Plants that reseed themselves

Yes - that's why I go crazy when I see a flower!

Victor - I really feel positive that the first few blooms are not facing us so we don't see them and they've reseeded by the time we manage to rip the plant out. They are quite sneaky and I've seen blooms on plants at 5" tall.

Seandor, I remember starting out and feeling the same way. I wanted aggressive plants and profuse reseeders. I had a lot of space to fill. In time, that changes and they are just annoying.
As to what is a "bad" plant, I think it is much more ideosyncratic to each garden. Others have complained about plants I find very useful. A thug of a plant might be the one thing that survives in your toughest spot.

Dave is 100% right. Maybe we've all done it?

Victor has nightmares with his Lysmachia clethroides and I love mine - it truly is so well behaved here. Yesterday I was at my favorite little nursery and speaking to the owner/horticulturist about Lysmachia and other "invasives" and he said he's seen them cover a field and others that simply don't want to move from where they're planted.

My daughter loves Aegopodium and I can't stand how it takes over a garden. Sharing our own experiences is the fun part, to me.

In general, it's easier to deal with an invasive that spreads by runners as opposed to throwing seeds everywhere. The seeds result in plants distant from the original, including in your neighbors' yards. A runner will not suddenly appear 50 ft away - except possibly a Bamboo.

Agreed.....but.....seedlings come out so easily compared to digging for the root of a hummingbird vine when it's surrounded by clematis.

When I commented on the aggravation of pulling MG seeds, long ago, I got a response that said, "Just deadhead the MG". Sure, and cater a party for 200 while I'm at it!

In general yes, but I have some of the tougher ones. The seedlings of Chasmanthium and Eupatorium 'Chocolate' do not pull out easily at all. You can't do it with just your hand.

Haven't grown the plants you named I will take your word for it. I was thinking more along the lines of Cosmos and Cleome.

This is the first year that Cleome has reseeded in my garden :)
Usually I have to start them every year but this year they actually survived. I'm quite thrilled really :) They last for such a long time and provide such color. In zone 5 (Maine) not too many things re-seed and come back after our winters.

Kim

Here the seedlings seem to appear about May 8th. Time will tell if I've made another error to join my long list.

I have clay, acidic soil, which may or may not help inhibit growth of various plants.

My gooseneck loosestrife is well behaved. Sure it spreads, but slowly and I have it in a rock wall where it will be tough for it to become invasive.

Husker Red and Bachelor's buttons have only had volunteers this year - I've had them for 4 years so I'm unsure why the change. Both of these have always put on a really nice display. Granted, the Husker Red is more for foliage, but the seed heads are part of the show too

Two years ago geraniums were everywhere, but not last year and I don't seem to have that problem this year so far.

I have to plant Morning glories every year if I want any. I can't get Rose Campion to survive winter, so have given up on it.

This is how my Husker Red looks most of the time (after flowering of course) - I can't complain about performance!

I planted 2 malva 'Zebrina' last year and they didn't come up this spring. so I don't know if they would be agressive reseeders or not :-( I'm really disappointed. they were in bloom when I got them and I just love them.

don't have any of the other offenders. I have tried not to make any mistakes that I would have to live with forever. I have enough trouble keeping up with weeds

Could be your cooler climate, cfarres. I have acidic clay soil too. My Loosestrife has not spread fifty feet - I don't want to cause confusion. It has spread about ten feet in radius. However, they really come up densely and choke other plants.

For me, problems are
Ranunculus was tough
Cleome comes up all over
tomatoes (not a big problem)
Lamb's ear & black eyed susans are aggressive but I've been glad

Not a problem for me but others have problems:
morning glories
chocolate eupatorium
lamium (It's in dry shade)

My Lamb's Ear has spread very slowly. Northern Sea Oats (Chasmanthium) is a nightmare, as I have said. Goldenrod seems to get worse every year and is a biggie this year.

One incident that amuses me is when I spread all the soil from the old, worn out half whiskey barrels that each held a cherry tomato (Sweet 100). I used the soil in the rose garden and have pulled out countless amounts of volunteers.

They are the cleome of the vegetable family!

Will they produce if you leave them??

They will produce but not identical to the original plants, naturally.

Dave - they certainly are!

Have you tried?? Did they produce good tomatoes?

I haven't tried. They are always later and wimpier than what I want to plant.

They've never matched the mother plant for us either. Definitely inferior.