
and see how it has spread, you know, into the woods,
and it is really just so so heartbreaking. But I
(15:57):
also have my most hated tree is a tie with
no maple.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
Oh yeah, I can see that.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
You know, And I will give I hate, especially Crimson
King Norway maple. But I will give Crimson King a
seasonal pass for when it flowers because it is kind
of cool how the yellow flowers and the purple emerging
leaves look. But that is still not worth planting Norway
maple because they just don't do enough. Yeah, great bulb
(16:23):
that you hate.
Speaker 1 (16:25):
Gonna get in trouble here. Cannot stand hyacinths. Ooh reason
I can't stand hyacinths. I think the bloom lasts such
a short time. I don't like the aroma of hyacinths.
And again, working in the garden center industry, if you
handle the bulbs, many people are allergic to them. They
will make you itch, they will make you go crazy.
(16:46):
You're itching yourself. I had one time in the winter time,
I'm dealing with hyacinths. We force them. I had to
take my shirt off, go outside and dive into a
snowbank cave. I was itching so bad. Can't stand hyacinth.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
Yes, that happened to me too when I will not
quite like that. But when I was working at Martha
Stewart Living my very first photoshoot, I was so excited.
I was new on the job and it was an
Easter photo shoot and we were doing all this crazy
stuff with hyacinth flowers and I did not know about
the itching ye, and I was absolutely miserable for the
entire day because it's just like the sap and everything
(17:18):
gets everywhere, and it's really really terrible poison. Ivy did
come up on a number of YouTube comments, but this
is almost that bad. It just doesn't give you a
rash for me. Star of Bethel, Hamwich, we talked about
last week YEP, because a listener had it as a weed.
Very difficult to manage. You know. Also, like our listeners,
most of my most hated plants are also invasives perennial
(17:41):
that you hate.
Speaker 1 (17:42):
Ladies mantle, the al camilla moolus.
Speaker 2 (17:45):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (17:46):
Really yeah, because it looks like a weed to me.
And again, in the garden center industry, we'd set it
out in April on the benches, it'd still be there
in October.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
I feel like that's such like a gardener plant, like
you know, it's like English gardens.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
I vibes, I'm going to get.
Speaker 2 (18:08):
I'm just I'm just a little surprised. That's all. Of course,
mine is daily. As we have already discussed, not a
lot of people when our YouTube comments mentioned lilies, and
I think they they were mostly implying that they hate
the ditch lilies or you know, the ones that grow
wild in all of the ditches. And it's true that
orange is terrible, and I love orange, but the orange
(18:30):
of that plant is just ghastly. But I even hate
the ornamental daylilies, as I discussed. Their thick petals are
gross and absorbent and weird and look like diapers, and
I do not like to look at them or certainly
touch them. Groundcover, you hate ground cover?
Speaker 1 (18:45):
Of course, I could say Bishop Scout weed, but I'm
gonna say a juga. Oh, a juga is not a
Caribbean island that you go to in winter to vacation. Rather,
it's a it's a non native ground cut that tends
to get thrips and mites and just doesn't perform. And again,
(19:06):
I handled hundreds of thousands of pots of a juga.
It's also known as bugle wheat.
Speaker 2 (19:11):
Yes, you know, I've rarely seen is as much as
a juga is sold as a groundcover, I have rarely
seen like a really good, solid planting of a juga
as a groundcover.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
Well, people will argue chocolate chip, you know, some of
the newer varieties in There are some good varieties out there,
But I can do without a juga.
Speaker 2 (19:27):
Okay. Mine is going to be heetunia, Yeah, chameleon plant.
We've talked about it many times on the show because
people will write us in desperation, what do I do
about this horrible, smelly, weird looking plant, because yeah, not
only does it have a terrible weird fragrance, the foliage
does you know that variegation I really don't like. So
(19:47):
it's like yellow and green and red. And you know
the other thing about houtunia is any little piece of
this plant that is falls on the soil or remains
and the soil will grow and it is just very
difficult to manage and eradicate. And again it's just it's
too ugly to be that aggressive. I guess it's a problem. Okay,
(20:10):
now you've given us a lot of annuals that you hate,
But what's going to be your your go to here
in spect.
Speaker 1 (20:16):
I'm just gonna leave it with ivy geraniums and say
no more because I'm in deep right now.
Speaker 2 (20:20):
Okay, So mine is Salvius Blendins. Really yes, So now
there's a lot of wonderful salva's out there that I
do enjoy. But if you're not familiar with Sealvius Blendon's,
and I don't really know that it has like another
common name that I'm not thinking of. But this is
like the old fashioned single stem salvia usually red, sometimes purple,
(20:41):
sometimes white, that comes up and has the bracks and
then the little flowers that come out of it, and
it's just like yeah, like that, Yeah, so I think
that's yeah. So I really don't like that. Although Prooven
Winners did come out with some new cultivars that I
did trial last year and I didn't hate, but they're
a far cry from the ones that I'm talking about. Also,
not really fan of Porta Laca.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
M interesting. I would disagree with you there.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
I love it, oh so interesting, even like the ones
with the thin leaves are just the one. The newer
ones with the new.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
Ones, like the Mohave series, they're incredible.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
You know. I guess maybe when I'm retired, I will
also like Portulacca more. But for working people, it's not
a good plan because the flowers close up when you
get home.
Speaker 1 (21:23):
I feel a little old now. Advan is cracking up
over there.
Speaker 2 (21:28):
All right, listen, I have a few more speed round questions.
We'll have to save those.
Speaker 1 (21:33):
Yeah, we need to do those, because I'm looking at this.
Speaker 3 (21:35):
This is gonna be good.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
Okay, So we will come back to that in segod form.
But we're going to take a break now and when
we come back to answer your garden questions. So stay tuned.
At proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs, we know that a
better landscape starts with a better shrub. Our team of
experts tests and evaluates all of our flowering shrubs and
(21:59):
evergreen for eight to ten years to ensure they outperform
what's already on the market for easycare, reliable, beautiful shrubs
to accentuate your home and express your personal style. Look
for Proven Winner's shrubs in the distinctive white container at
your local garden center, or learn more at Proven Winner's
Color Choice dot com. Greetings gardening friends, and welcome back
(22:21):
to the Gardening Simplified Show, where we are talking about
plants we hate. But we're taking a little break from
that conversation to answer your gardening questions. And you know,
I picked these questions today because they were timely, but
I also realize just now that all of them do
actually include plants that I actually like, Yeah, not about
plants that I hate. So if you have a question,
(22:42):
whether even if it is rather about a plant that
Rick and I hate, we will still be happy to
help you. You can reach us at Gardening Simplified on
air dot com, or of course leave a comment on YouTube,
because we do look at all of those and appreciate
your engagement. So Rick, what we got in the mail
bag today?
Speaker 1 (22:58):
Okay, Sue is writing to us. Hello, I love your show.
I'm in Zone five B, Northwest suburb of Chicago. I
ordered an El Nino che tulpa. Right is the plannxiation
for us? If you're keeping score at home, I'm taking
a chance because the plant is listed as zones six
through nine. But I really love the look while watching
(23:19):
others grow it in warmer zones. I'm going to plant
it in a protected sunny area of my property, plan
on mulching around it in late fall. But is there
something else I could do to increase my chances of survival?
I would also love to get a cryptomeria, which is
zone six'. Nine SHOULD i quit trying to push the
zones because it could get?
Speaker 3 (23:40):
Expensive? Oh, No, sue push the zoncial.
Speaker 2 (23:44):
Zones push the. Zones, yes it can get. Expensive and
that's something you. Know it's to me when when a
gardener is pushing the, zones it just becomes kind of
a ven diagram of like you know where the push
and pull, Is like how much are you willing to
invest in time and money versus you, know your expected
benefit of that? Plant BUT i wanted to answer who's question,
(24:07):
now especially because the number one piece of ADVICE i
can give to anyone who wants to push the hardiness
zone of a plant in their yard is to plant
it as early as possible in. Spring, now don't you?
Know plant it now and we're still going to get
lots of cold weather and the soil is not really
ready for planting. Anyway but as soon as planting opens
up for your, area sure that is when you want
(24:28):
to plant. That these are not plants that you want
to put in in. FALL i, mean of, course, again
as we've often, said if you get a good, deal
what the. Heck but you, know if you're paying full
price and you really want to make sure the plant
has the best possible opportunity to get established and withstand
the challenges of, winter early spring planting is so key
because that will give it the longest possible time to
(24:49):
get roots established and be able to withstand you, know those.
Conditions so that's especially IMPORTANT i think with evergreens like the.
CRYPTOMERIA i don't THINK i think That cryptomeria is believed
to be less hardy than it actually. Is we have
quite a few in our trial gardens here In West.
