“玫瑰?”我瞥了朋友一眼。她在跟我开玩笑吗?我知道她喜欢玫瑰,但说这朵花是玫瑰?
“不可能!搞同性恋的。它看起来更像棉花糖。”
“Cotton candy?” She smiled. “Hardly. It’s called creeping avens (Geum reptans) and it’s definitely part of the rose family.”
“不可能!” I exclaimed, leaning in to take a look. The pink, poofy swirl really did give one the impression of cotton candy with its cup-shaped yellow flowers and fluffy pink seed heads. “Wow! You have one unique flower here — but why the name, creeping?”
“这是一种耐寒植物,长有红色的长蔓植物。它们在地上爬行,寻找更多植物的根。”
“Like strawberries.”
“Exactly.”
My friend wasn’t done yet.
“It multiplies with these long runners,” she explained. “It was starting to grow in my lawn. Time to divide and conquer, so to speak. Now you can start your own creeping avens garden. But beware, it can be invasive. It also multiplies by seed.”
With great aplomb, she presented me with two pots of creeping avens.
“I collected both the clippings and the seeds,” she continued. “It won’t take long before your creeping avens are literally creeping all over your garden.”
It was time to go home and learn some more about creeping avens. And to find the perfect spot for my new addition.
“Lots of sun,” my friend advised. “And well-drained soil — and the best part?” She leaned in and whispered conspiratorially. “The plant is pretty much pest resistant.”
I followed my friend’s directions, planted my creeping avens clippings and seeds, watered them well, and hoped the mid-July heat and humidity didn’t make the transplants suffer. While I waited and watched, I did some research.
Related Post:Growing Roses
What did I learn? Well, this herbaceous perennial (part of the rose family, Rosaceae) is actually native to the high mountainous regions of Central Asia and Europe, where it grows well in rocky, gravelly soil. In home gardens, however, it does best in gritty, well-drained soil.
It enjoys full sun as long as it’s not too hot; afternoon shade will definitely benefit the plant in hotter climates. The cup-shaped yellow flowers of late spring and early summer transform into fluffy pink seed heads, much like the soft, velvety tips of pussy willow flowers. Sadly, the plant is short lived, but since it multiplies quickly (like strawberries) once it takes root in the garden, there will always be plenty.
又称灯心草、天蓬、福蓬、城蓬、野黑麦、路蓬、金星、丁香等,蔓生天蓬很容易从种子开始。你可以在室内播种,准备在霜冻威胁消失后在室外移植。
或者,当霜冻成为遥远的记忆,白天的平均温度在68华氏度(20摄氏度)左右时,你可以直接把种子种在地里。种在室内或室外的种子需要长达一个月的时间才能发芽,但有时可能需要更长的时间。
The baby plants my friend gifted me were clipped from the end of the runners. Mature plants can also be divided in the late summer. In fact, it’s recommended to divide the mature plants every couple of years.
Creeping avens do well during hot, dry periods as they’re relatively drought tolerant. This makes it a good addition to my garden as every summer we experience a long period of intense heat and drought.
Related Post:8 Beautiful, Drought-Tolerant Plants For Dry Landscapes
Like its rose cousins, it’s important to deadhead the flowers to promote more blooms, but wait until the flowers wilt before cutting them off the plant, as you don’t want to miss out on the cotton candy look.
Of its many alternate names, clove root intrigues me. When you dig up the root, it gives off a clove-like aroma. Not surprisingly, it’s the root that can be used medicinally. It’s best to dig it in the spring as that’s when the root is most fragrant. Since it does lose some its aroma during the drying process, it is important to take care when slicing the root. Once dried, the root powder will appear brownish on the outside and purply-brown inside.
The medicine is created by soaking a tablespoon of the powdered root in 2 cups of boiling water which is then strained and taken cold. The concoction has a slightly bitter taste with a touch of cloves, butit works well for cases of diarrhea, dysentery, sore throat, chills, fevers, chronic and passive hemorrhages, gastric issues, and headaches.
这种植物还有其他的药用混合物和用途,但有趣的是(考虑到目前的世界形势),在鼠疫肆虐的时代,根被煮在酒中食用,以防止感染疾病。
也曾有一段时间,它被用来给啤酒调味,并被塞在亚麻状的薰衣草香囊中,以保存和防止飞蛾的侵袭,同时也使亚麻制品散发出宜人的气味。咀嚼牙根也被认为可以治疗口臭。
Perhaps creeping avens is more than the unique cotton candy fluff of its flower. For me, that’s the attraction to this plant. It is definitely a good addition to my little piece of garden paradise. Cotton candy, indeed!
Micheal Deansays
哦,不!特朗普发型的外星玫瑰!Run for the hills, or garden shed…
Ronsays
Leave the politics out of the garden please. Neither the plants nor I want to hear anything about it.