Sneak Peek at the October Meeting

Dave Mussar is a daylily hybridizer in Guelph, Ontario. Next month Dave will be coming to tell us about his daylilies and what characteristics he tries to bring out in his hybrids. Even though he gardens in Canada, Dave is in the same zone 5b as we are. It will be a meeting not to be missed so mark your calendars! Next month’s newsletter will have more so stay tuned.…

Thank you to Rosemary Deen who lives near Kingston, NY, for sending us the following article. Please watch out for this invasive in your gardens.

Stiltgrass:
Barbarian at the Garden Gate

with a sprawling habit. It is a colonizing species that spreads quickly during the summer and fall. Individual plants may produce 100 to 1,000 seeds that drop in the late summer and germinate the following spring. Seed may be carried further by water currents during heavy rains or moved in with contaminated hay, soil, potted plants, construction fill, footwear and on the tires of vehicles. Stiltgrass seed remains viable in the soil for five years and germinates readily when hit by sunlight. When the plant dies it leaves a thick layer of thatch because the stems are slow to decompose and the density can suffocate other plants in its path. The seed itself is allelopathic which means it produces a chemical that suppresses the gemination of other types of seed, thus turning biodiverse areas into stiltgrass monocultures.

Where did it come from?:
It was sent to the US in the early 20th century in the form of packing material from Asia. The dried grass was used to pack imported dishes and household goods. It first showed up as a problem in Tennessee and has since spread across the US.