Michigan now we ARE Usda zone SIX b because we
(25:11):
have the benefit of the lake kind of making things
a little bit more mild in the winter and a
little bit nicer in the summer as. Well but we
get no winter damage at all on, cryptomeria and we've
had no real winter damage on The chittelpa either on Al. Nino,
now this is kind of a difficult plant because it's
the only one, around so it's not like we can
really take you, know what people are saying about this
(25:34):
species or this genus and, say, okay well you know
this one is like, this so we are kind of
blazing new. Ground BUT i would say so if as
long as you're planting it in a sunny, spot well,
drained which is also often very crucial for these plants
when we're trying to push the hardiness, OWN i would
say you have a very high likelihood of success With El.
Nino the only thing is that you want to be aware.
(25:56):
Of it may die back to the, ground especially if
you have a very harsh. Winter don't consider it. Dead
don't just write it. Off give it some time to,
emerge because it can emerge from its roots much like
a butterfly bush or. Carryopteris so don't write it, off
be patient with. It and that's you, know very often
the case with these. Things so it can be. Done
(26:19):
just make sure that you're doing your work in early,
spring giving it the longest possible time to. Establish and of,
course as always welch is a very good friend for
getting these plants through.
Speaker 1 (26:28):
Winter it, is AND i have nothing to, Add stacy
EXCEPT i did plant In El nino in my yard In.
Speaker 3 (26:35):
October, okay so we'll see.
Speaker 1 (26:36):
What, happens because your advice is really.
Speaker 2 (26:38):
Good, WELL i actually overwintered some Al nino's in containers
in my, yard which of course you should never. Do
but AS i THINK i was talking about a few weeks,
ago you, know you get free plants in this, job
and you don't always get them in and THEY i.
Have obviously they haven't leaked out, yet but they seem
perfectly fine and completely unfazed by our. Winters.
Speaker 1 (26:55):
Awesome Cheryl innn, WRITES i have several new spilled wine
Wou jela in my. Yard this is a plant that
you featured last week in our groundcover. Show one of
them seems to be struggling from the. Beginning instead of purplish,
leaves they seem to have been more on the brown
side and very little.
Speaker 3 (27:14):
GROWTH i couldn't.
Speaker 1 (27:14):
Find a photo when it had, leaves But i'm sending
a current. One not sure if it will be helpful at.
All can it be some sort of? SCALE i try
to stay organic as much as.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
Possible, okay so we will Have cherylyn's photo of course
on the YouTube version and in the show. Notes And,
cherylyn know what you're actually seeing is it's a lentis.
Sills and it's a fun. Word, yeah, yeah. Yeah so
all plants have lentis, sills but not all lentisils are very.
Visible and so what a lentisill is is just kind
(27:47):
of a raised bump on the stems of a. Plant
and when and so some plants will have a lot
of lentisils and make you, go oh, gosh there's something
wrong with. That and some we'll just have one here or,
there and why do you is one of those with
a lot of. Lentisills and because they are little raised
bumps on the, stems people tend to think it's some
sort of you, know disease or insect. Infestation so, No,
(28:10):
cherylyn don't. Worry you don't have to spray. Anything you
do not have. Scale you have your normal lentisils on the.
Plant if it has more lentiscills than its. Neighbors sometimes
that happens too due to cultural, conditions the fact that
it hasn't grown and the foliage seems kind of brown
suggests to me that it probably needs a little more.
Water it's possible that your particular where this particular plant,
(28:32):
is there is perhaps some tree roots in the area
that are robbing water away from, it even if the
neighboring plants that you also planted are totally. Fine SO
i would keep an eye on. It and you, know
don't forget that when a plant maybe isn't getting as much,
water you can. Check you can take a shovel and
just dig around a little bit and see what's going
on under the. Surface BUT i have had, it you
know where a tree root will take more water away from,
(28:55):
something even though it's neighbors are totally. Fine so between
the brown foliage and the little, growth that definitely suggests
to me a little more. Water don't worry about the
lentisills and hopefully it should start to turn around this
season and.
Speaker 1 (29:07):
We all learned something. New lentisylls is not a.
Speaker 2 (29:10):
Soup next.
Speaker 3 (29:11):
Two next, Question, terry is a great.
Speaker 1 (29:13):
QUESTION i would like to know your recommendation for growing
a basil that is both prolific and does not go
to seed. Quickly that's a Great.
Speaker 2 (29:21):
Isn't that such a good, question because everybody loves. Basil,
okay not everybody loves, basil but there are people out
there who hate. BASIL i love basil as. Well and,
yeah so when, basil if you haven't grown it, before
when basil goes to, seed its foliage tends to become quite,
strong which may or may not be such a bad,
thing but certainly not necessarily suitable to a delicate application
(29:43):
like a cuprazy. Salad BUT i have great news for, You.
Terry there is a basil that never, flowers and it
Is pesto perpetuo. Basil, now there was a long time
WHERE i could find this plant. Easily over the last
couple of, YEARS i have unfortunately had trouble finding. It
but it's very easy to spot in the garden center
if they carry. It because it is also a variegated,
(30:05):
basil so it's kind of like a mint green and white.
Variegation it naturally grows into a dense columnar. FORM i
have grown this many. Years it never ever, flowers and
in years Where i've had a lot of different types of,
basil this is the one THAT i can continue to
harvest on clear up until. Frost i've even brought it
in it usually, defoliates but if you have bright sun
(30:27):
and good air, circulation you might be able to get it.
Through i've also found that the proven winners a masal
basil does pretty. Well, yeah so that one's. Great that
one has been slow to bolt or flower for. Me
some people will say that the foliage is thicker and
maybe a little bit less delicate than certain other culinary basil.
Varieties BUT i would also, say so those are two
(30:48):
varieties that you can check out if you can find.
Them BUT i would also say this is somewhat of
a cultural issue as. Well, now there is a point,
where of, course you cannot possibly keep your basil from.
Flowering usually that comes somewhere around Early august and things
just like signs OUT i got a. Flower but there's
a couple of things you can. Do first of, all
instead of just harvesting what you need sort of like,
(31:10):
midsummer maybe around like fourth Of july or a little bit,
after just cut the whole thing back to get that
fresh new growth out of, it and then that will
really delay its. Flowering and the other thing that you
can do or in combination with, that is succession. Sewing
so don't just plant one crop of basil at the
beginning of the season and call it. Done save some
(31:32):
seed or take cuttings of your plants and continue to
plant out fresh ones through the. Season and by staggering
those start, times you'll have a much longer harvest.
Speaker 1 (31:42):
Window, yeah that's, great great. Advice and, again the new
cultivars like a masal basil is just fantastic in that
they're not going to easily, flower similar to how they've
developed colius in the landscape a foliage plant and keep
it from. Bolting we used to always have to cut
that back too and pinch. It.
Speaker 2 (32:03):
YEAH i was actually kind of surprised you didn't have
colius as one of your least. Favorites, NO i Like,
NO i used to Like Wizard, Mix.
Speaker 3 (32:10):
Oh Wizard.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
Mix all, right on that.
Speaker 1 (32:14):
These are old fashioned varieties from the seventies and, eighties
like Red Hot sally Or boyleboy marigolds and Boy O.
Speaker 3 (32:21):
Boy we're going to talk about this further in the next. Segment,
yeah so stay.
Speaker 2 (32:25):
Tuned, please thanks for listening to The Gardening Simplified, podcast
brought to you by Proven Winners Color Choice, shrubs our
award winning flowering shrubs and evergreens are trialed and tested
by experts with your success in. Mind learn more At
Proven winners Color choice dot.
Speaker 1 (32:44):
Com welcome back to The Gardening Simplified. Show today for branching,
news we'll continue the speed round Because, STACY i gotta
be honest with. YOU i find this fun and it's
kind of cleansing for.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
Me, yes you, have you, KNOW i feel like you
really let your true sell show through one the fakio.
Today it's been it's been, lovely it's been. Delightful vegetable
that you hate, growing not eating, necessarily because those could
be two totally different.
Speaker 1 (33:08):
Things it's a kind of vegetable, asparagus fern or spring a.
Speaker 3 (33:13):
Eye cannot stand that.
Speaker 1 (33:15):
Stuff my arms just itch like crazy again handled thousands
of those. Things spring a.
Speaker 2 (33:20):
EYE i also hate.
Speaker 3 (33:21):
Those why do people grow?
Speaker 1 (33:23):
SPRING i don't know they.
Speaker 2 (33:24):
And yeah they just again they're Not they're not attractive
enough to be worth their. Trouble BUT i do love
actual asparagus, plants even THOUGH i Hate, OH i like the.
Speaker 3 (33:32):
Asparagus, OH i like eating. ASPARAGUS i love the.
