Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Plant Identification 101: Do you know what this is?



I admit it, I have little to scarce amounts of knowledge when it comes to gardening. I know you put things in the ground and you water them and they (sometimes) grow -- but that's about it. I'm able to identify dandelions and have been furiously pulling those but have come across this stuff and I don't have any idea what it is. It seems to be springing up all around the house and the ones that have gotten big, like in the photo above, are a pain in the tookus to pull out. What are they? And how do I get rid of them?

3 comments:

Caitlin said...

Hi Susie,

I think they're baby maple trees..at least the second photo is. Yes, they are hard to pull out! I also think you could take one down to a local nursery and ask them. Also in the second photo I see Iris leaves. I'm sure you've seen Iris; tall plum-y bearded flowers-very poular with the foursquare/bungalow crowd, I believe. You might want to leave them or mocve them to a more garden-y area.
BTW, I went to see 'my' foursquare today (inside with the agent) It is wonderful, needs work, and I'm not sure how my old animals would get upstairs.

Jen said...

I was gonna say the same thing.
Maple trees.

sarah said...

Yup, they sure are - and if they're anything like at our place in town, they're Norway Maple, which is invasive - so best to get them out before they get too big. They are avid stump-sprouters, so if you cut them down they'll come back with a vengeance. Got to get the roots and all. I now have an obsessive habit of raking all the maple samaras out of the yard in spring before they can sprout.