Mystery Flower #9

I haven’t been able to take my regular walk lately, so I offer you a Mystery Flower from last spring.

mystery-flower-9

The Mystery Flower is the red stuff seen here in one of my wildflower bouquets. It was growing sporadically in the lawn of our old apartment building. In some neighborhood lawns, it had completely taken over.

I think in small quantities this flower is almost attractive, but I’m sorry to say that it makes lawns look horrible. It is, therefore, a plant most homeowners probably don’t want to see. My guess at its identity is in the comments.

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One Response to Mystery Flower #9

  1. chick says:

    This is most likely sheep sorrel (a.k.a. common sorrel or red sorrel). It doesn’t so much ruin a lawn as it indicates that the lawn is suffering from high acidity and low nutrients.

    Sheep sorrel is another one of those plants that supposedly has edible parts. I continue to be amazed at how many everyday plants are considered potential food sources, but while I’ve always been intrigued by the concept of foraging, I can’t imagine eating this stuff. It doesn’t look like food, and after reading about some of the possible side effects of eating it, I don’t think it is food. It’s just a weed. I say put some lime on your lawn and pretend that the sheep sorrel was just a bad dream.

    Coincidentally, there’s a big news story right now about a 13-year-old with cancer who ran away with his mother to avoid court-ordered chemotherapy treatments. Another family was also mentioned in the news because their son (Billy Best) ran away for the same reason way back when, and they claim he was ultimately cured by a product called Essiac. One of the ingredients of Essiac is sheep sorrel.

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