Speaker 2 (33:35):
PLANT i don't like the. Vegetable but the vegetable THAT
i hate growing in a. Way this was a tough
one for, me But i'm gonna put this one out
there tomatillo because tomatillos are very easy to, grow you.
Know and WHAT i have found is you plant, them
they start to self. Sew and for whatever REASON i
do not. Know And adrian is nodding because this has
(33:57):
happened to her as, well for whatever REASON i don't don't.
Know those subsequent generations the fruit never. Matures so you're
sitting there, going, hey this is. COOL i got free
tomatillos coming up from last. Year you wait all, Season
august comes, around you, like go out there and you
feel those, puffy little you, know. Puffs there's nothing in.
There you're just, like what the heck just. Happened i've
(34:19):
devoted space to this free tomatillo plant all season and
it's not doing anything for. Me So i've had too
much tomatio. Frustration so that's why it's going on as
my vegetable THAT i hate growing but not. Eating that's.
Great what weed do you hate the?
Speaker 1 (34:36):
Most it's a tie between broad, leaf, helleborine the weedy orchid.
Speaker 2 (34:41):
Ye and nuts. Edge, ooh nuts edge drives me. Crazy
you know, What i'm gonna go a Little pollyanna on
nutsedge and say that it's at least fun to.
Speaker 1 (34:51):
Pull it is fun to, pull, agreed agreed.
Speaker 2 (34:55):
Therapeutic, yeah it's got like a, nice like. Satisfying now
the problem, is of, course when you have a huge
patch of it and then you're, Like i'm gonna be
here all. Day but, overall the weed THAT i hate
the most is just any grass, weed like any grass
that's like from your lawn and coming into your. Beds,
okay because you, know, really get back where you. Belong
don't come in. Here this is for these plants that's
(35:17):
for you stay, there especially runner. Grasses AND i don't
know my grass is well enough to say which particular
Culprit i'm thinking. OF i can picture, it because it's
terrible one in my.
Speaker 1 (35:25):
GARDEN i think a lot of people would agree With bermuda,
grass which has the above ground runners we Call stolen's,
right and then of course quack, grass which has the.
Speaker 3 (35:35):
Underground rise a quack.
Speaker 1 (35:37):
Grass it's probably quack. Grass and by the, way programming,
note for, me a weed that really doesn't bother me
is poison.
Speaker 3 (35:45):
Ivy oh, Really AND i think the fall color is.
Speaker 2 (35:47):
Spectacular it is quite a lovely fall, color BUT i
wouldn't wish it on. ANYBODY i did almost put vine
as a, category and partly because some of our listeners
did Say virginia creeper was a plant particularly, hate and
trumpet vine also came. Up which, trumpetvine if you've had
a good experience with, it you're probably, like how could
someone say? That but if you've had a bad, experience you're,
(36:09):
like mm, Hmm, YEAH i get, it because.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
You can like trumpet. Vine you just have to get
rough with. It you have to show it it's who's.
Boss you got to be willing to root print. It
if you don't do, that, yeah it can kind of
take over a.
Speaker 2 (36:20):
House and, all speaking of, houses what is a tropical
or houseplant that you? Hate?
Speaker 1 (36:25):
Oh for YEARS i was a tropical houseplant buyer for
in the garden center, Industry so this one's easy for.
Me cannot stand. Deefenbakia there's a reason they call it dumb.
Speaker 2 (36:37):
Cane, yes because if you bite, it it will make
your tongue. Swell and you can't make your tongue.
Speaker 1 (36:43):
Swell it doesn't ship, well it doesn't move.
Speaker 3 (36:47):
Well you put it near a.
Speaker 1 (36:48):
Window you even say cold weather near, it it will.
WILT i don't like.
Speaker 2 (36:54):
Deefenbakia just you, know WHEN i was young and just
getting into, PLANTS i pruned a different bakia to take
cuttings and drop of sap splashed into my eye AND
i had to go and have it irrigated in the
in the. Er that was, fine but you, know so fun. Anyway, yeah, Uh,
RICK i know you like this, plant BUT i am
(37:15):
not a fan of. CROTON i love, crotons and you,
KNOW i feel like WHEN i WHEN i was writing this,
Down i'm thinking it goes back to my same distaste
of whutunia because there is kind of some similarity in that,
variegation like that red and yellow and dark.
Speaker 3 (37:31):
Green it's a mish.
Speaker 2 (37:32):
MASH i don't know it's it's just maybe it's like
Too christmasy or something like. THAT i just not a.
Speaker 1 (37:38):
Fan but there's many different types of, croton so, yeah
there Are i'm gonna work.
Speaker 2 (37:43):
On all, right all, RIGHT i, Mean I'm i'll keep
an open. Mind i'll keep an open mind about almost
any of. This but barbary and agapodium mark not In
Bradford paranora, maple no open mindedness happened in. There, okay,
last but not, least a garden tool that you.
Speaker 1 (37:57):
Hate, NOW i know you expect me to say, ho
BECAUSE i do not like. Hoses, HOWEVER i am going
to say riding. Lawnmowers they drive me. CRAZY i watch
people on those things compacting their. Turf, NOW i, know
in some situations you have to have a riding, lawnmower
but in some cases you see people out there spinning
around the grass does not need to be cut because
(38:20):
we need to raise the blade on the moor to get,
good healthy, turf and they're out there scalping it with
a riding, lawnmower kicking up.
Speaker 3 (38:28):
All kinds of dust and.
Speaker 1 (38:29):
Debris i've got a neighbor that loves his riding. Lawnmower
he rides that thing twice a, day whether the lawn
needs it or.
Speaker 3 (38:37):
Not and of course the lawn doesn't need.
Speaker 1 (38:39):
It And i'm trying to sit there peacefully at my
house and boom that.
Speaker 3 (38:44):
Lawnmower, oh it drives me. Nuts So i'm going to
say riding. Lawnmower.
Speaker 2 (38:48):
Wow do people who love riding their riding lawnmowers know
that you usually can ride them without.
Speaker 1 (38:55):
Mowing you would think because when they turn.
Speaker 2 (38:59):
IT i get that it's fun for people like. That
could see a lot of you, know grown ups being,
like this is my childhood fantasy come true And i'm
just going to like ride around on my you know.
Toy but that doesn't mean that you have to mow
like you can just be out there with your headphones
and your high school beverage and enjoying your investment in your.
Writing well that's the.
Speaker 1 (39:19):
THING i have friends, who, yes have the cup, holder
and they use that as the occasion to enjoy a nice.
Beverage and, yeah but for me riding.
Speaker 2 (39:29):
All, Right, WELL i am going to say hoses because
as important as they, are they're just. Frustrating AND i
don't think there's a gardener alive who has just not
had at least one negative experience with a hose where
he just wanted to rip it out and throw it.
Right oh, yeah we've all been.
Speaker 1 (39:47):
There, YEAH i use hoses in my comedy.
Speaker 3 (39:49):
Routine you're preaching to the.
Speaker 2 (39:50):
Choir so some of the listener least favorite hated plants
that we did not, Discuss it didn't come up for.
Us two that really stuck out to me very interestingly
are very regional, invasives because WHEN i read, THESE i was, like, oh,
huh so one was creeping bellflower companila or, Punkiloides and,
(40:13):
yeah that is super invasive in the Upper midwest Like,
Minneapolis minnesota And. Wisconsin what a garbage looking. Plant it's just.
Horrible so sorry for anyone who's contending with.
Speaker 3 (40:25):
That do you feel?
Speaker 2 (40:27):
WELL i was just, like, Ugh and THEN i do
feel Like i've seen this and tried to pull up,
before and it's just a horrible plant to try to.
Pull like you, know a plant that's easy to pull
can kind, of you, know redeem itself a little bit
by by being easy to. Pull the other One dier's woad.
Yea AND i saw this and as someone who enjoys
fiber arts and growing, HERBS i, thought, hm what's that all?
(40:48):
About and this is a, horrible horrible invasive out. WEST
I satus, tinctoria which was actually a very important plant
in dying but is now just a, tremendous tremendously noxious
weed in The, southwest and it's out.
Speaker 1 (41:03):
West it's an awful weed and it has a, well
a characteristic of many plants that we, hate and that
is it's a lellopathic.
Speaker 2 (41:12):
Yep prevents other plants from growing.
Speaker 1 (41:13):
Around, yeah so it has the reputation like spotted napweed.
Speaker 2 (41:17):
Yep so also burning bush came. Up not surprising, there
winter creeper, vine, Honeysuckle LIKE i, said trumpet, vine you
had a petunia's counterpart to your caliber CoA dislike, potentilla
which you, KNOW i get a lot of potentilla's are
very ho. Hum we try to do a little bit
(41:39):
better here at proven owner's color choice. Shrubs but you,
KNOW i get it you had a bad experience back
in the. Day you're just, Like i'm not planting that.
