Scared to Death About My Bishop's Weed!

[valygirlgj]

I planted a Bishop's Weed plant about 3 years ago in a rock area (weed fabric underneath) because I wanted a spreading ground cover. It is now about 4 feet wide & is blooming with those very pretty flowers. But now I am reading on another garden forum, dozens of very negative posts about this plant. Dire warnings about how aggressive it is & will kill other plants around it. This is a dry (I know, the BW needs to be moist!), part shade, area, zone 7a, the BW is dripped once a week for 45 minutes. It is quite close to a lawn & also gets hit with sprinklers, so I have been considering capping off the drip line to this plant. Haven't seen any plants around it affected yet. Should I try to get it out? That's another problem -- people are saying it is almost impossible to eradicate.

[Lindsaylew82]

It has itty bitty roots that spread and spread. If you decide to try and get rid of it, you'll have to get ALL those little white roots. It is difficult to get rid of. We had this as a ground cover around the trees at our old house. It did invade an annual and mixed bulb bed. That whole bed had to be reworked...and reworked, and reworked.....it took a long time and a lot of work to get it gone. We also had to install barrier strips on the edges of our beds to contain it.
This plant has some serious haters, but I think it has it's place. It's stunning as a densely planted ground cover, and when it flowers, it attracts many beneficial insects. You just have to be wise about where you plant it (permanent spot) and how you manage it ( where the roots will go, the plant will go).

[valygirlgj]

Well, I went over to my local nursery today & they just laughed & said I should not worry. Apparently it depends on what state you're in as far as whether Bishop's Weed is invasive. Our soil here is very heavy clay & they say I should be happy that the plant has actually spread as far as it has. All the nurseries here are selling the plants & people seem to love them.

[Lindsaylew82]

I'm in 7b. Pretty much same as yours. I love it!