LANTANA! I truly despise that stinky, invasive weed!

PEPPERMINT!!! I planted 3 sprigs a few years ago and I still can't get rid of it. It's popping up all around my flower beds.

A couple years a ago, my dad got some BAMBOO from somewhere, and put it in a bucket of water to keep it alive til we got time to plant it where we wanted it. He sat the bucket in our flower bed and it got out somehow, so now the bamboo that we thought was kinda pretty and good for shade at first has grown out of control.
We are trying to kill it. It is a slow process, but hopefully one day it will be gone. As soon as Dad gets his tractor fixed, I think he is going after the Bamboo with it. We have tried everything else.
It wouldn't be so bad, but the stuff is starting to come up through our driveway!! It's simply taking over.
It is soo hard to kill. We tried digging, but the roots knot up and that makes it tough to dig up. Plus, the more you cut, the more baby shoots it sends out. You just have to chop and chop and chop and dig and dig. It is exhausting. Supposedly, eventually, it should die though.

I hope.
AR_Dramaqueen

I bought one small peppermint last year and now it is taking over my front and side yard. Why didn't I put it into a pot?!!! Oak tree, ok, I love the tree but hate the seedlings. I must have already pulled up a thousand this summer. Only another thousand to go! Anyone want some baby oak trees???

I love my cannas and eleph. ears. They are the back bones of my tropical garden. I'll take any you don't want.

This thread is amazing. You ought to live in West Central Texas, where you're thankful that ornamental plants LIVE, with diligent watering and fertilizing, and don't worry about them taking over! Weeds, sure. Dallisgrass and Johnsongrass are our scourge. But the idea of flowers or pretty vines taking over the place is only a dream for us.

Without a doubt, it's Clerodendrum bungei!! (AKA Rose Glory Bower/Cashmere Bouquet/Mexicali Rose/Mexican Hydrangea)
Don't get me wrong -- the plant is beautiful -- but this thing is a THUG if you don't have a large garden. It spreads by suckers, which can travel great distances away from the parent plant. I currently have Clerodendrum suckers gobbling up a good chunk of the mixed foundation border by my front door.
In my zone it dies back to the ground in the winter, but returns with a vengence in the spring.

Renee

pink oenothera (sundrops)
I gave up pulling and dug up the plants and 8" of the soil to get rid of it.

gladiolus. They are horrible. The are only pretty for a brief period of time. They flop over and require thousands of stakes and ties to keep them upright. Right after you do this....they seem to dry up leaning this ugly brown dead stick protruding from the garden. They are pretty but not worth the hassle.

# 1. Itea virginia 'Henry's Garnet' - can't kill it with a stick, an axe, or a flame thrower - and I've tried them all. Sends out suckers like mad. Great spring blooms, lovely fall color - just needs its own 40 acres
# 2. Loropetulum burgundy - don't turn your back on this thug or it will grow another 8 feet! Ratty looking in the winter, 2 weeks of spring bloom (thankfully nothing else is blooming 'cause that screaming raspberry pink doesn't exactly blend easily with other colors), then it proceeds to send out 8 ft. shoots in all directions. I cut them to ground level last spring and today they are big, bushy 6'round dark holes in the garden.
#3. River birch - Had read all the wonderful things about this tree. Never a mention that it breaks apart in ice storms worse than Bradford pears. The surface roots stick well above soil level and radiate outward for yards - just waiting to trip a gardener with other things on her mind.

Periwinkle....I thought that it was would look "nice" in my much beloved flower bed, I spent 3 days of hauling & laying up river rock, I planted a very small vine of it & now it has taken over & killed a lot of my hard to find plants.. ..but I have a good friend that helps take care of that blasted vine...Round Up....even still, I have to go back about every week & find new shoots that have managed to escape & set off runners.....
I HATE that vine!!!

I for one would much rather weed out the unwanted runners or seedlings of many of these 'hated' plants, than nurse a plant that refuses to grow, no matter how it is babied.

No contest -- English ivy and vinca. I didn't plant them, but they were all over the yard when we moved in 3 years ago. I've pulled up half of the ivy. Haven't started on the vinca. Need to get it out before it takes over my half acre of pretty pine woods.

