Life is like a Dollar Tree wildflower packet â you never know what you're gonna get.
Gardener and TikTok user sun flower (@sunflowers4power) shared her disappointment after discovering the seed packet she spread throughout her garden bed contained an invasive flower.
@sunflowers4power #mexicansunflowers âŦ original sound - sun flower đģ
"Mexican sunflowers are a definite no no!" she wrote.
She shows a garden bed overrun with new plant growth â tens of bunches of Tithonia diversifolia, known as Mexican sunflower.
"They are growing outside of the garden bed. They are âĻ really bad. They will take over the whole garden bed and I will literally have a forest," she said.
Mexican sunflowers are large, bushy plants with orange and yellow flowers. The plant spreads quickly and is considered an aggressive and invasive weed in some parts of the United States.
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Not all nonnative plants are considered invasive. They become invasive when they pose a significant threat to their new environments. Invasive plants spread quickly, outcompeting native plants for finite resources and reducing local environments' biodiversity.
Native plants, on the other hand, promote biodiversity and benefit local ecosystems. They provide shelter for wildlife, support essential pollinators, and reduce air and water pollution.
If you want to rewild your yard, consider switching to a native grass such as buffalo or clover, starting a native plant garden, or planting wildflowers. Just be sure to check your wildflower packet for invasives before you sprinkle it throughout the garden.
Once established, invasive plants can be very difficult to remove. This Michigan resident removed 10 trash bags' worth of invasive garlic mustard from their backyard. Another homeowner spent three years removing several species of invasives from their 10,000-square-foot yard.
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Sign me up đ Removing the sunflower was going to take time, but one commenter said there was a bright side: free fertilizer. "Mexican sunflower is a chop and drop. It's meant to be cut down and thrown under your other plants," they wrote.
"Cut & vase them before they go to seed," another recommended.
A third user encouraged embracing the nonnative plant. "But they're so beautiful if you trim them," they said. "They smell so good like honeysuckle."
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