Hi there everyone: I just finished my yearly compost discard hunt hehe. The blooms remind me of a giant snap dragon or related to the sweet pea family. The stalk is huge about 2-3 inches in diameter. The foliage reminds me of a fuscia with some burgundy veining. The plant is about 3-4 feet high and it has quite the massive root system. I am not even sure if it is an outdoor garden plant or an indoor house plant. I am located in zone 5b. If anyone can offer any thing on this beauty i would really appreciate. Is it invasive, does it like full sun? Thanks in advance Deb
Hi Michael F: Thanks so much for the quick response and your wealth of knowledge I am going to try and overwinter it Regards, Deb
It's an annual plant. It is also called "touch me not" because it has 'exploding' seed pods that can eject the seeds when touched. It is generally high on the list of invasive plants that cause problems. It is found on invasive species lists for Ontario. I took the train from Vancouver to Seattle a few years back and I could hardly believe the vast territory that this plant had covered.
Oh no! Please try to kill it. Yes, it is very beautiful, BUT..... Everywhere it grows it just takes over. it is so very vigorous that nothing else can survive under it, so all native flowers are swamped by it. As Eric says it explodes into huge areas, especially along river banks. It is a real problem plant. A pest. A thug.
Hi thanks so much for all the valuable info. The responses have been consistent as to "it is invasive". Regards, Deb
