Does anyone know what this plant is? This is my first time posting so I hope the picture shows up... It is growing in my Mom & Dad's garden in Massachusetts. I'm beginning to think it is Jack's bean stock. It grows about 3-4" per day. That's my Dad next to it and he is 5'9". He estimated the plant to be 9' tall.... Today!! Any ideas anyone?????? Thanks! Kathy [FONT="][/FONT]
Ya that looks like a Mammoth sunflower .. they get really big and tall .. it looks like it will grow even more .. i planted some last year and the Deer thought they made good trees to rub there velvet off there antlers .. lol.. the sunflower heads will be really big .. Marion
Oh my word!!! When they say Giant, they mean it!!! Thanks so much for the info! I'll post a picture when it blooms...
Oh trust me those flower heads are big .. they might have to get staked up jsut to hold them .. but they usually do grow strong enough to hold them up .. the yellow in the leaves are just awesome .. you can buy these seeds in the stores just look for the Momouth sunflower seeds there are so many different kinds but look for those ones .. and they sprout within about 2 to 3 days of planting in warm soil .. The finches also love these sunflwowers .. they will be all over them .. Marion
Paulownia tomentosa. An invasive weed tree. Best remove it, that'll mean digging up the main roots too (if it is just cut down, it'll just sprout up again).
Yup, Paulownia tomentosa - it's a weedy weedy weed. Which is really too bad, since it's also a pretty flowering tree.
Shoot..... A weed huh?? Well you know, those darn dandelions keep pooping up in my garden and calling themselves flowers..... One man, or woman's weed is another's flower!!! I have Flax (weeds) growing in my hay field so I dig them up and plant them in my garden and now they are flowers!!!! I think we'll just call our Sunflower/Weed a "conversation piece"!! Thanks so much for all of your responses..
A conversation piece yes and you can hide under the leaves away from the sun while you talk about it ... it sure did looklike a sunflower to me .. Marion
They are grown here and for some reason they don't seem to be a weed. A few up the road in the paddock and they look lovely in flower. Mine did not survive an ant attack. When I cut it back it did sprout some runners but they did not survive, I suspect in the right climate they could really be a pest. I am not a hundred percent sure but I think they can be used as fodder trees. It is also very fast growing and has soft wood. They appear to be growing it commercialy here for timber. http://www.aussiegardening.com.au/findplants/plant/Paulownia_tomentosa Liz
Liz, the heat in your neck of the woods (and mine) keeps them in check, which just means that we get lovely timber trees covered in purple flowers once a year. Up in the temperate world, there's really nothing to hold them back.