Thing another vote for a juga here Ye english ivy of,
Course and we talked about that a few weeks ago
and how some people here in The midwest are, like,
Ooh ivy's so elegant and we don't tend to have
a huge issue with, it whereas if you go out,
west it's just an absolute Night mari We.
Speaker 1 (42:00):
JACE I i'm seeing hardy leadwart, plumbago and that's an,
aggressive non native.
Speaker 3 (42:07):
GROUNDCOVER i would.
Speaker 2 (42:08):
Agree, Yeah so it's interesting that so many of these
were are plants that are genuinely invasive and kind of
like the same experience THAT i had describing, barbary you
know way out At Moskiden State. Park just plants to
kind of ruin our experience of. Nature so whether we're
a gardener or a nature, lover when a plant disrupts that,
(42:30):
experience you can't can't blame you for adding it to
your hate.
Speaker 1 (42:34):
List, yeah although with steria on this list, too and
of course bamboo with steria another one like trumpet, vine
you got to show it whose boss do a little
bit of riot. Printing and Then, stacy your favorite Dwarf
alberta spruces are on here.
Speaker 2 (42:47):
Too two thumbs. Down not going to get my hate,
list but certainly not ever going to be. Planted so
with that, note we hope you enjoyed our. Conversation we
hope we didn't offend, you but if we, did let
us know and tell us what plant we named that you,
hate because turnabout is fair. Play so thank you so, Much,
(43:07):
rick thank You, adriana and thanks so much to all
of you for listening and putting up with our rants at.
Raves we hope you have a wonderful week. Ahead
Coming to you from Studio A here at Proven Winters
Color Choice Shrubs. It's time for the Gardening Simplified Show
with Stacey Hervella me, Rick weisst and our engineer and
producer Adrianna Robinson. Well, Stacey, plants are like food, and well,
some food you like, some foods you don't. Same thing
(00:23):
with plants, as a matter of fact, some plants you
don't like. Some you even hate. Now I think about
that food analogy. As a kid. Once I got sick
on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and to this day,
the thought of it turns my stomach.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
You know what. I don't like peanut butter and jelly either. Hey, right,
I know it's a very weird thing not to like,
but I didn't get sick on it. But I've never
really cared for.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
It, outstanding. So today we talk about plants we hate,
and I guess I got to say this first before
we start. I've got to read a note from our
prestigious lawn firm of Trillium, Sage, gall and Ivy. The
opinions expressed on this show are solely those of Rick
and Stacey do not reflect the views of any employer, organization,
(01:06):
or sponsor. The product is provided as is and without
warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including, but
not limited to, our joint opinions.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Oh yes, well, we have opinions and you will be
hearing them today. And our listeners have opinions too, and
they shared them last week on last week's episode on YouTube,
so we've got those as well.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
This is going to be fun. Now. Next year, twenty
twenty six, Stacy, I will have been in the garden
center industry for fifty years.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
And I have to give a disclaimer here up front,
and that is a number of the plants that I
hate in the landscape are primarily due to the fact
that if you unload semi loads of these things over
fifty years, you're going to get sick of them too.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
I'm yes, So it's plants you're sick of, not necessarily
that you don't like. Well, it's both, okay, it's both, gotcha.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
It's both. So we'll dive into that.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
But I mean, what's for number one? You got a
number one that you can just like come right off
of that.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Yeah, I can tell you again, being in the garden
center industry, plastic flowers, silk flowers. I'm so sick of
having glitter on my nose and up my nose.
Speaker 3 (02:16):
That's number one.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
It's not really a plant, but they look like plant.
The other day, I'm driving through a small town and
I see in the distance lavender in full bloom. Oh
here in early March in Michigan. I'm like, there's no way,
so I go up there, and of course they're plastic flowers,
so kind of makes the hair stand up on the
back of my neck. But you know, sometimes it's situational.
(02:39):
For example, plants that drive me crazy are people who
will plant a hedge like privet, and then every year
they just take a little off the top, so they've
got naked branches up to the top where it's full
and lush, it just looks awful. Or mailbox plantings where
they've gone bad. In other words, as opposed to dressing
up the male or trying to disguise the mailbox, they're
(03:03):
actually calling attention to it now, right, yeah.
Speaker 2 (03:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
And then the other thing that drives me nuts is
overgrown lilacs. Vulgaris lilacs. I love lilacs, but overgrown lilacs
take a pruning shares to them.
Speaker 3 (03:17):
So sometimes it's the situation.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Oh interesting, I love a good overgrown lilac. I love
that like you know, like oh I just happened into
an enchanted place kind of vibe, like I love that.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
It's good.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
Let me see, this is the whole thing. We're going
to say, plants that our listeners might actually like, and
that is perfectly okay, because these are just our opinions
and we hold them strongly. And for every plant we
say that someone likes, they may hate a plant that
you and I like, correct, and there's enough to go
around for everybody.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
So just send your notes, complaints, cards, letters to Gardening
simplified on air dot Com Today's Limerick. They may promote
you as being hardy, but I'm a Hordic cultural smarty,
not part of my landscape diagram. I do not like
green eggs and ham. You're not welcome to my garden party.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
I don't know. I just kind of threw that one together.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
So who's not welcome? Obviously plastic flowers, but that's, you know,
kind of a non issue. So what one plant are you?
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Just? Like?
Speaker 2 (04:18):
Not a snowballs? Chance is this thing going to enter
into my garden?
Speaker 3 (04:23):
I'll give you a few of them, okay.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
Fragrance embeds in your memory. Okay, Yes, So calorie pears
or ornamental pears. They smell fishy, they smell like mothballs.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
They smell horrible.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
Yeah, they smell horrible.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
Don't like them, super invasive.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
Also marrigold flowers. Of course, I handled thousands and thousands
and thousands of flats of marigolds.
Speaker 3 (04:47):
I would go home.
Speaker 1 (04:47):
My clothes smell like marigolds. That's why they drive me crazy.
They have this acrid, unpleasant taste and smell. They're they
just I don't like them, okay. And then stargazer lilies,
the smell of them, the aroma. I can give you
a description of what they smell like, but I don't
(05:09):
want to come across as appearing.
Speaker 3 (05:12):
Being gross, So I'm just that.
Speaker 2 (05:16):
Okay, okay.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
And of course trees are a long term investment. I've
planted trees and personal landscapes before that I loved, and
neighbors and others hated. Like a camperdown elm or I
love cleeping beach. Love that plant. It's like a Doctor
Seuss plant. Love it.
Speaker 3 (05:36):
But no.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
And then of course blue is a highly desired color
in the landscape, and so from the mid nineteen hundreds
through nineteen eighty one of the most over planted plants
was Colorado.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
Bluesofful there and it's native to the southern Rocky Mountain area,
so you put it in an area that it doesn't like.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
Over time, you're gonna start dealing with canker and needle
cast and then you start pruning out some of the
affected branches. And you know, of course, your house doesn't grow,
but that cute little Colorado spruce planted forty years ago
does and it overpowers the house.
Speaker 3 (06:17):
So how am I doing here?
Speaker 2 (06:18):
You're good? I do want to say my most number
one hated plants, okay, and why there's two reasons why. Okay,
my number one most hated plant in the world. Well
maybe not in the world, but you know that we
grow in our gardens is egga podium po groarica Bishop's weed.
Speaker 3 (06:36):
Oh oh yeah, it's on the list.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
And I really hate this plant for two main reasons.
Number one, it's just ugly, not an attractive plant. Now,
I will say that the flowers are kind of pretty.
And when I moved into my house and there was
some planted it flowered, and I actually quite enjoyed using
them in arrangements. Still not a reason to grow it,
but it's an ugly planet. It's a groundcover. But I
also have a personal grudge against this plant. Oh really,
(07:03):
because it may not surprise you to find out that
my plant id skills are typically pretty great. And when
I was in a horticulture school, we had two major exams,
a horticultural technique exam and a plant id exam. Yeah,
and Agapodium pol roarica is the one single plant that
I got wrong on my plant id exam.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
Didn't get a hundred on that.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
So between those two things, it is my like, you know,
there's certainly other plants that I strongly dislike and even hate,
but you know, with that extra like grudge factor in
there for the Agapodium that is. And you know that
was actually one of the plants that came up on
our YouTube comments.
Speaker 1 (07:44):
Yes, yeah, and they marketed it as Snow on the Mountain.
Speaker 3 (07:49):
Yeah, gave it.
Speaker 1 (07:50):
A nice name because it's variegated. See I feel that
way about euphour.
