Pretty weeds

As I recall, I used this title once before during my early days of blogging and at the time was surprised by the volume of traffic it received by comparison to my other posts.  I quickly concluded that search engines had confused my content with a different kind of "weed." That may happen again but oh well.  This post is focused on the invasive weeds that have taken over an empty lot up the street from our house that I walk by nearly daily.  The house on the property apparently burned down decades ago, well before we moved into the neighborhood fifteen years ago.  It's a double lot, probably two acres in size with a view of the Port of Los Angeles.  There are trees and other remnants of the original landscaping, including decayed entrance paving.  Why the lot hasn't been sold and another home (or two) built on the property eludes me.

Possibly the most prevalent and invasive non-native weed in Southern California is the yellow one you see here, known as mustard weed (Brassica nigra).  It can grow up to 10 feet tall and, when the flower stalks die, they pose a fire risk.  The weeds on this lot are cut down once or twice a year by the city and I understand that the expense is charged to the property owner, who no longer interacts with our HOA.

Do you see the purplish flowers mingling with the mustard weed?  Those are tall shrubs, native to Mexico and Central and South America, commonly known as fiberglass plants (Wigandia urens).  Sold as ornamental plants, they have an invasive root system.  They run amok on this lot. 

Here are closeups of the most prominent weeds:

I briefly entertained the idea of taking a cutting of the Wigandia to try in my garden.  However, I was put off by their rangy structure, size, and spread and then I learned that, in addition to their invasive growth habit, their leaves can sting your skin.  Check out the nursery comments included at the bottom of the plant description found here. 

Closeup of the Wigandia's flowers.  I won't even try cutting the flowers to pop into a vase!

This wild radish (Raphanus sativus) also has pale purplish flowers and it's considered a highly invasive week in California too. Its roots and sprouts are considered edible, though, and the plants have been used in folk medicine to treat a range of ailments like urinary infections and heart conditions.

Onionweed (Asphodelus fistulosus) was originally sold as a decorative plant.  Native to the Mediterranean region, it's considered a noxious weed by the US Department of Agriculture.  Its flowers are pretty - for a nanosecond.  The dried plants pose a fire hazard. 

Next door to the empty lot, another plant grabbed my attention.  It's not a weed but it's a plant I've never seen anywhere else so I'll share it here.

This is Roldana petasitis, aka velvet groundsel and California geranium.  It hails from the mountain areas of Mexico.  It's reportedly drought tolerant; has large, velvety leaves; and it flowers abundantly.  Why have I never seen it anywhere but in front of this house?  San Marcos Growers has a write-up on the plant that can be found here.

 

I spotted this fellow further down the street, also checking out the local plants.

The big news is that we've had measurable rain and there's more on the way.  As I schedule this post for publication Wednesday morning, we've had nearly an inch and a half since Monday, bringing our seasonal total-to-date (counted from October 1, 2025) to close to ten inches.  As our roof-top weather station was clogged for a short time, my total may be understated.  I tried to check our total against that tabulated for our zip code but that number, and the associated AI evaluation of our rainfall this water year, is completely screwed up, showing just over one inch of rain in total.  While our peninsula has undoubtedly received less rain than nearby valley, foothill, and mountain areas, it's not that bad!  Like our president, AI needs to learn to acknowledge factual errors when they occur if it's to be trusted.  Human oversight is obviously required.

We had a brief pause in the rain on Tuesday.  There were even blue skies at intervals.

Photo taken during the late morning hours yesterday looking southeast from my back garden

The warmth of the sun on seat cushions on the back patio caused steam to rise from them, something I always find a bit alarming at first glance

More rain is expected overnight and into the early morning hours, followed by another pause for most of Wednesday.  Rain is back in the forecast for Thursday, to be followed by a weekend pause with another stretch of rain possible from next Monday through Wednesday.  My two smaller rain storage tanks are full again and I estimate that the 275-gallon tank is about three-quarters full.

Although some of my flowers have been flattened by the rain, I'm still discovering new blooms with every spin through the garden.  Here's one:

Ferraria crispa (aka starfish iris)

I took another local hike last weekend before the rain arrived.  I have it on the docket for Friday's post.

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party