I had found this cool wierd looking plant at the nursery. I didnt even know what it was at the time. Just thought it was some sort of succulent. Big joke on me..It was Kalanchoe "maternity plant" well the name alone should be a huge clue It makes little plantlets on the ends of its leaves and drops them everywhere. There are baby kalanchoes everywhere and I am always pulling them out of every pot in the yard no matter how far away from the maternal mother. So if you ever see a plant called Maternity plant... RUN!!!!
~SJN

Another vote for (or, rather against) Houttuynia cordata!!!!!!!!!

If you EVER admire this plant and contemplate purchasing it...BACK AWAY and RUN! LOL

Equisetum (horsetail) and pennywort planted around my small pond. I've almost got them out of the planter with the pond in it. Now the lawn . . . . .

So, are you guys saying you hate these plants just because they need management? I grow EEs, canna, passiflora, peppermint, raspberries, and a few others... all in a tiny suburban home. They just need care... and they are maintainable. I guess the old addage is true. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Mexican Petunia! Ruellia (I think I spelled that correctly) It is lovely but OMG it comes up everywhere! I live near a protected forest reserve and my STUPID neighboor planted Bamboo in her yard on the side that borders with me! I dug a trench when she did it and layed thick black plastic between our properties. That stuff is a nightmare NEVER plant it.

1:Pepper Vine, sends underground runners everywhere.
2:Trumpet Vine, same as Pepper Vine.
3:Ivy, you all know why on this one, it eats everything in sight.
4:Blackeyed Susan vine. Seeds itself everywhere. It's a very pretty fall bloomer, but it's a nusiance to pull all the unwanted seedlings out of your beds.
5:Privet hedges (previoue owner planted these) DH just ripped out some huge ones with a backhoe. The birds eat the berries then you get seedlings everywhere. A friend once told me that the only way to get rid of Privet is to move away and leave it. I believe he is right. :)
6:Spiderwort (inherited from previous owner also). Comes up everywhere. Impossible to dig out. If you miss one tiny piece it comes back bigger than ever!
7:Wild violets, very, very invasive!
I could probably add lots more to this list, but I won't. I'm tired of typing and you're probably tired of reading. :)
Jan

I was planning on planting some bamboo because I love its look and it seems like good cover for pheasants... but you people are making me think twice. I have 30 acres, would it be a mistake to plant some five hundred feet from my home?

on the bamboo, make sure it is a clumping variety. That means it will send off shoots from the center of the plant. DO NOT GET A RUNNER!!! These are the bamboo that go everywhere. They are the invasives. It all just boils down to knowing your plants, and how they reproduce. ^_^ Hope you don't change your mind just beacuse some plants give the whole species a bad name.

Okay, last spring I planted my first good-sized garden that I actually invested a decent amount of money in.

Some of the things I planted have been mentioned here: like cannas and black-eyed susans (not the vine). Both of these flourished and spread a bit, but not so much that I have tried to pull them up or kill them off - yet. We'll see what they do this year.

However, the one thing I really regreted planting was Evening Primose. I found it at a farmer's market where it was being sold as an herb. Not knowing anything about it, I decided to give it a go. What a mistake! It almost instantly took over half my garden, killing at least one rose bush and who knows what else. And what started out looking like pretty yellow flowers turned very weedy. I wasn't able to get it all out because the roots were very strong, and I dread having to deal with it again this year. Oh, well.

On another note, can somebody tell why they don't like wisteria? I was actually planning on getting some. I see it growing in my neighborhood and it is so pretty...

pampas grass... I didn't plant it but the previous owner of the house thought it would be a good idea to "fence in" the entire back yard with it... I have about 25 10-year old pampas grass plants that are about 6-7 feet wide and tall each and when they put out their seed plumes the fuzz gets all over every plant within a 5 acre radius.. not to mention that any attempt to mow next to them often generates scratched up legs and arms from the razor sharp leaves... I've even tried hooking one up to a trackhoe with a 20 ton tow cable to try and yank it out but nothing.. UGH!

I am regretting rice paper plant. It can be beautiful-- I love the huge leaves, but after removeing some that were in the wrong place-- I found one on the other side of my house. It had traveled over 40 feet under the concrete foundation. Don't think I can dig that root out. Mexican petunia is also becoming a nuisance.
Elaine

I guess it helps that I live a zone or two above you guys. I just ordered Rice Paper plant but it is an annual here. I love my hottynanie (spelling?) but I grow it in a wet weather creek that is impossible to mow or walk there so we just let grow. Cannas arn't hardy here either.
What's the deal with Bradford, overplanted, ice damage? Is that it or is there something else I'm missing?
Bermuda grass is the only thing I'm fighting right now. My yard is big enough for spreading I guess. It got into my garden and made a mess. I just put cardboard over it. Applied compost & manure and this weekend I'm topping it off with 2-3inches of mulch. If that dosn't do it I'm moving the entire garden.

