Mother In Laws Tongue Flower

My mother in law didn’t have a a particularly sharp tongue. Well, maybe a little sharp. My Florida yard is blessed with an abundance of these plants. It still seems unreal to me to be nearly overrun by- well, houseplants.

The only way to describe the Mother In Law’s Tongue in my yard is a plethora. Or a Boatload. I am suspicious someone brought a houseplant from Michigan in 1964 and unleashed this unholy plant on my garden. The Florida gardening books consider this plant escaped and invasive.

I am certain I cannot rid my yard of this without total annihilation of everything so I have decided to live with it. I was surprised over the weekend to see that these plants flower. And are kind of pretty. On the flip side, this flower probably produces a quarter of a million seeds per stalk. I have ended up with at least 100 linear feet of edging of MILT about 5 feet deep. The only thing that keeps it in bounds is frequent mowing with the lawn mower.

The Mass of Mother In Law Tongues

If I step back and squint the plants have an interesting texture and a nice green color. An added bonus-extreme drought resistance. I just have to keep reminding myself of these good features.

More fun from the tropics…