It's difficult not to notice my lawn right now though, as although it's got some green in it, it's also a lovely shade of violet. More like "a shade of violets" really...
I'm still uncertain as how I'm going to handle this.
Reducing the number of violets mechanically (by hand-pulling) is pretty much impossible right now, unless I scrape the ground clean and start a new lawn. That is still an option, but not one I'll tackle this year.
I'm not in favor of dumping chemicals over the whole thing to kill them either. I've sprayed for them before using the correct version of weed killer -- as nasty as they may be not all of those chemicals will kill violets -- with mixed results.
I may still spray my small front yard, as that's got to blend with the rest of the neighborhood, which is more violet-free than mine.
But for now, I'll just enjoy the wash of color in my lawn, and try to ignore the fact that each of these flowers will produce dozens or hundreds of new plants this year.
Incidentally, I've recently obtained several plants of a different species of violet -- one that is equally aggressive, but has the advantage of being fragrant -- unlike these which are not.
If I'm going to be surrounded by violets, they might as well smell good too, right?
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As you may have noticed, most of the photos on my blog are currently unavailable due to a Photobucket server issue. Should be back up by the end of the day (7 more hours). This outage is what delayed my post today too. :-(
ReplyDeleteAlan, I actually spent money buying a six pack of violets last year--mail order, mind you, since it's all but impossible to buy regular violets here. They are fragrant and while they've increased in circumference, they haven't produced any runners/stolons or spread in any way. I wonder if different violet species behave differently?
ReplyDeleteDefintitely. The ones in my yard don't produce runners -- they just form big "corms" and reseed like crazy. The new ones I got in a plant trade have runners and the seed heads look different. I think there is only one fragrant species of violet (Viola odorata) -- maybe yours just hasn't produced runners yet? My species is Viola sororia I believe.
ReplyDeleteI do understand your dilemma, but I think it looks attractive! It beats the brown patches in my lawn!!
ReplyDeleteLook on the bright side - they could have thorns! and STINK!
ReplyDeleteWhat I bought was labeled as Viola odorata. They bloomed like crazy this year, so it'll be interesting to see if there are new seedlings coming up.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing how so-called weeds can make such a beautiful sight. What about applying a pre-emergent weed-and-feed for lawns where you need to control them? Its a little less harsh on the environment, although you wont see results until next spring.
ReplyDeleteHmm,
ReplyDeleteI give lemons and you make lemonade...
I give you banana peels and you make compost...
I give you beautiful flowers and you complain when you should be eating!
Just saying :)
John: nice one!
ReplyDeleteAre all violet flowers edible? If so, what's the best way to wash flowers that you'll be
eating?
Lisa: There's almost no room for more violet seedlings in some areas, so pre-emergent (which works to stop seeds from germinating) won't really help. Plus, it seems to me that the violet seedlings emerge *really* early, like late February or something.
Looks pretty. I've heard some violets can be invasive, so I've not bought any until this year. They looked so sweet! Now I'm a little bit worried I may have introduced a monster into the garden!
ReplyDeleteYou may not like them but I love those violets!
ReplyDeleteI think it's beautiful and I'd love a lawn like this. Woodland flowers are some of my favourites. Think you just need some Wood Anemone in there:o)
ReplyDeleteI think its stunning- exactly the lawn I want! But it should also smell sweet, I think. ;)
ReplyDeleteJust plenty of water and maybe some soap if chemicals or pets are involved. Flowers, leaves and ribosomes are all edible.
ReplyDelete