Speaker 3 (07:54):
Be a spurge.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
Oh, I hate that too.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
You Yeah, And there's a reason the deer don't eat.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
It ch toxic.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
Yeah, yeah, it's just blue boy, oh boy, marigolds. You
know what really gets me ivy geraniums. I don't why stringy.
They break off thousands and thousands of hanging baskets that
I've hung up and taken down.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
And oh well, I'll tell you this. Don't go to
any pubs in Ireland in the summer because they're all
decorated with beautiful window boxes full of ivy geraniums.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
Well, I know I'm gonna get in trouble, I know that,
but I gotta be honest.
Speaker 3 (08:31):
You know.
Speaker 1 (08:31):
The same applies to Calibricoa. I just think there's just
too many.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
You know, I'll walk into a greenhouse in spring.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
Now. Proven Winners does a great job with their calibri coas,
but it can be kind of unruly. It's like a
bad hair day. I love many Vista supertunias and I'll
take that over a calibricoa any day. And the other
thing that drives me crazy about it is anytime I
see a bunch of them in a greenhouse or hanging up,
(08:59):
I've got an earworm for the rest.
Speaker 3 (09:01):
Of the day in my head.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Dick van Dijke and Julie Andrews super califragilistic expiala do.
It just sticks in my head because I sing that
song every time I see Calibri Coa's and so I
just forgive me send your notes, cards, letters. But Stacy,
I don't like Calibri CoA baskets. Well, that is perfectly fair, okay,
(09:24):
Vinca Minor, well, Vinca Major even worse.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
Yeah, much worse. I just like them both.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
Yeah, because I came from the generation where you go
into the garden center, every container was geranium, spikes, Vinca Major,
and Dusty Miller.
Speaker 2 (09:43):
Yep, and I remember those days.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
I can't stand all four of them.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
I grew up with that combination in my backyards. I am.
I am also not a fan. I have never planted
a deranium like of my own accord. Okay, ever, so
I mean, I don't you know there that's like for me,
It's like there's enough out there, like I don't need
to bring it into my life. The stuff that I
see out in the world is ample for me.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
Well yeah, and again honesty, okay. The reason I can't
handle is because, again in the seventies and eighties, I
handled hundreds of thousands of them, and I filled hundreds
of thousands of pots with geranium spikes and vinca vines
that went directly to the cemetery. And so those flowers
(10:30):
make me think of the cemetery.
Speaker 2 (10:32):
So can't help it, all right, you haven't listened any
perennials yet.
Speaker 1 (10:37):
Oh we will in the speed Yes, I did you
four be a spurs?
Speaker 2 (10:40):
Oh? Yes, yeah, that is a crummy one with you.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
Well, I'll tell you what we're going to do, speed
round implants on trial.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
Yes we are.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
There should be an adventure. Stay tuned to the Gardening
Simplified Show.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
Beautify your home and community with proven Winner's Color Choice
Shrubs with over three hundred and twenty five unique varieties
to choose from. There's a flowering shrub or evergreen for
every taste and every space. Just look for the distinctive
white container your local garden center or learn more at
proven Winner's Color Choice dot com. Greetings gardening friends, and
(11:20):
welcome to the Gardening Simplified Show, where we are friendly,
but we are talking about plants that we hate and
also plants that you hate, which you shared with us
on YouTube. And you know again if you're just tuning
in I do want to clarify that these are just
our opinions, and you know, the more you get into gardening,
the more you're going to kind of develop these tastes.
(11:40):
Plants that you absolutely love, plants that you hate. Sometimes
it is based firmly in reality, it makes perfect sense,
and sometimes it doesn't make any sense at all, and
you just have like a visceral reaction like I do
with daylilies.
Speaker 1 (11:51):
And the other factor here is if somebody in a
neighborhood plants it, then everybody copies and pretty soon that
plant is throughout the neighbor right.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
So it's interesting to me because we did last week
ask our YouTube listeners to comment on YouTube with the
plants that they hate, and we can share that list later.
But one thing that stuck out to me across this
entire list the number one plants that people hate aren't
really like so much like me and daylilies, where I'm
just like, I don't like the way that plant looks
or feels. The majority of plants that people hate are
(12:22):
actually invasive plants. The list is almost entirely invasive or
difficult to manage plants. And I'm not really clear whether
that is because those plants are maintenance issues for the
listeners who share that, and that is why they hate them,
or if they hate the fact that they are so
invasive and aggressive, whether or not they are dealing with,
(12:45):
you know, with them in their yard. And you know,
for plants on trial today, we are going to do
a speed around, which is where we just list a
bunch of different categories and reconi each quickly, hopefully, but sometimes,
you know, we got to expound on it. Our least
favorite or We're gonna give some examples of our least
favorite plants and then tell you why. And I'm gonna
(13:05):
start with shrubs, and I'm going to start with my
most hated shrub and a little explanation why. I won't
go this far into all of them. But I do
feel like I need to do this for shrubs because
I work for proven Winter's collect Choice Shrubs, and we
do sell the shrub that I hate the most, and
it is barbary.
Speaker 3 (13:21):
I knew it.
Speaker 2 (13:21):
I know, I know there's no surprises here in the studio.
I can tell you Rick and Adriana knew this well
about me. And you know the reason barbary is invasive,
not everywhere you know, you go out west and people
are growing barbary and it looks perfectly lovely. But here
in the Midwest and the East coast, barbary is actually
quite invasive. And I never really cared for barbary. I
was just kind of like meh on it, you know,
(13:42):
certainly going back to my landscaping days, like you and
your truck unloading days. I didn't like planting it because
it's prickly and you're getting all scratched up. And but
you know, mostly I feel like barbary just does not
do enough in the landscape to be to merit all
of the problems that it's causing. And the first time
(14:02):
that I was hiking at Uskegon State Park and I
was way way way back, you know, like not on
the trails, Like we were back there and it was
fall and I see this bright red thing in the
landscape and I said, oh, my gosh, what is that,
you know, So we walk up to it and it's
a barbary. And so here I am trying to get
some peace and relaxation, enjoying the scenery, and there's a
(14:24):
barbary intruding on this beautiful natural site. And that was
like really you know, it really got me that affected you,
and I just again don't think that barbary has enough
aesthetic value for me to you know, merit all these
problems that it's causing. And other people on YouTube also said.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
Barbary, well, send your notes, cardage letters to Gardening Simplified
on air dot com.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
So despite my dear issues in the fact that barbary
is very dear resistant, you will never ever, ever, ever
ever catch a barbary in my garden. So you rick
trub that you hate because of.
Speaker 1 (14:59):
All the tr unloaded and Dora junipers and taxis, it's
a tie.
Speaker 2 (15:05):
Yeah. Well, Texas is also kind of a me a plant.
You know. When we talk about Texas a few weeks ago,
we talked about the ones in the UK and those
are truly spectacular. But here in the US, Texas is
nothing to write home about. As they say, tree you hate.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
The mulberry tree was brought into the United States for
the silkworms, you know, to feed the silkworms in the
silk industry, and it of course got out and that
tree drives me nuts. Mulberry trees and calorie pears.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
Yes, so Breadford pair definitely on my list and You know,
people love Breadford pear because it has white flowers in
spring and that super tidy you know shape that they
love and fall color. But bread for pear, you know,
take a drive through the south in the early spring
and see how it has spread, you know, into the woods,
and it is really just so so heartbreaking. But I
(15:57):
also have my most hated tree is a tie with
no maple.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
Oh yeah, I can see that.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
You know, And I will give I hate, especially Crimson
King Norway maple. But I will give Crimson King a
seasonal pass for when it flowers because it is kind
of cool how the yellow flowers and the purple emerging
leaves look. But that is still not worth planting Norway
maple because they just don't do enough. Yeah, great bulb
(16:23):
that you hate.
Speaker 1 (16:25):
Gonna get in trouble here. Cannot stand hyacinths. Ooh reason
I can't stand hyacinths. I think the bloom lasts such
a short time. I don't like the aroma of hyacinths.
And again, working in the garden center industry, if you
handle the bulbs, many people are allergic to them. They
will make you itch, they will make you go crazy.
(16:46):
You're itching yourself. I had one time in the winter time,
I'm dealing with hyacinths. We force them. I had to
take my shirt off, go outside and dive into a
snowbank cave. I was itching so bad. Can't stand hyacinth.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
Yes, that happened to me too when I will not
quite like that. But when I was working at Martha
Stewart Living my very first photoshoot, I was so excited.
I was new on the job and it was an
Easter photo shoot and we were doing all this crazy
stuff with hyacinth flowers and I did not know about
the itching ye, and I was absolutely miserable for the
entire day because it's just like the sap and everything
(17:18):
gets everywhere, and it's really really terrible poison. Ivy did
come up on a number of YouTube comments, but this
is almost that bad. It just doesn't give you a
rash for me. Star of Bethel, Hamwich, we talked about
last week YEP, because a listener had it as a weed.