Hardy begonia (begonia evansiana). It takes over a shady spot in two seasons and overwhelms everything in its path.

Liriope!! what a bad move. and its so hard to dig out because they intertwine themselves with other plants and I don't want to dig those up :(

If I ever see any more Chocolate Mint, you guys will read about me in the paper where I went screaming down my street and checked myself into a nuthouse.

My MIL (wouldn't you know) gave me some of this stuff. I thought "Oh, how nice to sit outside on a summer evening and drink my Mississippi-Sweet Tea with some Chocolate Mint for favoring". I couldn't drink enough tea in 14 lifetimes plus a block party every night to take care of this stuff!!! We finally got it all pulled up/poisoned/murdered or whatever - AFTER 3 YEARS! And, I'm keeping my fingers crossed when I say that!

Lariope
Periwinkle
Picky roses--they got mowed over!! No more blackspot!!

Man...I am looking for cannas I can keep alive!!! Anyone have any that they want to swap or get rid of???

-Amy

pink primrose...every tiny white hair sized root makes a new plant. It comes up in all the perennials and is about impossible to get rid of. UGH

Ronda

ronda...that's why I removed down 8" below the plants. Heaved all of it into the woods. These things create a mat of roots that nothing can penetrate. If they flowered heavily and all season that would be one thing. They don't though and so out they went. I stomp on the babies and then paint them (small paint roller) with strong Round-Up.

Me:
Evening Primrose - beautiful pink cupped shaped flowers (mine rebloomed but I tried to shear them before they started seeding); millions of them growing everywhere including in the grass

Seeds that my Mom got from the DOT - what was I thinking? I carefully started both these and the evening primrose in pots under lights in the spring and by the next year, they were duking it out in my largest flower bed. What a waste of a full spectrum light bulb!

Rather than deal with it, I moved several states away . . .

Previous Owner of my new home:
Holly - Who plants a row of full sized holly bushes in a bed that is 3 feet deep? Especially when the bed lines the walk to the front door. What a way to welcome your friends! My husband pulled them all up with his pick up and a chain before we even moved in so now I'm starting from scratch in this bed (except, now I'm scared because I planted a Mexican Petunia)

Liriope - I am left to assume that he/she liked the idea of dividing them as there are truly magnificently sized specimens EVERYWHERE in my yard in both the dark green and variagated version. They are so big that I have to divide them to get them out of the ground. And then I have to decide if I am just going to let them die or plant them somewhere. Anybody want any liriope?

Monkey Grass - This stuff is edging the largest bed in my front yard and is randomly placed along the edge of other beds. It doesn't look good and it's moving into the beds and has become wider than 2 feet at this point. By next spring, the majority of it will be gone!

Tall things around the edges of flower beds and short things behind - I will be moving just about everything in this yard!

Popcorn tree, 4 o'clocks, wisteria--all beautiful and fragrant but impossible to control. I have no problems here with canna.

I don't have anything to add but I have to tell ya'll that this thread was very amusing to read. Thanks for the laughs.

update...darned evening (pink)primrose is blooming in the woods. Should have thrown them and their dirt and roots in the trash can. Beautify the dump!

Oh oh. I put in Mexican petunia this year. Of course right now it is all well behaved. It is getting quite a bit of shade because the first spot I put it in got mostly sun and it looked droopy much of the time.

So should I pot up the Mexican petunia? Or would it be well behaved in the sandy soil of Wilmington??

Advice please, before I lose control of this plant next season.

I didn't plant it but inherited it. The previous owner must have liked Mexican Petunia. When I moved in early 2004 the back property line had a row five feet wide the entire width of the lot. I began to remove it & found it was hiding 2 camellias, 2 crape myrtles, an azalea, a surinam cherry bush, several hibicus, 2 bougainvillea & even a pineapple. I am still finding plants after digging & spraying Round-Up all this time. It was ovious (sp) they had made no effort at control.

These were left here by my in-laws and we have had or will have to deal with getting rid of them.

Wisteria - entirely too invasive and I've read that the roots have been known to crack foundations! Ours was over the septic tank! I'm amazed we didn't have a yard full of sh!t at some point! Thankfully, we have rid ourselves of this menace.

