Planting These 10 Flowers In Your Garden Might Not Be a Good Idea—and Here’s Why

Gardening is full of tempting treasure : vivid blossoms , alien bloom , and self - seed yearly that promise effortless color . I know how exciting it is to spot a new industrial plant label at the greenhouse and envision it transforming your beds ! But not every pretty peak play nicely with its neighbors — or your local ecosystem . In this clause , we ’ll look at 10 popular ornamentals that often have more headaches than felicity , from runaway self - seeders to toxic invasives .

It ’s such a bummer when your garden fly the coop your ascendence — when daylily choke out spring bulbs or vine smother shrubs you ’ve parent for years . I ’ve been there , pulling sunup glory tangles at dusk and watching whole borders taken over by belligerent volunteers ! Let ’s dive into why these efflorescence can turn from charming to challenge , with detail on their native reach , invasive tendencies , and even how they interact with pollinators and soil critters .

Crown Vetch (Securigera varia)

Originally from Europe and Asia , Crown Vetch was introduced to North America for roadside erosion ascendancy . It spread via underground rhizomes and prolific source production , constitute dense mats that crowd out native wildflowers . While its pinkish - and - lily-white blooms look sweet at first glimpse , this plant can apace overtake entire gradient , make it nearly impossible to remove once established .

In your garden , Crown Vetch does n’t just smother borders — it alters bemire nutrients by fixing nitrogen , favoring its own paste and disadvantaging plants adapted to leaner stain . soil - nest bee may sometimes nestle under its stocky foliage , but that wo n’t offset the loss of various aboriginal plants that support a extensive range of mountains of pollinator . Trust me , see those Tennessean vines start up en masse shot is more discouraging than any skunk you ’ve ever harness !

Butterfly Bush (Buddleja davidii)

Hailing from China and Japan , Butterfly Bush is beloved for its fragrant , nectar - rich flower spikes that seem to eviscerate every butterfly stroke within a mile ! Unfortunately , its abundant seed set let it to naturalize aggressively in warm climates , where it encroach upon roadsides , riverbanks , and subject field . What begin as a single shrub can breed dozens of unwelcome seedlings by the season ’s end .

Despite attracting swallowtails and monarch butterfly , Butterfly Bush is n’t native to most regions and provides pollen - only flowers , so it does n’t support caterpillar larval stages . That imply you ’re host adult butterflies — but not their young — potentially starving local butterfly population of essential larval nutrient industrial plant . I know how invite those pretty purple blooms are , but they often do more injury than salutary for unfeigned butterfly conservation !

Gazania (Gazania rigens)

Native to South Africa , Gazania ’s bold , daisy - like head open astray on cheery days and confining when clouds roll in . While it ’s a cheerful ground cover in Mediterranean climates , it can naturalise in mild regions , crawl into chap , gravel seam , and wildlands . Once those hardy rootstocks take detention , Gazania can prove obstinate to eliminate .

In the garden , Gazania ’s tight rosettes can debar weed — but they also turf out beneficial native seedling you may want to encourage . Their slick , waxy leaves shed water supply and make nesting tough for earth - dwelling insects like beetle larvae or springtails that serve cycle organic matter . I ’ve supercede Gazania patches before and found bare soil less hospitable to the petty critters that keep my filth healthy !

Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus)

This former - fashioned darling hails from Europe and Asia and was once a staple in cottage beds . Sweet William produces cluster of fragrant blooms and self - seeds promptly , toss off up in young corner each year . give unchecked , it can eclipse more delicate annual and spread into lawn or adjacent borders .

Sweet William ’s bloom attract butterflies and 24-hour interval - flying moths , but their seedlings can become volunteers in the lawn , create unsightly patches . The dim seedlings also limit nesting habitat for diminutive ground bee that favor unembellished or sparsely vegetated grime . I remember rescue my thyme patch from an invasion of Dianthus seedlings — definitely not a fun good afternoon !

Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)

aboriginal to East Asia , Japanese Honeysuckle was bring to gardens for its fragrant , tubular flowers — but it escapes traps easily , mate over bush and Tree and smothering them . Its potent vining riding habit can play down integral hedges , turning once - lively hawthorn borders into naked skeletons beneath a hairline of leaves .

While the sweet nectar does draw hummingbirds and bee , the vine ’s dense canopy cuts off light and air circulation , creating mildew - prone pockets . Plus , its berry spread far and wide via birds , resulting in new outbreaks in woodland where aboriginal understory plants stomach . I ’ve tangled with this vine more time than I care to matter — it always feel like a losing battle !

Morning Glory (Ipomoea purpurea)

Celebrated for its trumpet - shaped flower that unfurl at dawn , Morning Glory originate from tropic America . Yet those enchanting salad days shroud a ravening ego - cloud seeder : each efflorescence get dozens of viable seeds that litter the grease . You ’ll find new vines crawling up fences , trellis , and even supporting plants you never meant to host them !

Morning Glory vine twist tightly around stem turn , potentially girdling untried trees or shrubs . Their rapid growth can block light , and the thick leafage offers cool , damp den for slugs and earwig — pests that then pretend out at night to feed on your veg . It ’s such a bummer to come across nibble zucchini leaves under the covering fire of sweet-scented morning heyday !

Yellow Flag Iris (Iris pseudacorus)

Common in wetlands of Europe , North Africa , and Western Asia , Yellow Flag Iris was introduced to North America for water gardens . It before long escaped , forming dense dependency along flow banks and wetland — choking out aboriginal sedge and rushes . Those improbable , bright - yellow spike await endearing , but they stand for a serious environmental threat .

In your garden ’s bog or pond , Yellow Flag Iris crowds out good wetland plants that support amphibian ballock and aquatic insects . Its rootstock alter water flow and sediment patterns , harming frog and dragonfly breeding habitats . I once choose this iris for a pelting garden and regretted it when it nearly overtook the entire pond edge !

Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)

aboriginal to Europe , Purple Loosestrife ’s Battle of Magenta wands once graced cottage borders , but today it ’s a infamous invader of marshes and riverbank across North America . Each mature plant can produce up to 2.7 million semen annually , which disperse by water and wind , carpeting wetlands and winnow out vital home ground for water bird .

Although bees and butterflies pasturage on its nectar , Loosestrife ’s obtuse stick out outcompete native heyday that provide both nectar and larval boniface plant . That decrease the variety of pollinators in your region and transforms once - vivacious Marsh into uniform purplish expanses . I ’ve control entire wetland tours ruined by these stands — it ’s heartbreaking to miss such biodiversity !

Ice Plant (Carpobrotus edulis)

Hailing from South Africa ’s coastal dunes , Ice Plant ’s succulent mats and bright pinkish flower make for ready ground cover . But in Mediterranean climate — like California and section of Australia — it spreads sharply over dunes , cliffs , and gardens , change fire regimes and soil interpersonal chemistry . Its dense carpeting exclude nearly every aboriginal coastal species .

Within your rock garden , Ice Plant can smother pockets of aboriginal succulents and ground - nesting bees that apply barren stain for nests . Its leaf bedding changes soil brininess , realise it hard for most garden plant to re - establish once you take out the mats . I ’ve spent uncounted hours scraping its solution from crevices — it ’s a lesson in how invading beauty can in truth backlash !

Lantana (Lantana camara)

aboriginal to tropical America , Lantana ’s clustering of vibrant blooms light up molding — but their beauty hides a job : the flora naturalizes easy in subtropical and tropic region worldwide . Birds eat the berries and spread seeds far and wide , resulting in invasion that choke out understory species and hinder forest regeneration .

Lantana is also toxic to livestock , ducky , and even humans if ingested . In the garden , its two - toned flower attract butterflies , yet the plant ’s thicket leave little room for aboriginal shrubs and groundcover that suffer a broad raiment of pollinators . I grovel every time I see golden shrub border overhaul by Lantana ’s setose snarl — it ’s a toxic trap in more means than one !