Morning Glory

First things first, Hurricane Earl was a dud. Only a couple of inches of rain and no major wind in our area. I didn't even bother to bring in the patio furniture. I did pick some unripe tomatoes, thinking that they would be damaged in the storm. Turns out that was a wasted precaution.

Now, morning glory. Morning glory was first cultivated in the Far East where some varieties are still used in cooking. Here in the US, morning glory is used as a reseeding annual flower. The vines twist and twirl and will climb up just about anything. Lots of people use this characteristic to brighten up walls and arbors.

We've grown morning glory for years, and I can tell you few things about this plant. First, it doesn't mind poor soil. We were growing it in a container near some very sandy and nutrient depleted soil. In fact, the only thing in that area was gravel and few stray weeds. The morning glory dropped its seeds in this area and the plant has flourished there. We're happy to have it there because nothing else will really grow there.

Second, which is related to the first, is that morning glory is invasive. Some varieties have been listed as noxious weeds by the federal government and are illegal to possess or sell. I know from experience to keep morning glory away from your prized veggies or ornamental plants. Years ago, I planted some morning glory near a fence and some tomatoes. My idea was to let the morning glory climb the fence. It did climb the fence, but it also strangled some tomato plants! Ever since then, we have kept the morning glory out of the veggie patch.