Very difficult to manage. You know. Also, like our listeners,
most of my most hated plants are also invasives perennial
(17:41):
that you hate.
Speaker 1 (17:42):
Ladies mantle, the al camilla moolus.
Speaker 2 (17:45):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (17:46):
Really yeah, because it looks like a weed to me.
And again, in the garden center industry, we'd set it
out in April on the benches, it'd still be there
in October.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
I feel like that's such like a gardener plant, like
you know, it's like English gardens.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
I vibes, I'm going to get.
Speaker 2 (18:08):
I'm just I'm just a little surprised. That's all. Of course,
mine is daily. As we have already discussed, not a
lot of people when our YouTube comments mentioned lilies, and
I think they they were mostly implying that they hate
the ditch lilies or you know, the ones that grow
wild in all of the ditches. And it's true that
orange is terrible, and I love orange, but the orange
(18:30):
of that plant is just ghastly. But I even hate
the ornamental daylilies, as I discussed. Their thick petals are
gross and absorbent and weird and look like diapers, and
I do not like to look at them or certainly
touch them. Groundcover, you hate ground cover?
Speaker 1 (18:45):
Of course, I could say Bishop Scout weed, but I'm
gonna say a juga. Oh, a juga is not a
Caribbean island that you go to in winter to vacation. Rather,
it's a it's a non native ground cut that tends
to get thrips and mites and just doesn't perform. And again,
(19:06):
I handled hundreds of thousands of pots of a juga.
It's also known as bugle wheat.
Speaker 2 (19:11):
Yes, you know, I've rarely seen is as much as
a juga is sold as a groundcover, I have rarely
seen like a really good, solid planting of a juga
as a groundcover.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
Well, people will argue chocolate chip, you know, some of
the newer varieties in There are some good varieties out there,
But I can do without a juga.
Speaker 2 (19:27):
Okay. Mine is going to be heetunia, Yeah, chameleon plant.
We've talked about it many times on the show because
people will write us in desperation, what do I do
about this horrible, smelly, weird looking plant, because yeah, not
only does it have a terrible weird fragrance, the foliage
does you know that variegation I really don't like. So
(19:47):
it's like yellow and green and red. And you know
the other thing about houtunia is any little piece of
this plant that is falls on the soil or remains
and the soil will grow and it is just very
difficult to manage and eradicate. And again it's just it's
too ugly to be that aggressive. I guess it's a problem. Okay,
(20:10):
now you've given us a lot of annuals that you hate,
But what's going to be your your go to here
in spect.
Speaker 1 (20:16):
I'm just gonna leave it with ivy geraniums and say
no more because I'm in deep right now.
Speaker 2 (20:20):
Okay, So mine is Salvius Blendins. Really yes, So now
there's a lot of wonderful salva's out there that I
do enjoy. But if you're not familiar with Sealvius Blendon's,
and I don't really know that it has like another
common name that I'm not thinking of. But this is
like the old fashioned single stem salvia usually red, sometimes purple,
(20:41):
sometimes white, that comes up and has the bracks and
then the little flowers that come out of it, and
it's just like yeah, like that, Yeah, so I think
that's yeah. So I really don't like that. Although Prooven
Winners did come out with some new cultivars that I
did trial last year and I didn't hate, but they're
a far cry from the ones that I'm talking about. Also,
not really fan of Porta Laca.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
M interesting. I would disagree with you there.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
I love it, oh so interesting, even like the ones
with the thin leaves are just the one. The newer
ones with the new.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
Ones, like the Mohave series, they're incredible.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
You know. I guess maybe when I'm retired, I will
also like Portulacca more. But for working people, it's not
a good plan because the flowers close up when you
get home.
Speaker 1 (21:23):
I feel a little old now. Advan is cracking up
over there.
Speaker 2 (21:28):
All right, listen, I have a few more speed round questions.
We'll have to save those.
Speaker 1 (21:33):
Yeah, we need to do those, because I'm looking at this.
Speaker 3 (21:35):
This is gonna be good.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
Okay, So we will come back to that in segod form.
But we're going to take a break now and when
we come back to answer your garden questions. So stay tuned.
At proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs, we know that a
better landscape starts with a better shrub. Our team of
experts tests and evaluates all of our flowering shrubs and
(21:59):
evergreen for eight to ten years to ensure they outperform
what's already on the market for easycare, reliable, beautiful shrubs
to accentuate your home and express your personal style. Look
for Proven Winner's shrubs in the distinctive white container at
your local garden center, or learn more at Proven Winner's
Color Choice dot com. Greetings gardening friends, and welcome back
(22:21):
to the Gardening Simplified Show, where we are talking about
plants we hate. But we're taking a little break from
that conversation to answer your gardening questions. And you know,
I picked these questions today because they were timely, but
I also realize just now that all of them do
actually include plants that I actually like, Yeah, not about
plants that I hate. So if you have a question,
(22:42):
whether even if it is rather about a plant that
Rick and I hate, we will still be happy to
help you. You can reach us at Gardening Simplified on
air dot com, or of course leave a comment on YouTube,
because we do look at all of those and appreciate
your engagement. So Rick, what we got in the mail
bag today?
Speaker 1 (22:58):
Okay, Sue is writing to us. Hello, I love your show.
I'm in Zone five B, Northwest suburb of Chicago. I
ordered an El Nino che tulpa. Right is the plannxiation
for us? If you're keeping score at home, I'm taking
a chance because the plant is listed as zones six
through nine. But I really love the look while watching
(23:19):
others grow it in warmer zones. I'm going to plant
it in a protected sunny area of my property, plan
on mulching around it in late fall. But is there
something else I could do to increase my chances of survival?
I would also love to get a cryptomeria, which is
zone six'. Nine SHOULD i quit trying to push the
zones because it could get?
Speaker 3 (23:40):
Expensive? Oh, No, sue push the zoncial.
Speaker 2 (23:44):
Zones push the. Zones, yes it can get. Expensive and
that's something you. Know it's to me when when a
gardener is pushing the, zones it just becomes kind of
a ven diagram of like you know where the push
and pull, Is like how much are you willing to
invest in time and money versus you, know your expected
benefit of that? Plant BUT i wanted to answer who's question,
(24:07):
now especially because the number one piece of ADVICE i
can give to anyone who wants to push the hardiness
zone of a plant in their yard is to plant
it as early as possible in. Spring, now don't you?
Know plant it now and we're still going to get
lots of cold weather and the soil is not really
ready for planting. Anyway but as soon as planting opens
up for your, area sure that is when you want
(24:28):
to plant. That these are not plants that you want
to put in in. FALL i, mean of, course, again
as we've often, said if you get a good, deal
what the. Heck but you, know if you're paying full
price and you really want to make sure the plant
has the best possible opportunity to get established and withstand
the challenges of, winter early spring planting is so key
because that will give it the longest possible time to
(24:49):
get roots established and be able to withstand you, know those.
Conditions so that's especially IMPORTANT i think with evergreens like the.
CRYPTOMERIA i don't THINK i think That cryptomeria is believed
to be less hardy than it actually. Is we have
quite a few in our trial gardens here In West.
Michigan now we ARE Usda zone SIX b because we
(25:11):
have the benefit of the lake kind of making things
a little bit more mild in the winter and a
little bit nicer in the summer as. Well but we
get no winter damage at all on, cryptomeria and we've
had no real winter damage on The chittelpa either on Al. Nino,
now this is kind of a difficult plant because it's
the only one, around so it's not like we can
really take you, know what people are saying about this
(25:34):
species or this genus and, say, okay well you know
this one is like, this so we are kind of
blazing new. Ground BUT i would say so if as
long as you're planting it in a sunny, spot well,
drained which is also often very crucial for these plants
when we're trying to push the hardiness, OWN i would
say you have a very high likelihood of success With El.
Nino the only thing is that you want to be aware.
(25:56):
Of it may die back to the, ground especially if
you have a very harsh. Winter don't consider it. Dead
don't just write it. Off give it some time to,
emerge because it can emerge from its roots much like
a butterfly bush or. Carryopteris so don't write it, off
be patient with. It and that's you, know very often
the case with these. Things so it can be. Done
(26:19):
just make sure that you're doing your work in early,
spring giving it the longest possible time to. Establish and of,
course as always welch is a very good friend for
getting these plants through.
Speaker 1 (26:28):
Winter it, is AND i have nothing to, Add stacy
EXCEPT i did plant In El nino in my yard In.
Speaker 3 (26:35):
October, okay so we'll see.
Speaker 1 (26:36):
What, happens because your advice is really.
