Wednesday in the garden: Tickseed
Tickseed - an unlovely name for a lovely plant. Not only is it beautiful but it is very easy to grow throughout USDA zones 3 to 9. It grows wild in many forms around here, and this time of year our roadsides are brightened by waves of its yellow flowers. Their formal name is Coreopsis , but they are commonly called tickseed because the seeds often hitch a ride on humans or animals that brush against them. The plant is classified as herbaceous perennial and it reseeds prolifically, so once it gets its start in your garden, you will likely find many "volunteer" plants the following year. The particular variety that I have in my garden got its start as seeds in a wildflower mix packet that I bought at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin several years ago. I'm not sure what the variety name is but it makes a plant about 2 1/2 feet tall and at least that wide and it is covered in flowers throughout the summer (summer starts in May here) and fall. Tickseed is not...