Ministry of weeds

God bless ditch lilies and the tree of heaven

I doubt our Louisville neighborhood hillside is in immediate jeopardy of an uprising or a landslide, situated as it is, on top of a massive fortress of Ordovician limestone. Our exiled, unkempt biome is stitched together by a tangled patchwork of wild plants—native and foreign. This is a ministry of weeds among vines, groundcovers, trees, shrubs and a few perennials.

The eagerness of the romp-a-long, exotic gooseneck (Lysimachia clethroides) or the persistence of the thorny, native catbrier (Smilax species) do not surprise me.

I feast on fresh delicious, neighborhood daylily buds (Hemerocallis fulva) whenever Rufus and I are sniffing and snarfling this time of year. Some people hate that the common ditch lily exists at all, taking up precious space where an indigenous species might be preferred. Good luck. There is no maintenance. The bottom of this hillside has never met a string trimmer. This is full-on survival of the fittest, not an award show for best pollinator.

Ditch lily (Hemerocallis fulva) with tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima) in upper left corner.

Variegated sport of porcelain berry (Ampelopsis brevipedunculata) surrounded by moonseed leaves (Menispermum canadense)

Chameleon weed (Houtttuynia cordata)

Our morning walkaround is chock-a-block—on our block—full of maverick weeds.

Chameleon plant, English ivy, poison ivy, porcelain berry (with a few variegated leaves), hardy kiwi, Virginia creeper, bindweed, goutweed, moonseed, mulberry weed, pokeweed plus the unstoppable—ground elder and bush honeysuckle.

And God bless the tree of heaven.

“Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Ministry of weeds was first published on the Garden Rant on June 15th.