Deadheading purslane

Does purslane (not the weed but the kind similar to moss rose) need to be deadheaded? This is the first year I've had cultivated purslane so I'm wondering. I have three hanging baskets of it.

Thanks, Colleen

Colleen, last year I purchased a cultivated purslane plant at the local nursery. I did not need to deadhead. It had a nice spreading habit and bloomed beautifully until frost. I'll bet it's really beautiful as a hanging plant!

I constantly battle purslane, the noxious weed, but I've noticed a few plants that look more like the cultivated variety I grew last year. They may have reseeded. I'll just have to wait until they bloom to know for sure. (And I hope it's not the weed that I'm allowing to propagate in the meantime. Sigh!)

Thanks. I thought surely you wouldn't need to deadhead purslane but I thought perhaps it was blooming less so wondered. I don't like to deadhead.

It is lovely in hanging baskets. I have 3 spots in my yard that get wind and it seems to thrive there in the partial sun. Glad to have found the right flowering plant for those places.

Colleen

I always grow the cultivated purslane in lots of different colors. They are a very hardy plant. I don't deadhead either. As the summer goes by I do cut them back when they begin to get leggy. Then I put a little bloom booster on the containers and they revive up and go on till fall. My problem is the deer like them too. :(

Lin

succulent purslane, the kind many refer to as a weed, is edible, and delicious- eat it leaves, stems and all while still small, in a mixed salad; some steam it when it's larger, but it does get bitter.

short solution to a weed problem! :)

dandelions don't last long in my yard either....

I can remember eating dandelion greens as a child! Since then I've graduated to spinach. LOL! Dandelions get thrown out with the yard waste! (Besides, they're usually in bloom before I notice them!)

Both purslane and scaevola benefit from a haircut when the runners get long, especially if they begin to get bare of leaves/blooms. I cut back a blue and a pink scaevola about 3 weeks ago, and they are coming back and blooming prolifically. I fertilized them also at the time I cut them back, and will continue to do so every 2-3 wks. since they are in containers and the necessary frequent watering flushes out fertlizer at a pretty fast rate.

My experience w/purslane here has been that once it begins to get cool in the fall (come soon, please!) this plant begins to go downhill and there's not much you can do to revive it. I've never had one bloom right up until frost.

This may be a silly question, but what is the difference between the noxious weed purslane, and the one people like? I had some "purslane" pop up and was happy about it, because it looks nice (grows like crazy) but if it's a weed and could do harm to the others around it . . . well, I'm not sure I'm so happy about it. It's kind of pretty. It's not all over, but just in a couple of spots where it popped up last year as well.

bernrice, if you didn't plant it -- you'll probably want to get rid of it -- but only if it's invasive in your area. In my neck of the woods this is truly a nuisance. I looked in Plant Files, though, and was shocked to see how lovely some of these really are.

bernice,

purslane is purslane- it's only 'noxious' because it is a pain in the behind, not b/c it is poisonous or harmful. noxious defines a plant inimical to farming, not inherently harmfull to people or animals (though doesn't rule it out!!). the rule of thumb is that if it isn't where you want it, it's a weed:)

Figaro and Fllem, thanks for the info. The purslane I have is actually quite pretty, and lucky for me, it's in an area that could be contained or removed so for now I think I'll let it be a pretty weed :o) I appreciate your comments and have a great day!

Benrice, thanks. It's good to know that it's pretty and that it's in the right place.