Forsythia - again, too invasive! And it was over 6 feet tall when we moved in; I had to stand on a step-ladder just to keep the tops somewhat under control. I finally chopped them all down to stumps earlier this year, and they're already up to probably 4+ feet. And forget digging them up! They are in rocky, clay dirt and their roots are probably bigger than the plants themselves. And nothing will kill them. I absolutely hate them!!!

Yucca plants - ugly, don't fit in (we're not in the desert here), and was such a pain to get rid of. Oh, and did I mention that it was also... invasive! We had what I thought were two plants. It was only after we started digging up 'one' of them that we realized it was actually more like 4 or 5 plants in a clump. After we had dug, and dug, and dug some more, we thought surely we'd gotten enough. Until the next spring when we had about 6 or 7 babies sprout. Ugh! So we dug, and dug, and dug some more. This time I'm fairly certain we got everything. The first go round we didn't know to get every last bit out of the ground. I've more recently dug up the second one, which surprisingly enough was actually just one plant. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we don't have any babies pop up next spring. In the place of one I planted a small canna bed, and in the place of the other, I have started a small daylily bed. A huge improvement, I'd say.

Finally, Pampas Grass - too sharp, too huge, ugly, and doesn't fit in (again - not in the desert, people). We had two, my brother-in-law dug one up for us. We still have one more to deal with and I am certainly not looking forward to it. My BIL said the one he dug up was a real challenge. And he's no wimp!

Oh, yeah - nobody planted these, but they're driving me nuts, nonetheless: wild violets. They're trying to take over about 1/4 of the lawn. And I've read so many people's comments about how much they love them. Well, come dig mine up!!! Just like the forsythia, nothing will kill them!

I suppose that's all for now. :)

red..cannas spread too and japanese beetles just love them.
As for the wild violets...pick the leaves and use them as a salad green.

I hate the crepe myrtles planted next to my patio by the previous home owner. Every part of the tree joins in the months long ritual of making a huge endless mess. Even the bark falls off. lol I have one left to cut down.
As for cannas, they are so tender. Just cut through the clump with a shoval and pull up the part you don't want. Give it away or throw it away, it only takes a few minutes. Now crepe myrtle roots, that's another story.

Weird. I always have viewed the exfoliating bark of crepe myrtles as a plus and not a negative thing.

Update: I answered this question back in 2004.
I STILL CURSE SWEET AUTUMN CLEMATIS!

Why? Why? Why? was this planted?

IVY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I inherited Mexican Petunia with this house. I have given away (craigslist is great) over 20 bags full. They are still coming up. Small amounts are ok. I would have to say the virginia creeper I also inherited that is to the top of a tree. I saw it at a nursery and wondered who would buy that?

Bumping back to the top - this thread is a great resource and pretty funny.

Ferns! I have more ferns than I do blades of grass... they run willy-nilly. I inherited them. Should've known 'twas a mistake when a friend came over to my new house and saw them and just laughed and said, "Good Luck!"

would anyone like to share some of you plants

journey, if I could fling pink onoethera that far , I surely would (but you'd hate me for it).

Dieter, please return to your thread with photos of your new yard. I know your old yard(so beautiful) and wonder what the new one looks like.

Dottie, if you check in, I'm still out here, just been real busy with the new place. I moved a little closer to you. The new place is in the Woodhall subdivision across the street from the new Marvin schools.
I have to go in search of the cord that connects my camera with the computer so I can download pictures for you. With 4 acres I can say that I'll never be done here, but that is a good thing!
I am trying my hand at veggie gardening for the first time this year, I put in some raised beds for asparagus, strawberries, tomatoes (of course), cucumbers, peppers, corn, beans and melons. And I planted a mini orchard with a dozen dwarf fruit trees last fall. Unfortunately, the drought claimed the fig and three varieties of cherries, but the surviving trees must be pretty tough cause they survived with only minimal water (none from me).
Did you ever ID that pretty little yellow flower that bloooms in late summer along all the local roads? I think you mentioned that it was in the woods behind your place.
Do you still attend the garden club? I've heard rumor of one in Waxhaw but can't seem to find out where or when they meet.

For me it's bradford pear trees. They stink in the spring and I hate the shape of them now that they've gotten big, plus they are blocking all the direct sun that I now need in my front yard for my new obsession - my dear, dear roses. My DH won't let me cut them down. I'm praying for an ice storm to come thru and destroy them. Nothing else do I regret planting as much as these two monsters.