Spring is here!!!

Wish you guys and gals could smell these vines!

Right now. 85deg on Lanier.

I actually belong to a boat club - which is why you sometimes see me on bow-riders or sometimes (like tonight) on a pontoon.
The marina is 5 mins from the house and all we do is show up, jump on, have fun, bring it back and walk off the dock. for us, it's perfect, no winterizing, maintenance, storage fees or even having to gas the thing up!

Nice night for pig shots on the egg. Mmm mmmmm

Dave you and Maria are welcome in my home anytime brother.

replacing mulch and the weed block that's underneath is a bi**h in 80*+ heat. Thank God the Mrs. bagged up the old mulch for me.
There were 100s of BETONY root pods under the weed block and a bunch on top too. It's been years since I replaced the weed block material. I read it's almost impossible to get rid of BETONY unless you dig up these root pods. The field in the back is full of hundreds of BETONY plant flowers.


BETONY root pods and flowers from the web. Very invasive weed. You can pick the weed BUT the root pod stays to multiply and bloom again. I read they don't even know how this weed reproduces!!! DANG.We can go to far reaches of the Universe but don't know a good way to rid our gardens and lawns of this invader weed? Crazy!

They started in Florida. My wife told me where they originally came from before Florida. It's on the web I'm sure.

It's thought these Betony tubers traveled in dug-up plants in years past and have spread up to North Carolina and West to Texas for now.

I don't think the tubers can take freezing for very long periods. I'll re-check that though.

If you look closely at your yard, there is a good chance that you will find a plant that, depending on who you ask, is considered either a native wildflower or a weed and there are more than a few species that fit this description. If, upon even closer inspection, you find a plant with root tubers that resemble egg casings or even a rattlesnake’s rattle, you’ve stumbled upon Florida Betony.

Stachys floridana is a perennial broadleaf commonly referred to as rattlesnake weed due to it’s fleshy, white, segmented underground tubers. The plant has an erect stem with leaves that are opposite, shovel-shaped and coarsely serrated. The plant structure is very similar to mint. Flowers, emerging in late spring, are pinkish-purple in color. These inflorescences will also produce fruit, consisting of four nutlets. However, reproduction of the plant and it’s propensity to spread through lawns and gardens primarily occurs through dense root tuber development. Florida Betony’s growing range was originally confined to the state of Florida, but the commercial nursery trade played a major hand in dispersing the plant across the Southeast in the mid-1900’s. It can now be found as far west as Texas and as far north as North Carolina.

Figure 2: Tubers of the Florida Betony. Credit: Jill Bebee, UF/IFAS Gulf County Master Gardener.It can now be found as far west as Texas and as far north as North Carolina.
This time of year is when Florida Betony thrives. The moderate temperatures of fall and spring are the prime growing periods for Betony. In the heat of the summer, the above-ground structure of the plant will struggle and often disappear completely, only to reemerge in the fall. As a lawn weed, managing tuber development is key to controlling this plant. Applying herbicide to the leaves and stalk may seem at first to have conquered the weed. However, in most cases the tuber will simply regenerate. Glyphosate (Roundup) can be used effectively for control in ornamental plant beds where no turf is present. Be careful when spraying herbicides around trees, shrubs and other desirable plants as any foliar contact will cause phytotoxicity. If you have an infestation of Florida Betony in your turfed areas, there are a few options for control. Regular applications of three way broadleaf herbicides, such as mixtures of 2-4D, Dicamba and Mecoprop, are effective at suppressing this pesky plant. For more information and options, please contact your local county extension office or see the supporting information links below. Always refer to the product label for specific uses, precautions and application rates when using any herbicide.
Supporting information for this article can be found in the following the UF/IFAS EDIS publication, “Florida Betony Biology and Management in Turf” by J. Bryan Unruh, Ramon G. Leon, and Darcy E. P. Telenko: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/EP/EP38800.pdf

They are just now starting to drop old flowers. One lone bumble bee floating around the back vine. Seriously...they still smell beautiful. Just took these pics.





Nancy's "sport" has a new bloom on it. It's still trying to hang on!