Lesser Celadine- Spring Perennial or weed?

[Mockingbird]

I have a ton of this in my yard, it is a complete ground cover and I have had it for many years. A few years ago our village got a new building inspector who is very young and not that knowledgeable on plants. Sure enough that spring he comes over here saying that I have to mow the Celadine over it's a weed that can harbor vermin. I disagreed and took to educating the lad, It actually only grows till about the end of May and then it dies back. It, IMHO is better then waiting for the grass to catch up, and for the most does not seem to bother the grass.

I just love the little yellow flowers, they look like little fairy clouds in the early spring when it still gets foggy. I know I am biased, i can't stand pulling out any live thing, is this truly a dangerous weed species? P.S i have lived her 18 years and none of my neighbors have this, none of them use lawn spays either. i don't toss the little bulbs all around.

 

[claudine]

I love Celadine! It's such an adorable little plant. I always thought that it's just a weed, but now I'm not sure. It looks lovely, this is all that matters to me.

 

[Mockingbird]

Yes I agree, it is lovely, before I knew that much about the plant I used to aggressively rip it out so I could do my spring plants, but I have learned if you are patient it just dies back on it's own and it is much easier just to rack it out. Doesn't seem to bother the perennials, it's not like it is sucking up nutrients retarding the growth, actually it seems to on some level protect the plant because we get cold snaps that tend to harm the young tender plants of spring. As far as the ones that grow in the lawn, I just mow them back after they flower. So easy, no need to feed or do anything else. I have tried to naturalize as much as I can I love these spreading plants. The only ones that come close are my ivy and Lily of the Valley. The Lily of the Valley took years to get to the point where I have a wonderful wave. Now I am digging them out of the grass.

 

[Cereus]

I think it's cute. If it's not bothering other plants then I consider it a perennial. However there are some states that consider it an invasive species that's competing with native plants so I'm kinda half and half about it. :[

 

[zigs]

Good job I didn't speak to him, i'd want to know exactly which text book he was misquoting

What on earth was he talking about, harbour vermin?? You'd be hard pressed to hide a mouse under a Celandine, let alone anything bigger.

It's lovely, but Cereus is right, it's from here, so probably found it's way over with the colonists.

 

[Cereus]

It was probably some suburban/city grown guy who's never had much exposure to nature. I don't think he ever cracked open a textbook on gardening plants. His job was probably tied with the town's health board, ect for citations of violating city health codes or whatnot. He probably assumed that because it's ground cover, it automatically meant that it would house creatures that carried disease.

 

[Owdboggy]

There are actually a fair number of forms of Celandine, now properly named Ficaria verna by the way. I have a lovely white form where the back of the petals is purple )ish). And of course there is F.v. Brazen Hussy where the leaves are a lovely bronze colour. This Website has a huge list of them
http://www.johnjearrard.co.uk/plants/ranunculusficaria/genus.html

 

[galmal]

Oh, so that's what that weed is called! I knew it wasn't something I planted, so I guess it qualifies as a "weed", but I'm like you, it really is quite attractive in the garden. I love the leaves, they are such a pretty deep green and are an interesting shape and the little yellow flowers are lovely. It really begs the question "what is a weed?". Just because we didn't cultivate it doesn't mean it has no value or place in our garden.

My brother traveled quite a bit, and when he was in South America, he saw impatients growing wild everywhere - in ditches on the side of the road, through cracks in sidewalks, etc. It dawned on him, that to the South Americans, impatients were weeds just like dandelions were for us. Yet we pay tons of money each year, buying them from nurseries. I guess one man's trash really is another man's treasure!

 

[zigs]

Weed should be written out of the language.

Grass is a weed in a rosebed, and a rose is a weed in the lawn.

 

[Owdboggy]

A Rose is a weed every where it grows!

 

[zigs]

Not if you like Rose Hip Syrup

 

[Owdboggy]

The oddest thing I find about Celandine is that there are so many variations, yet along our country lane where the verges are stuffed full of it in Spring, there is nothing but the normal yellow one.

 

[zigs]

It is odd, you see a lot of Primroses that have crossed with Polyanthus.

 

[LouisFerdinand]

Celadine Poppy is also called Wood Poppy.
https://flic.kr/p/2iN7N5u

 

[Oliver Buckle]

"Harbouring vermin" is really laughable. I can instantly think of a dozen garden plants that would be sold in a nursery and be more likely to, unless he means something like earwigs or ants.