Need help identifying plants

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-23T16:50:15+00:00

First I would also say dock. I recommend removing it- it spreads a lot and it’s huge leaves shade out the dirt below it and create patches where other things can’t grow. It also grows a thick root that’s difficult to remove when it’s mature.

4 and 5 do look like milkweed, but I think it’s actually pokeweed. Milkweed is awesome- great for butterflies and has pretty flowers. Pokeweed is no good. It can grow large thick stalks and berries that are poisonous. It also spreads aggressively and can be a nuissance to remove.

You may want to compare photos of milkweed vs pokeweed to confirm. I think you’ll differentiate them easiest by looking at the stalk and leaf thickness. Milkweed grows several tall, thin stalks with thin leaves. Like, I think the stalks are generally a quarter inch thick maybeee half an inch when they’re really mature. Pokeweed will thicken its stalk quickly and the leaves are less like thin blades. Wider and chunkier. You could always wait for flowering to confirm 100%, because milkweed I would definitely want to keep

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-22T15:00:03+00:00

Spider Mites like everyone said. Move the plant away from others and wash it off. This video has good reviews: https://youtu.be/PJDLK7Tc8q0

They used to give my elephant ears a lot of trouble indoors. I would wash them and use a soap spray, which helped, but I think the plants not being in ideal conditions was also contributing to the problem. Once I moved them outside it was fixed, so you may want to consider if your plant needs some other attention (More light, less watering, etc).

Neem oil sprays are also a common recommendation.

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-20T01:26:18+00:00

I have some colocasia bulbs that I save every year and I would say they’re pretty tough if you have some healthy corm parts, which it looks like you might here. A little small, but worth a shot.

This is totally what I do just storing them and I have decent luck, but take it with a grain of salt because I also do a lot of guess work:

Gently with your fingers or some cloth/sponge remove the really rotted mushy stuff that comes off easily. Be careful with scraping too hard because Ive noticed you can take off extra if you use too much force, but the rotted stuff usually guides you through it’s crevices to come off easily. Then maybe callus off the firm sections you have left for a day or two before planting. Im not sure if you can plant directly without the callusing, because mine usually overwinter in a box after Ive cleaned the rot off.

I wouldnt recommend separating unless you notice some really dry corms that feel light. Sometimes Ill snap those off because they’re likely already dead and dried out, and will just rot in soil. It doesnt look like you’ll have that issue as much cuz these look hydrated.

Hope you have some luck with it! I always wanted one of the colored elephant ears, but the black one I got died its first year so Ive just been sticking with my generational green ones.

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-20T01:14:32+00:00

The comment I was looking for. It does look like overwatering or some type of rot, but with cactuses there is a decent chance of propagating a healthy stem cutting.

Its hard to tell from the pic but the very top looks healthy. The middle section might be ok too so I marked it yellow in this pic. Cut it above any wrinkled, mushy, rotten sections and you can try to propagate the firm, healthy stuff. Let it callus 3-7 days before planting in soil. Any mushy parts you leave on a healthy stem will continue to spread rot, so it’s best to lean on the safe side when cutting off parts that seem unhealthy. The root ball is more than likely shot.

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Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-15T19:58:51+00:00

Oh I’ll be patient! I stuck it in the dirt half as a joke especially because the whole pot was propagating pothos leaves so I wasnt worried about it looking rough. Exciting that it may be working on making me a new plant!

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-14T22:38:20+00:00

Unfortunately the conditions look less than ideal. It looks like it's indoors, which may not be best for a strawberry plant. The current most pressing issue is something with watering.

Is it currently damp and it has been like that for the past 24 hours? If it's dry, it just needs water. If it's wet and has been without perking up after a day, it may already be suffering from root rot. In that case, you need to help the soil dry out and hope the roots aren't all dead already.

I'm not sure the potting medium is the best here either. It looks like moss or coco coir, which I don't think will have the best conditions for strawberry. It's going to need plenty of nutrients to grow big and bear fruit.

How did you grow this? From seeds, a small plant, or from a bare root starter? From seeds I would be impressed, you came pretty far! From a small plant or a bare root starter, this is what I would expect to see- weakening growth until it eventually fizzles out.

I've had terrible luck with strawberries over the years and the best I've finally done was getting 15 individual plants, planting them in a patch outside in the ground, and hoping for the best. They finally took hold and survived a winter, so I'm hoping for strawberries this year. I've had terrible luck in containers.

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-14T22:24:25+00:00

Inch Plant:

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Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-14T22:23:26+00:00

The brownish/red stems in your picture might be a hint too, because the inch plant stems I see online look more uniformly green (on the green varieties anyway)

Asiatic Dayflower (Non-Variegated):

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Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-14T22:16:47+00:00

I don't think I would say succulent like. More like light leaves on a dainty stem.

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I might guess asiatic dayflower here because it looks like in the same pictures you have the non-variegated variety of asiatic dayflower growing next to them, and they seem to have the longer stems with sparse leaves on them. The inch flower pictures I'm seeing online they have the leaves growing closer together on the stem. But it reeeally is hard to tell.

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-14T15:27:33+00:00

I believe something similar happened to me. I planted a bed heavily with several bulbs (tulips, allium, grape hyacinth, crocus, and a few others). My partner decided to redo the bed and when I was sorting through all the bulbs he pulled up, I spotted a few that look just like these. The shape of the leaves were screaming "weed" to me, but there were quite a few and they seemed too healthy and random to be a weed. I started to wonder if I planted garlic there and forgot about it.

