sunflowers

[Cindi]

The wild sunflower grows in clumps and easily propagates while the colopogonium is a crawling vine.  As a beepeeker i lament the landclearing of these 2 plants but if I were a farmer i would be cursing the takeover of my cultibate fields lol!

tig
Very good and interesting information that you provided in your post.  I looked up your Colopogonium mucunoides (that is the full name I presume).  I could not find any pictures of it, I am always interested in the flora of other parts of the world.  Do you have a picture, can get a picture of the colopogonium?  Sounds like the colopogonium is in the legume family, is a vine and is used in many places for improving the land conditions.  Ya,  the vine families can be very invasive.  My daughter one time was given some flats of seedlings from a friend that owned a nursery.  She brought these flats over to me to show me what he had given her and was very excited to go home and do a bunch of seedling planting (he had too many and was going the throw them out).  Yikes!!!!  These seedilings were in the flats that held about 100 tiny little plugs in each flat.  Now, ever since that day in time I have the vigorous and awful viney type plant growing around here that I cannot get rid of. I guess some seeds droppped from the flats that she carried so carefully, and what a hay day these plants have had since then.  They grow where I do not want them, if they were in the field and stayed there I would not care a bit.  I do not see any bees ever on this plant, well, I always pull it out as soon as I can, but sometimes it goes to flower before I can catch some of it to rip it out.

This plant is Portulaca olceracea (purslane, pigweed), it is a cousin to the common Portulaca that I grow here, and this common Portulaca is OK with me, it self-seeds, but does not overtake areas.  Olceracea is invasive beyond what you could dream.  This purslane is wonderful to have in salads and is a culinary treasure in the city.  They actually cultivate it for the downtown Vancouver restaurants.  Personally, I don't like the taste of it, rather peppery tasting, as is watercress.  Not my liking.

So, ya, Tig, I know about how viney weedy things can become a sore in one's side when they are not wanted (like in farmers' fields). 

[tig]

Hi cindi,

     I can take some pictures of the colopogonium and wild sunflowers we have.  However, i have no idea how to post it here lol.

[Cindi]

Tig, you pictures would be great. Is your camera a digital one?  If it is, it is quite simple to post a picture.  If it is not a digital one, I have no clue either.  Have a great day. Cindi

[tig]

yes i have a digital one....

[Cindi]

OK Tig, going to your Personal Mail, so we don't take up the forum screen.  I hope I can help you best I can.  C.U. there. Cindi