As summer thins so may the gardeners resolve. In a climate with four seasons, the battle of maintaining waivers after the heat of July and August. The results leave many annual weeds free to bandy about and great battles are lost in a short time. A younger gardener may not feel or even know the challenge, they are armed with energy and a positive outlook, or so it seems as I look over areas of my garden that have been overtaken with a layered sea of morning glory. How did these seeds travel so far? Birds and/or ants may be culprits, dropped from a distance, no evil intent or lack of respect. One morning glory, or maybe all, were brought to the garden on purpose. The cardinal climber was a favorite for its spider-like leaves and small red flowers. Now it cavorts with others, scrambling up everything. Hummingbirds love it and my surrender to the battle always comes in August when I feel like the hummingbirds need it and I'm too tired to continue.

A particularly aggressive morning glory, Ipomoea acuminata was an experiment while I still had the nursery. Deep purple flowers on a hostile vine quickly led me to discontinue growing it. Alas it followed me home, some small seed tucked in with something else. I have managed to eradicate it, or it became the soft blue of 'Heavenly Blue', the vine that may have swallowed sleeping beauty whole as she slept the summer away. On a positive note, who needs to tie up tomatoes when you have morning glory?

The one annual weed that may be the end of me is mulberry weed or Fatoua villosa. New in the scheme of things, a pest from Japan that is spreading to every state and many continents in record speed. I'm sure it's entry into my garden came from something I purchased; a few seeds is all it takes. Capable of flowering with only three leaves, by late summer it may be two feet tall and loaded with minute flowers and seed heads. Easy to pull but alarming in its coverage, a word of caution, if you are pulling the plant check your hands where there will certainly be remnant seeds (you may be moving it around). Hand pulling is something that must begin early and continue nonstop, a chore that seems impossible. One method to thwart mulberry weed is to lay newspaper (5-6 layers) on the ground and top with wood chips. In areas that are void of spring bulbs; under shrubs or flower border edges, cardboard will last longer, also topped with mulch or wood chips. Similar to other warm season weeds, the seeds will be viable for many years, so be ready to relayer or patch where they sprout anew. In my own garden I have targeted areas where I will newspaper this fall in an attempt to diminish the population.

At this point I find it hard to believe I will finish the battle of annual weeds versus me. Other vengeful players are the perennial vines like oriental bittersweet, Japanese honeysuckle, and ampelopsis which are a battle of another sort.

Ah but the zinnias are lovely and my tuberose are blooming…I'll take heart that it was worth it and wait for cooler days and a new energy.