On 16/7/07 17:05, in article
, "Cat(h)"
wrote:

On Jul 16, 3:48 pm, Sacha wrote:
On 16/7/07 14:18, in article
om, "Cat(h)"

wrote:

snip

Definitely Chervil: I read in one of the website that more mature
leaves turn a shade of bronze, which I described as purple. Not sure
how it ended up in my garden!
Thanks again!
Cat(h)

I'm glad you've found it but if you're pulling up dill and chervil, are you
on what used to be somebody's herb garden? That would explain how it ended
up there.



No, the site used to be mostly scattered with rubbish and slabs of
concrete when we bought the house 4 years ago :-)

We had some friends here last week who live on the Hamble. Their house is
21 years old and they say they can dig only inches before hitting rubble
etc. from where an old house was knocked down to build their small housing
estate. It sounds as if their gardening is pretty hard work, like yours!

The dill is my own doing. A single specimen set up shop between veg
and ornamental plants, having emigrated from my herb garden last year
(where incidentally, dill did appallingly badly). It was so huge and
gorgeous I kept it (and used it generously). But I didn't behead it
in time, so it self seeded profusely. The weather has been appalling
here for the last two months, and I have been busy in work, so I
hadn't been spending any worthwhile time in the garden in ages. I
ended up with a veritable rainforest of the stuff between the veg and
one of my ornamental beds. I plucked it all over this week end,
keeping and freezing as much of the fronds as I could (I love dill in
salads and with fish).

I really like dill sauce and dill mayonnaise if someone else makes the mayo
bit. Mine is always a disaster and I'm sure it's because I'm not patient
enough!

The chervil is the real mystery. Never saw it before, and this year
there was quite a bit of it at the foot of my beans. I must ask my
neighbours if they grow it - that might be the explanation.
I'm quite chuffed though, and nearly sorry I plucked it like a weed.
Though I suspect there is still some about, which I may just leave
there and harvest for culinary purposes.

Cat(h)

Or pop some in a pot, as well, perhaps?


--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
(remove weeds from address)
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'

"Cat(h)" wrote in message
oups.com...
On Jul 16, 10:24 am, Sacha wrote:
On 16/7/07 08:41, in article ,
"Charlie





Pridham" wrote:

"Cat(h)" wrote in message
.. .
I was doing some badly needed weeding in the (rare) sunshine today,
and came across a weed/herb I do not know. It is low growing, with
the same type of leaf structure as flat-leaf parsley, only much more
delicate. It is a paler shade of green, too, and the leaves closer
to
the soil can be even paler, nearly white, or a very odd shade of
purple.
What made me think it could be a herb is that when crushed it smell
of
licorice/aniseed.
I was so enthusiastically weeding I did not take the time to take a
pic. I hope my description is enough to identify it?
TIA.

Cat(h)

Try Achillea, not sure which species but I have a low growing fine
grey
green leafed weed in my grass that matches your description, has white
flowers if left long enough, aromatic but I would not have said
aniseed.

I'm confused now! Original Cat said it is like flat-leaf parsley which
Ligusticum resembles but now that it is very fine and delicate.
Ligusticum
does have the aniseed smell but there is something else that is almost
dill
like in its leaves but I don't know the name.
My other suggestion would be Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara)

--

I'm sorry for being obviously not very gifted at describing the plant.
None of the suggestions (having googled photos of same) match my
plant.
I said it had the same leaf structure as parsley, i.e. a ferny type
leaf. However, I also said it was far more delicate, easily crushed/
bruised, very pale green, with some leaves white and even purple close
to the ground. I am not sure how tall it would get given the chance -
it didn't get the chance. I have to say I had never come across it
anywhere until this year in my veg patch.
There's only one thing for it: I must try and get a photo of it. If
the weather permits next week end, and assuming that I didn't pluck
every last bit of it, I'll take a pic and post a link to it.
I seem to recall some time back someone posted a website through which
one could access a database of photos categorised by shapes/colours
etc. to identify plants. Has anyone the url for this?
Thanks to all for the collective headscratching :-)

Cat(h)


Could it be a stray chervil or dill plant?
--
Charlie, gardening in Cornwall.
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of National Plant Collections of Clematis viticella (cvs) and
Lapageria rosea

On Jul 16, 11:01 pm, "Charlie Pridham"
wrote:
"Cat(h)" wrote in message

oups.com...





On Jul 16, 10:24 am, Sacha wrote:
On 16/7/07 08:41, in article ,
"Charlie

Pridham" wrote:

"Cat(h)" wrote in message
.. .
I was doing some badly needed weeding in the (rare) sunshine today,
and came across a weed/herb I do not know. It is low growing, with
the same type of leaf structure as flat-leaf parsley, only much more
delicate. It is a paler shade of green, too, and the leaves closer
to
the soil can be even paler, nearly white, or a very odd shade of
purple.
What made me think it could be a herb is that when crushed it smell
of
licorice/aniseed.
I was so enthusiastically weeding I did not take the time to take a
pic. I hope my description is enough to identify it?
TIA.

Cat(h)

Try Achillea, not sure which species but I have a low growing fine
grey
green leafed weed in my grass that matches your description, has white
flowers if left long enough, aromatic but I would not have said
aniseed.

I'm confused now! Original Cat said it is like flat-leaf parsley which
Ligusticum resembles but now that it is very fine and delicate.
Ligusticum
does have the aniseed smell but there is something else that is almost
dill
like in its leaves but I don't know the name.
My other suggestion would be Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara)

--

I'm sorry for being obviously not very gifted at describing the plant.
None of the suggestions (having googled photos of same) match my
plant.
I said it had the same leaf structure as parsley, i.e. a ferny type
leaf. However, I also said it was far more delicate, easily crushed/
bruised, very pale green, with some leaves white and even purple close
to the ground. I am not sure how tall it would get given the chance -
it didn't get the chance. I have to say I had never come across it
anywhere until this year in my veg patch.
There's only one thing for it: I must try and get a photo of it. If
the weather permits next week end, and assuming that I didn't pluck
every last bit of it, I'll take a pic and post a link to it.
I seem to recall some time back someone posted a website through which
one could access a database of photos categorised by shapes/colours
etc. to identify plants. Has anyone the url for this?
Thanks to all for the collective headscratching :-)

Cat(h)

Could it be a stray chervil or dill plant?

Very likely chervil, definitely not dill (I am quasi intimate with
dill, and would recognise it anywhere :-))
Cat(h)

On Jul 16, 5:07 pm, K wrote:
"Cat(h)" writes



On Jul 16, 2:05 pm, "Cat(h)" wrote:
On Jul 16, 1:49 pm, Jennifer Sparkes wrote:

Could it be Chervil? Though I think the leaves may be more finely cut
than the plant you are describing.

Jennifer

Do you know, I think you've just cracked it! The photos I can find
look remarkably like the stuff I have been pulling from under my
beans!
Thank you so much!

Cat(h) (who will keep whatever more of it shows up)- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Definitely Chervil: I read in one of the website that more mature
leaves turn a shade of bronze, which I described as purple. Not sure
how it ended up in my garden!
Thanks again!
Cat(h)

I wouldn't eat it until you've identified it definitely including
letting it flower and seed. One of the weedy umbellifers, for example,
does the leaf colour change thing, and along with the herbs like chervil
there's a lot of poisonous plants in that family.

Very good point. I shall try and find an unplucked plant, and let it
run its full course.

Cat(h)