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Good and Bad plant ID

MotsoMotso Posts: 5

Hi all,

I would really appreciate some help in identifying a couple of plants in my garden, the first good the second bad!

The first one with the flower has grown up this year and bees absolutely love it so I would like to know what it is! Has grown massively in a few months if that helps ID.

The second (two pics) is a pest that constantly pops up all over one of my beds and I have recently noticed it in another. Left unchecked this would cover the ground. I have left some to grow a bit and haven't seen any flowers. They pull up quite easily but always seem to leave a bit of root in the ground- possibly spreading by rhizome? My garden isn't that big so I can keep it under control but left it would run amok. In the second picture it's not the purple stemmed plant (although I know that's also a 'weed'.

Any help appreciated!

Tom

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Posts

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,445

    The weed is Enchanters Nightshade

    The flower a deutzia I think



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • LiriodendronLiriodendron Posts: 8,328

    Hi Motso!

    The "nice" plant looks like Deutzia Mont Rose.

    The less nice one looks like Dog's Mercury, which does indeed spread by rhizomes.  It can colonise large areas of woodland.  Not pretty, and poisonous too...  it has little greenish flowers.

    Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
  • MotsoMotso Posts: 5

    Wow, thanks for the quick response!!

    The shrub is definitely a deutzia - thank you

    i did think the weed was enchanters nightshade after looking up common weeds but I wasn't convinced- is there anything else it could be? Is there anything else I could do to get rid other than pulling? (No herbicides)

    Thanks again,

    Tom

  • LiriodendronLiriodendron Posts: 8,328

    I guess you're right Nut... you usually are!  image

    Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
  • MotsoMotso Posts: 5

    Hmm, not sure about Dogs Mercury- I have done Woodland surveys in the past and it looks very different to what I remember.

    Apologies I don't have better photos- I pulled them all up before remembering to take a photo so they were the ones I had missed!

    Tom

  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618

    I thought enchanters nightshade as well. Easy to fork out, just make sure you remove all the fleshy white roots.

  • MotsoMotso Posts: 5

    The leaves seem slightly different- more shiny? Another pic if it helps but I bow down to your superior knowledge!

    image

  • MotsoMotso Posts: 5

    I would definitely say fleshy white roots too

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,445

    Enchanter's Nightshade, Circaea lutetiana, an invasive little plant but so pretty I imported it into my garden against the advice of the donor. It's still with me 2 houses and 25 years later

    It's not a lot of trouble to me but if you want to grow alpines and the like I should think it's a right b....r



    In the sticks near Peterborough
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