We cut the meadows in the middle of July, soon after the yellow rattle had seeded and before the creeping thistle set in. The rattle is a semi-parasitic annual and was sown three years ago to sap the strength of the grasses it uses as hosts. I was worried that colonies of thistle might take advantage of the empty space, but the rattle appears to be holding them back, too. I had been told this was the case and though it is too early to say because it might simply not be a thistle year, it will be nice to aspire to a miracle.
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Gardens: order of the thistle
We cut the meadows in the middle of July, soon after the yellow rattle had seeded and before the creeping thistle set in. The rattle is a semi-parasitic annual and was sown three years ago to sap the strength of the grasses it uses as hosts. I was worried that colonies of thistle might take advantage of the empty space, but the rattle appears to be holding them back, too. I had been told this was the case and though it is too early to say because it might simply not be a thistle year, it will be nice to aspire to a miracle.
