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Here and There…Now and Then |
Blue Berries
Blue is a fairly rare color in nature (“Oh, yeah? Look up, numbskull.” — the Camera) but what blue there is tends to be very pretty. While these are blue berries, they are not blueberries. This is mile-a-minute weed (Persicaria perfoliata) or as our friend Lyla called it back in February, “Triangle-Headed Pokey Weed.”
Painter’s Palette
Persicaria virginiana ‘Painter’s Palette’ is a slightly invasive perennial but nothing like loosestrife so I don’t mind it so much. It has pretty, variegated foliage and tiny, bright pink (almost red) flowers on long stalks.
Persicaria virginiana ‘Painter’s Palette’
I don’t really recommend growing painter’s palette (Persicaria virginiana) unless you have a lot of space and want a natural garden. It has a tendency to spread and is a bit of work to control. We have more than we need and most of the year I’m just about ready to pull it up. This is the time of year I don’t mind it quite so much. There isn’t a lot else in bloom and it provides some color in the border with it’s tiny, red flowers on wispy stalks. We have a lot of it mixed with Verbena bonariensis in the large, central bed in our front garden and the two of them together are pretty nice. The foliage is also interesting, with green alternating with a very pale green and with a reddish, V shape stripe.
Pennsylvania smartweed (Persicaria pensylvanica) and Asian Tiger Mosquito (Aedes albopictus)
Cathy and I walked to the park today and I took a few pictures. This is a very common weed in our area, called Pennsylvania smartweed (Persicaria pensylvanica). I got a bonus in this photograph, of an Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus). I’m not really a big fan of either, I’ afraid. Weeds are a common problem in our garden and this one shows up without fail. And I don’t know many fans of mosquitoes of any kind. Nevertheless, they both have a sort of beauty that cannot be denied.