Thursday, October 16, 2008

Invasive Plant: Clerodendrum bungei

These 2 pictures are of Clerodendrum bungei, also known as rosy clerodendrum or peanut butter plant (because of its odor, although I think this is a misnomer). The top one I snagged from the internet and the second is one growing in the edge of my woods. The first time I ever saw this plant growing was at Westville, and I asked some of the women who were working there about getting a cutting of it. They looked at each other and smiled and then offered that they all had plenty around their houses that they would be happy to give me cuttings of. It should have clued me in. Several years later I actually bought a plant and set it in my flower bed. It had a hard time getting started (luckily), but then started to spread by suckers underground. It took about 3 years to eradicate if from the bed,but in the end persistence, roundup, pulling, and digging got rid of it. Except. At the last I relented, falling prey to it's lovely flowers. I planted a piece in the edge of the woods and wished it luck. It did not need luck. All it needed was opportunity.
Over the course of several years when I busily ignored the patch, it spread mightly.
One day I noticed some lovely pink flowers in the edge of the woods, and have been using roundup for 3 years on it now. I spray around the outside working my way inward. I still have a patch about
8 feet across, and the suckers are easy to escape notice as they run out to find new homes and start other colonies.
I'm working on it though. Some mistakes can't be redeemed, but I plan to pull this one back from disaster.
It is claimed that the flower is pleasantly fragrant, but I have never been able to get past the
odor of the leaves, which to me is badddd...
A few years ago a friend pointed out to me a large patch growing in Auburn. But by then it was too late: I already had this Clerodendrum's number.
I hear that people plant it in a place by itself and mow around it to control it. but my advice is: DON"T.
It grows well in both shade and sun, likes a good bit of water but is drought tolerant. Does this sound like an invasive waiting to happen? At my house in poor soil it grows to about 4 feet tall, and is a rich dark green. Lovely, huh?
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