Speaker 2 (26:38):
Good, WELL i actually overwintered some Al nino's in containers
in my, yard which of course you should never. Do
but AS i THINK i was talking about a few weeks,
ago you, know you get free plants in this, job
and you don't always get them in and THEY i.
Have obviously they haven't leaked out, yet but they seem
perfectly fine and completely unfazed by our. Winters.
Speaker 1 (26:55):
Awesome Cheryl innn, WRITES i have several new spilled wine
Wou jela in my. Yard this is a plant that
you featured last week in our groundcover. Show one of
them seems to be struggling from the. Beginning instead of purplish,
leaves they seem to have been more on the brown
side and very little.
Speaker 3 (27:14):
GROWTH i couldn't.
Speaker 1 (27:14):
Find a photo when it had, leaves But i'm sending
a current. One not sure if it will be helpful at.
All can it be some sort of? SCALE i try
to stay organic as much as.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
Possible, okay so we will Have cherylyn's photo of course
on the YouTube version and in the show. Notes And,
cherylyn know what you're actually seeing is it's a lentis.
Sills and it's a fun. Word, yeah, yeah. Yeah so
all plants have lentis, sills but not all lentisils are very.
Visible and so what a lentisill is is just kind
(27:47):
of a raised bump on the stems of a. Plant
and when and so some plants will have a lot
of lentisils and make you, go oh, gosh there's something
wrong with. That and some we'll just have one here or,
there and why do you is one of those with
a lot of. Lentisills and because they are little raised
bumps on the, stems people tend to think it's some
sort of you, know disease or insect. Infestation so, No,
(28:10):
cherylyn don't. Worry you don't have to spray. Anything you
do not have. Scale you have your normal lentisils on the.
Plant if it has more lentiscills than its. Neighbors sometimes
that happens too due to cultural, conditions the fact that
it hasn't grown and the foliage seems kind of brown
suggests to me that it probably needs a little more.
Water it's possible that your particular where this particular plant,
(28:32):
is there is perhaps some tree roots in the area
that are robbing water away from, it even if the
neighboring plants that you also planted are totally. Fine SO
i would keep an eye on. It and you, know
don't forget that when a plant maybe isn't getting as much,
water you can. Check you can take a shovel and
just dig around a little bit and see what's going
on under the. Surface BUT i have had, it you
know where a tree root will take more water away from,
(28:55):
something even though it's neighbors are totally. Fine so between
the brown foliage and the little, growth that definitely suggests
to me a little more. Water don't worry about the
lentisills and hopefully it should start to turn around this
season and.
Speaker 1 (29:07):
We all learned something. New lentisylls is not a.
Speaker 2 (29:10):
Soup next.
Speaker 3 (29:11):
Two next, Question, terry is a great.
Speaker 1 (29:13):
QUESTION i would like to know your recommendation for growing
a basil that is both prolific and does not go
to seed. Quickly that's a Great.
Speaker 2 (29:21):
Isn't that such a good, question because everybody loves. Basil,
okay not everybody loves, basil but there are people out
there who hate. BASIL i love basil as. Well and,
yeah so when, basil if you haven't grown it, before
when basil goes to, seed its foliage tends to become quite,
strong which may or may not be such a bad,
thing but certainly not necessarily suitable to a delicate application
(29:43):
like a cuprazy. Salad BUT i have great news for, You.
Terry there is a basil that never, flowers and it
Is pesto perpetuo. Basil, now there was a long time
WHERE i could find this plant. Easily over the last
couple of, YEARS i have unfortunately had trouble finding. It
but it's very easy to spot in the garden center
if they carry. It because it is also a variegated,
(30:05):
basil so it's kind of like a mint green and white.
Variegation it naturally grows into a dense columnar. FORM i
have grown this many. Years it never ever, flowers and
in years Where i've had a lot of different types of,
basil this is the one THAT i can continue to
harvest on clear up until. Frost i've even brought it
in it usually, defoliates but if you have bright sun
(30:27):
and good air, circulation you might be able to get it.
Through i've also found that the proven winners a masal
basil does pretty. Well, yeah so that one's. Great that
one has been slow to bolt or flower for. Me
some people will say that the foliage is thicker and
maybe a little bit less delicate than certain other culinary basil.
Varieties BUT i would also, say so those are two
(30:48):
varieties that you can check out if you can find.
Them BUT i would also say this is somewhat of
a cultural issue as. Well, now there is a point,
where of, course you cannot possibly keep your basil from.
Flowering usually that comes somewhere around Early august and things
just like signs OUT i got a. Flower but there's
a couple of things you can. Do first of, all
instead of just harvesting what you need sort of like,
(31:10):
midsummer maybe around like fourth Of july or a little bit,
after just cut the whole thing back to get that
fresh new growth out of, it and then that will
really delay its. Flowering and the other thing that you
can do or in combination with, that is succession. Sewing
so don't just plant one crop of basil at the
beginning of the season and call it. Done save some
(31:32):
seed or take cuttings of your plants and continue to
plant out fresh ones through the. Season and by staggering
those start, times you'll have a much longer harvest.
Speaker 1 (31:42):
Window, yeah that's, great great. Advice and, again the new
cultivars like a masal basil is just fantastic in that
they're not going to easily, flower similar to how they've
developed colius in the landscape a foliage plant and keep
it from. Bolting we used to always have to cut
that back too and pinch. It.
Speaker 2 (32:03):
YEAH i was actually kind of surprised you didn't have
colius as one of your least. Favorites, NO i Like,
NO i used to Like Wizard, Mix.
Speaker 3 (32:10):
Oh Wizard.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
Mix all, right on that.
Speaker 1 (32:14):
These are old fashioned varieties from the seventies and, eighties
like Red Hot sally Or boyleboy marigolds and Boy O.
Speaker 3 (32:21):
Boy we're going to talk about this further in the next. Segment,
yeah so stay.
Speaker 2 (32:25):
Tuned, please thanks for listening to The Gardening Simplified, podcast
brought to you by Proven Winners Color Choice, shrubs our
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Speaker 1 (32:44):
Com welcome back to The Gardening Simplified. Show today for branching,
news we'll continue the speed round Because, STACY i gotta
be honest with. YOU i find this fun and it's
kind of cleansing for.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
Me, yes you, have you, KNOW i feel like you
really let your true sell show through one the fakio.
Today it's been it's been, lovely it's been. Delightful vegetable
that you hate, growing not eating, necessarily because those could
be two totally different.
Speaker 1 (33:08):
Things it's a kind of vegetable, asparagus fern or spring a.
Speaker 3 (33:13):
Eye cannot stand that.
Speaker 1 (33:15):
Stuff my arms just itch like crazy again handled thousands
of those. Things spring a.
Speaker 2 (33:20):
EYE i also hate.
Speaker 3 (33:21):
Those why do people grow?
Speaker 1 (33:23):
SPRING i don't know they.
Speaker 2 (33:24):
And yeah they just again they're Not they're not attractive
enough to be worth their. Trouble BUT i do love
actual asparagus, plants even THOUGH i Hate, OH i like the.
Speaker 3 (33:32):
Asparagus, OH i like eating. ASPARAGUS i love the.
Speaker 2 (33:35):
PLANT i don't like the. Vegetable but the vegetable THAT
i hate growing in a. Way this was a tough
one for, me But i'm gonna put this one out
there tomatillo because tomatillos are very easy to, grow you.
Know and WHAT i have found is you plant, them
they start to self. Sew and for whatever REASON i
do not. Know And adrian is nodding because this has
(33:57):
happened to her as, well for whatever REASON i don't don't.
Know those subsequent generations the fruit never. Matures so you're
sitting there, going, hey this is. COOL i got free
tomatillos coming up from last. Year you wait all, Season
august comes, around you, like go out there and you
feel those, puffy little you, know. Puffs there's nothing in.
There you're just, like what the heck just. Happened i've
(34:19):
devoted space to this free tomatillo plant all season and
it's not doing anything for. Me So i've had too
much tomatio. Frustration so that's why it's going on as
my vegetable THAT i hate growing but not. Eating that's.
Great what weed do you hate the?
Speaker 1 (34:36):
Most it's a tie between broad, leaf, helleborine the weedy orchid.
Speaker 2 (34:41):
Ye and nuts. Edge, ooh nuts edge drives me. Crazy
you know, What i'm gonna go a Little pollyanna on
nutsedge and say that it's at least fun to.
Speaker 1 (34:51):
Pull it is fun to, pull, agreed agreed.
Speaker 2 (34:55):
Therapeutic, yeah it's got like a, nice like. Satisfying now
the problem, is of, course when you have a huge
patch of it and then you're, Like i'm gonna be
here all. Day but, overall the weed THAT i hate
the most is just any grass, weed like any grass
that's like from your lawn and coming into your. Beds,
okay because you, know, really get back where you. Belong
don't come in. Here this is for these plants that's
(35:17):
for you stay, there especially runner. Grasses AND i don't
know my grass is well enough to say which particular
Culprit i'm thinking. OF i can picture, it because it's
terrible one in my.