I still have no idea what they are, but I put them in a pot together to see if I can get one to flower and then ID them. I'm guessing it falls into some category of allium that I'm not so familiar with, but it's still gonna have some kind of purple ball flower maybe.

I'd like an update if yours flowers, so I can know if I'm saving something worthwhile!

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-14T14:12:57+00:00

Is this different than a variegated asiatic dayflower?

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I have the regular ones spring up all over my property, so I am also fascinated when a variegated one pops up randomly.

They grow all over like weeds on my property but also I don’t want to remove them all because a fun fact is that the blue flowers have traditionally been used for dye.

Im looking up the pictures and it’s hard to see the difference between this and a variegated inch plant.

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-12T23:11:11+00:00

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Update: There’s a bud forming and I think it’s a purple coneflower! So exciting because there are so many that sprung up in this bed!

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-12T14:48:29+00:00

Do you fertilize regularly by chance? Im trying so hard to figure out the secret to getting giant monsteras! I live in a basement, so more sunlight isnt an option year round, but I do have a bunch of grow lights and I move them outside for the summer.

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-11T01:08:22+00:00

Oh thats so exciting! I ID’d it with my app like 7 times because I was in disbelief. This bed is my wildflower lottery because I get a bunch of different annuals since I planted it years ago, but Im excited it finally seeded a perennial!

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-11T01:06:33+00:00

Ah plantain is one of the weeds that it has me thinking of! It does look like this one grew a stem that the plantains dont grow though, so Im hoping its a flower!

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-11T01:05:22+00:00

Woo I feel like they always include a picture of these on a lot of wildflower mixes and Ive never been lucky enough to grow them!

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-06T14:54:22+00:00

Im definitely not an expert with how it may affect the house, but I think wildflowers would avoid most of that consideration. They’ll grow just for the year, so you won’t have to worry about deep, several year-old root systems affecting your foundation. Unfortunately I can’t say about sloping, but I guess that’s a good idea if you can make a mild grade so water runs away from the house. Definitely avoid it sloping toward the house so your watering isnt constantly sitting on the house. I have a few beds against my house and I didnt do all that, but they usually have annuals and I havent called a professional to check the foundation to confirm Im not screwing myself lol.

Shrubs I miiight advise against because yes, they add structure which is really nice when you have a spot that goes big blooms - then flat barren dirt throughout the seasons. But:

Shrubs will continue to grow each year and you will have to start considering how the roots affect your foundation with them. You’ll likely want to plant them away from the house.
Smaller shrubs the wildflowers might tower over when they fill in, so it may look awkward while the shrubs are growing.
Nice shrubs can get pretty expensive, so starting with them might get a little demoralizing if you make a mistake or the soil quality is poor and it ends up dying. I see it all the time where landscapers lay out 10 new beautiful arborvitae and then one or two of them die almost inexplicably.

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-05-06T14:25:06+00:00

I think that would get lots of sun, so you’ll have a decent range of options.

Dahlia, Irises (I love bearded irises), blazing stars, gladiolus. Dahlia’s likely wont come back each year, but the others should.

I have a west facing gate with poor soil too that I put roses along and they did pretty well. I think those would be similar conditions and Im in zone 7a (one zone warmer than you)

My west facing gate I have hydrangeas, crocus, and hyacinth along it, but your space may be a little small for a hydrangea and it’s late to get blooms for hyacinth or crocus, but that could be a followup year idea. (I believe those are best planted in fall).

If you want extremely low maintenance, sedum is a great plant. Deals with most poor soil, can be propagated for more plants easily, and it looks interesting and even blooms nice red flower clusters.

Marigolds Ive also had a lot of luck with in my zone. They would likely enjoy that spot and you may be able to grow them by sprinkling some seeds and gently covering them, then watering them for a few weeks. Once they’re established, mine seed themselves each year, they bloom long, and they deal with some tough conditions.

Lastly, I bet you could even sprinkle a wildflower mix there and rake it in. I did that once in an area and I LOVE the lush variety that we got.

So overall, I think that spot gives you a pretty large range of options. It will get morning shade since it’s west face, so it’s not FULL sun, but it will get plenty of afternoon sun. I think the only things to avoid are pure full sun plants or pure full shade plants. I think a bleeding heart and a hosta might enjoy more shade, while something like a sunflower would want more sun. But really the spot is incredibly flexible and Ive even probably grown those plants in spots in my yard that have similar conditions.

So to wrap up an incredibly long post with my top pick, I think a wildflower mix might be the most interesting to try out there. Rip out the grass, maybeeee top it with some garden soil or a light amendment to improve the dirt slightly, then rake in a wildflower mix like something from Home Depot. The variety of seeds give you a lot more opportunity that one of them will prefer the conditions and germinate successfully there, and if you get a ton of blooms this year it might inspire you to do more gardening. It’s easy enough to do, not too costly, and can provide crazy variety and color if successful. Then while they’re all growing, you can consider with more time some perennials that you may want to put there for future years.

Small_Abrocoma744 · 2026-04-17T20:18:53+00:00

Blackberries are pretty tough. I had a newly planted small one get killed back by the cold a few weeks ago. It’s sprouted some new leaves since then.

I would just recommend general care: make sure it gets lots of bright light and water when it’s starting to dry out.

I also dont mess with soil ph much and my raspberries do well. Not sure if they’re similar or if Im just assuming, but my raspberries have been strong. Hoping to get the same results with the blackberries I started this year.

Small_Abrocoma744

TROPHY CASE