2

I have this plant growing in my garden in Columbia, South Carolina, USA. The photo was taken yesterday (August 20), where we have just had a hot and humid summer.

The plant looks kind of interesting, and I was reluctant to pull it, but if it's a weed I probably do want to pull it.

A search on Plantnet and Google Images came up with little; Plantnet guessed nutsedge or garlic, and someone at a local gardening store suggested an onion. I'd be very surprised if I had garlic or onions growing, and photos which I found of nutsedge look rather different.

Any idea what this is and whether or not I should remove it?

Photo of plant

1
  • 1
    An easy way to test if this plant is in the onion family is to break part of it (the tip off a leaf, say) and smell it. If there's no oniony smell then it's not garlic or onion. Also, Allium plants don't have jointed stems like the plant in the photo.
    – Kilobyte
    Aug 21, 2022 at 14:10

1 Answer 1

2

Tradescantia bracteata (prairie spiderwort, longbract spiderwort)

Found using Bing Visual Search and this photo.

I think you should keep it. If people think it is weed, then tell them that it is a very fine native flower.

3
  • Great, thank you! I have some of these growing elsewhere in my garden, and which produced beautiful flowers in the spring. I didn't realize this was the same type of plant! Aug 22, 2022 at 10:10
  • 1
    Much more likely to be Tradescantia ohioensis or a seedling of Tradescantia x andersonii, as T. bracteata is not native much farther east than the Mississippi River. In any case, it is indeed a spiderwort.
    – Jurp
    Aug 22, 2022 at 12:05
  • It has now started producing the telltale purple flowers -- thanks again! Sep 17, 2022 at 11:18

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.