Speaker 1 (35:25):
GARDEN i think a lot of people would agree With bermuda,
grass which has the above ground runners we Call stolen's,
right and then of course quack, grass which has the.
Speaker 3 (35:35):
Underground rise a quack.
Speaker 1 (35:37):
Grass it's probably quack. Grass and by the, way programming,
note for, me a weed that really doesn't bother me
is poison.
Speaker 3 (35:45):
Ivy oh, Really AND i think the fall color is.
Speaker 2 (35:47):
Spectacular it is quite a lovely fall, color BUT i
wouldn't wish it on. ANYBODY i did almost put vine
as a, category and partly because some of our listeners
did Say virginia creeper was a plant particularly, hate and
trumpet vine also came. Up which, trumpetvine if you've had
a good experience with, it you're probably, like how could
someone say? That but if you've had a bad, experience you're,
(36:09):
like mm, Hmm, YEAH i get, it because.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
You can like trumpet. Vine you just have to get
rough with. It you have to show it it's who's.
Boss you got to be willing to root print. It
if you don't do, that, yeah it can kind of
take over a.
Speaker 2 (36:20):
House and, all speaking of, houses what is a tropical
or houseplant that you? Hate?
Speaker 1 (36:25):
Oh for YEARS i was a tropical houseplant buyer for
in the garden center, Industry so this one's easy for.
Me cannot stand. Deefenbakia there's a reason they call it dumb.
Speaker 2 (36:37):
Cane, yes because if you bite, it it will make
your tongue. Swell and you can't make your tongue.
Speaker 1 (36:43):
Swell it doesn't ship, well it doesn't move.
Speaker 3 (36:47):
Well you put it near a.
Speaker 1 (36:48):
Window you even say cold weather near, it it will.
WILT i don't like.
Speaker 2 (36:54):
Deefenbakia just you, know WHEN i was young and just
getting into, PLANTS i pruned a different bakia to take
cuttings and drop of sap splashed into my eye AND
i had to go and have it irrigated in the
in the. Er that was, fine but you, know so fun. Anyway, yeah, Uh,
RICK i know you like this, plant BUT i am
(37:15):
not a fan of. CROTON i love, crotons and you,
KNOW i feel like WHEN i WHEN i was writing this,
Down i'm thinking it goes back to my same distaste
of whutunia because there is kind of some similarity in that,
variegation like that red and yellow and dark.
Speaker 3 (37:31):
Green it's a mish.
Speaker 2 (37:32):
MASH i don't know it's it's just maybe it's like
Too christmasy or something like. THAT i just not a.
Speaker 1 (37:38):
Fan but there's many different types of, croton so, yeah
there Are i'm gonna work.
Speaker 2 (37:43):
On all, right all, RIGHT i, Mean I'm i'll keep
an open. Mind i'll keep an open mind about almost
any of. This but barbary and agapodium mark not In
Bradford paranora, maple no open mindedness happened in. There, okay,
last but not, least a garden tool that you.
Speaker 1 (37:57):
Hate, NOW i know you expect me to say, ho
BECAUSE i do not like. Hoses, HOWEVER i am going
to say riding. Lawnmowers they drive me. CRAZY i watch
people on those things compacting their. Turf, NOW i, know
in some situations you have to have a riding, lawnmower
but in some cases you see people out there spinning
around the grass does not need to be cut because
(38:20):
we need to raise the blade on the moor to get,
good healthy, turf and they're out there scalping it with
a riding, lawnmower kicking up.
Speaker 3 (38:28):
All kinds of dust and.
Speaker 1 (38:29):
Debris i've got a neighbor that loves his riding. Lawnmower
he rides that thing twice a, day whether the lawn
needs it or.
Speaker 3 (38:37):
Not and of course the lawn doesn't need.
Speaker 1 (38:39):
It And i'm trying to sit there peacefully at my
house and boom that.
Speaker 3 (38:44):
Lawnmower, oh it drives me. Nuts So i'm going to
say riding. Lawnmower.
Speaker 2 (38:48):
Wow do people who love riding their riding lawnmowers know
that you usually can ride them without.
Speaker 1 (38:55):
Mowing you would think because when they turn.
Speaker 2 (38:59):
IT i get that it's fun for people like. That
could see a lot of you, know grown ups being,
like this is my childhood fantasy come true And i'm
just going to like ride around on my you know.
Toy but that doesn't mean that you have to mow
like you can just be out there with your headphones
and your high school beverage and enjoying your investment in your.
Writing well that's the.
Speaker 1 (39:19):
THING i have friends, who, yes have the cup, holder
and they use that as the occasion to enjoy a nice.
Beverage and, yeah but for me riding.
Speaker 2 (39:29):
All, Right, WELL i am going to say hoses because
as important as they, are they're just. Frustrating AND i
don't think there's a gardener alive who has just not
had at least one negative experience with a hose where
he just wanted to rip it out and throw it.
Right oh, yeah we've all been.
Speaker 1 (39:47):
There, YEAH i use hoses in my comedy.
Speaker 3 (39:49):
Routine you're preaching to the.
Speaker 2 (39:50):
Choir so some of the listener least favorite hated plants
that we did not, Discuss it didn't come up for.
Us two that really stuck out to me very interestingly
are very regional, invasives because WHEN i read, THESE i was, like, oh,
huh so one was creeping bellflower companila or, Punkiloides and,
(40:13):
yeah that is super invasive in the Upper midwest Like,
Minneapolis minnesota And. Wisconsin what a garbage looking. Plant it's just.
Horrible so sorry for anyone who's contending with.
Speaker 3 (40:25):
That do you feel?
Speaker 2 (40:27):
WELL i was just, like, Ugh and THEN i do
feel Like i've seen this and tried to pull up,
before and it's just a horrible plant to try to.
Pull like you, know a plant that's easy to pull
can kind, of you, know redeem itself a little bit
by by being easy to. Pull the other One dier's woad.
Yea AND i saw this and as someone who enjoys
fiber arts and growing, HERBS i, thought, hm what's that all?
(40:48):
About and this is a, horrible horrible invasive out. WEST
I satus, tinctoria which was actually a very important plant
in dying but is now just a, tremendous tremendously noxious
weed in The, southwest and it's out.
Speaker 1 (41:03):
West it's an awful weed and it has a, well
a characteristic of many plants that we, hate and that
is it's a lellopathic.
Speaker 2 (41:12):
Yep prevents other plants from growing.
Speaker 1 (41:13):
Around, yeah so it has the reputation like spotted napweed.
Speaker 2 (41:17):
Yep so also burning bush came. Up not surprising, there
winter creeper, vine, Honeysuckle LIKE i, said trumpet, vine you
had a petunia's counterpart to your caliber CoA dislike, potentilla
which you, KNOW i get a lot of potentilla's are
very ho. Hum we try to do a little bit
(41:39):
better here at proven owner's color choice. Shrubs but you,
KNOW i get it you had a bad experience back
in the. Day you're just, Like i'm not planting that.
Thing another vote for a juga here Ye english ivy of,
Course and we talked about that a few weeks ago
and how some people here in The midwest are, like,
Ooh ivy's so elegant and we don't tend to have
a huge issue with, it whereas if you go out,
west it's just an absolute Night mari We.
Speaker 1 (42:00):
JACE I i'm seeing hardy leadwart, plumbago and that's an,
aggressive non native.
Speaker 3 (42:07):
GROUNDCOVER i would.
Speaker 2 (42:08):
Agree, Yeah so it's interesting that so many of these
were are plants that are genuinely invasive and kind of
like the same experience THAT i had describing, barbary you
know way out At Moskiden State. Park just plants to
kind of ruin our experience of. Nature so whether we're
a gardener or a nature, lover when a plant disrupts that,
(42:30):
experience you can't can't blame you for adding it to
your hate.
Speaker 1 (42:34):
List, yeah although with steria on this list, too and
of course bamboo with steria another one like trumpet, vine
you got to show it whose boss do a little
bit of riot. Printing and Then, stacy your favorite Dwarf
alberta spruces are on here.
Speaker 2 (42:47):
Too two thumbs. Down not going to get my hate,
list but certainly not ever going to be. Planted so
with that, note we hope you enjoyed our. Conversation we
hope we didn't offend, you but if we, did let
us know and tell us what plant we named that you,
hate because turnabout is fair. Play so thank you so, Much,
(43:07):
rick thank You, adriana and thanks so much to all
of you for listening and putting up with our rants at.
Raves we hope you have a wonderful week. Ahead
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