Since then, we’ve enjoyed the flowers, but I see what you mean. The stalk is nothing but seed, it’s so prolific. If that had been in a flower bed, come next season, we would have had an overwhelming growth of Malva. So thank you, this way we have a chance of controlling it, discarding most of the seeds, and enjoying it as a container plant!

My name is Tim, and Sara and I do our gardening even further north than you, on one of the Gulf Islands off the coast of British Columbia, Canada. The difference between us and Minnesota is that El Niño warms our Western shores, so our climate is like your Pacific Northwest, as opposed to Zone 4.

I think we’re more like Zone 7, if I’m not mistaken. Canada has a slightly different numbering system, so I always get confused. But we have mild winters and our Spring comes early, way ahead of the rest of this vast country.

Don’t let our 10-year-old daughter see you doing any major weeding, though. She firmly believes that all plants are sacred and that to pull and kill them, just because they don’t agree with your landscaping needs, is way uncool. She even has her very own corner of one of Sara’s beds. We call it Hedgehog’s “weed garden.” Hedgehog is her nickname.

If you’re interested how she got that name, you may visit our blogsite. We report on all the beautiful flowers grown by Sara, complete with sharp close-ups, taken by yours truly. Blooming currently are the round, pink Phlox blossoms, the Anemone Hybride “Krienhilde,” otherwise known as Windflower, and assorted Hybrid Tea roses, including the Purple Passion.