Weedy oxalis

AW awilson@avonia.com
Mon, 22 Nov 2010 22:02:50 PST
A few, but only a few, oxalis species are known to be weedy. Avoid them and
you need not worry. I bring this up because one of these species is
described in the wiki without any mention of its potential weediness. That
species is O. convexula. A delightful plant in flower, it is grown in
Northern California, from where I have so far heard no reports of a weedy
character. In San Diego, it simply should not be grown. It produces, below
the flowerheads, masses of seed, or really bulbils that are excact clones of
the plant. Those tiny bulbils spring into life when they fall on the ground.
Their small size allows them to be washed around by rain, assisting
spreading very quickly.

The question I have is 'are there oxalis growers out there who have had
problems with O. convexula'? Mary Sue says she has not heard of any in
northern California, or elsewhere. But, does it behave as mine does further
south, in Los Angeles, for instance?

It's important that we know the weedy species and avoid them. There are so
many gorgeous species that never cause problems and are more likely to be
eaten by rodents, that it would be wrong to label the genus as 'not to be
grown'. I'd like the input so that proper guidance is included in the wiki
about those we should avoid and in which areas we should avoid them. Thanks

Andrew Wilson
San Diego  


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