Decision Time

I have a front bed which is weird. It is a long, narrow thing--thirty feet long on the left of the sidewalk and, mysteriously, only about 8 feet long on the right. The whole thing is barely two feet wide.

I've seen one or two other beds like these, set back from the road by a mere five feet or so, as is mine, and they're a welcome sight. They're like a little run of cheer and I sincerely appreciate the gardener's thoughtfulness to brighten up my busy day.

But I live on a dead end street. There's no need for this drive-by bed.

Taking it out is going to be a major pain, though. It is constructed of 4x4's securely bolted together and at least two deep. I took the crowbar outside with me when I went to show the husband what we were facing--and he wasn't even tempted!

I've been waiting, in part, to see if any of the flowers in it are worth keeping (other than my daisies).

I've now indentified three of the flowers in it:



This is vetch. The photo is from June...it has just finished flowering. It spreads by way of rhizomes, I believe and it is extremely difficult to erradicate without resorting to that which should not be mentioned in organic gardening circles. It fixes nitrogen in the soil (in fact, the faved fava bean is related) Vetch, reveals google, is an "alternative forage plant." Maybe I should just get a cow? or I know! A sheep. I'll send the wool to Zooza to knit something for me!

This pretty pink thing is clover--yes, the clover you find in your grass. It is, however, taller. About a foot taller.



Interesting tidbit: it is poisonous to sheep and cows when wet with dew. So, I guess the sheep shouldn't be let out to eat until after breakfast!

The next one, also purple:


Bellflower--or Campanula rapunculoides.

This, too, is an invasive weed.

The bed is currently keeping them contained, but I'll take that which should not be named to them, I think. It's a shame, the bellflower is pretty--but I don't want it crowding out and destroying plants I'll actually pay for!

There's at least one more to identify. Then I'll know what to keep.

And the delphiniums, it seems, are self-seeding annuals. They may not even be back next year. So as for colour scheme, I think I'll keep working on my original red and white (with touches of gold/orange) theme.