I have a beef with the inclusion of Periwinkle ( Vinca minor ) on my coop’slistof banned plants – banned because they ’re count invasive ( despite NOT being listed on theMaryland Invasive Plant list ) .
I ’ve grown it in two suburban area of DC and in neither locating ( or the gardens of my neighbors ) has it farm vigorously . If anything , my complaint , echoed by other area gardeners , is that it ’s not vigorousenough .
So let ’s find out where it ’s invasive and under what condition , shall we ?
TheInvasive Plant Atlassays it ’s “ invade natural area throughout the easterly U.S. It inhabits open to shady sites including forests and often escapes from erstwhile homesites . ”
TheState of Indianasays : “ Once established , Vinca minor form a dim carpet to the excommunication of other plants . This create a trouble where it is vie with aboriginal plant life . ”
Moving west , aCalifornia sourcesays it “ tends to become invasive in hot Mediterranean climates . ”
Indeed I lastly found a smudge where Periwinkle IS intelligibly a problem . In this photo it ’s seen covering much of the ground layer in the Treman State Park in Upstate New York .
Plant them in the Right Place
Ground covers have a job to do – covering the earth , and not drive too long to do it , either . When they do their job they prevent erosion and widow’s weeds . No surprise that successful ground cover song can , in the wrong spot , do their business too TOO well . So what ’s the right-hand blank space for Periwinkle ?
Commenters onDaves Gardensuggest answers : “ Yes , genus Vinca can be strong-growing , but I am grateful for that , given the difficulty of getting anything to grow under my Norway maples or in the dirty fill around my 1885 home … I would not grow this plant if I lived where it could get away into a timberland . ”
One paper suggests,“Place this endearing in a nice hanging basket or medium to large plantation owner . ”
I like what one commenter onHouzzhas to say :
As with any so - called trespassing plant , its invasive attribute are determined by localization and planting situation … It does n’t act as all that well with smaller , herbaceous perennials , as it can easily overcome and smother them . And I would ward off planting it in any area that would permit it to spread out into any natural plantings , like open woodland .
David Beaulieu ( formerly of About.com , now writing forThe Spruce ) suggests it as a lawn replacement under trees and lists its many advantages :
Because of their power to rootle and propagate , they can help oneself view as the land in property . This can be important on the side of a Benny Hill , where stain erosion might be a trouble .
The vine ask trivial caution . They are cervid - insubordinate and rabbit - proof peak , and few insect eat them , so there is not much pest control to worry about . A
problematic , small - maintenance , and pest - free , Vinca minor has pretty foliage and flowers ; it is also a useful plant life . In spite of all of these benefits , it does have one drawback .
The “ one drawback ” of course is its potential invasiveness :
Vinca small vinesare regard passably invading plants , so , if this is a concern for you , make it a point each twelvemonth to keep their runners in check . But remember , the impudent side of the coin for so - call “ invasive plants ” is that they are vigorous agriculturist , entail that they tend to be successful at take in an surface area . This is often exactly what you want out of a ground cover .
Back home , here ’s a patch of Periwinkle between my front yard and a parking lot . Surrounded by concrete and asphalt in all directions , this “ trespassing ” is n’t survive anywhere – because it only spreads by runner , not by birds or wind . It ’s nothing like English ivy , which harms tree by climbing up into them , where it makes berries that are then propagate by birds .
I wish “ invasives ” were n’t lumped together as they so often are – with little or no inside information as to how , where , and under what conditions they can damage other plant or raw area . Plants that are invasive only along stream or in regions with modest winters can get banned from places where they ’re no threat at all .
In my neighbourhood the mistaken ( I cope ) shun Periwinkle creates a particular problem . All hencoop members are required to cover the priming in their ( mostly shady ) chiliad , and banning the subtlety - love , pest - liberal , evergreen Periwinkle leave behind us with very few choice – mainly Pachysandra and Liriope . They too are listed as invasives – somewhere – and may finish up banned , too . Then what ?
Flowering Vinca minor photo byMargrit .
