Gopher Plant

"Gopher Plant" Euphorbia rigida 1,2,3,4 (Click any to see larger)
Master Gardener's Compost Garden
Odessa, Texas

There were two shocks awaiting me when I visited the Compost Garden.

The first was the whole garden had been sheered back. It was quite severe to these untrained eyes. I hope the weed whacker operator knew what he/she was doing. Time will tell.

The other shock was this one blooming plant, left untouched. Its chartreuse blooms were eye-popping against an empty backdrop. I had seen the gopher plant there before, but had no idea it bloomed like this, and so early. Nor would I have guessed it to be part of the Euphoriba family until seeing its leaves as part of what we consider the flower, although the real flower is very tiny. The gopher plant is native to Africa and the Mediterranean. The most famous euphorbia would have to be the poinsettia native to Mexico.

Links

• A List of plants at the Compost Garden.
• Wayne's World has been serving the Internet community curiosities for almost ten years, and has a superb illustrated article on the Euphorbia Family.
• There is even an International Euphorbia Society!
  

A Congregation of Henbit

"A Congregation of Henbit" 1,2,3,4 (Click any to see larger)
Parker Heights Christian Church
Odessa, Texas

I spent time with a little bit of henbit. Nice name, "henbit," don't you think? I can easily image chickens voraciously pecking at this early bloomer, greedy for some fresh greens. I feel the same way, although henbit is considered a tenacious weed by many who prefer monoculture lawns. Wonder if it grew to a foot or two instead of only a couple of inches, would that change public opinion?

Oh, here's another tidbit about henbit. It's part of the mint family. When something has square stems it indicates part of the mint family. And mint almost always means edible. Not always tasty, but edible. BUT when in doubt, don't put it in your mouth!


Links

• According to Backyard Nature, you can make a salad from henbit. I would love to try it, but only with henbit grown where I could be sure there were no chemicals applied.
• DiscoverLife.org has lots of other photos. Henbit's other names are "giraffe head" and "deadnettle." I still like "henbit" best.