A weed or not a weed............

Hi there, Can anyone name this plant, believe it was planted last year (poss from seed). Although the leaves are very â??moth-eatenâ?, the plant looks quite healthy and has sent out 4/5 underground white runners which have clumps of roots sprouting at approx every 5cm (2ins in old money). At the end of these 25cm (10ins) runners are new plants shooting.
The leaves on the main plant are around the size of a small tea saucer (10cm â?? 4ins). It seems to be growing as well as a weed might!!
Any Ideas??? Steve

http://i993.photobucket.com/albums/af56/moonrakermagpie/PLANTS/P1000413.jpg

http://i993.photobucket.com/albums/af56/moonrakermagpie/PLANTS/P1000415.jpg

 

Could be many things....My first thought is Holyhock.

 

Yes Roders, my first thought was Hollyhock - but not if that thick white runner in the first picture is part of it.

 

Yes the large leaf does look like Hollyhock but hollhocks don't produce runners.

More likely to be common mallow - Malva sylvestris. Wildflower or weed depending on your point of view!

 

Hi and thanks,

Yes, the white runners are from the main plant, as said in OP there was about 4 runners around 30cm (12ins) long with shoutsof roots every 40/50cm (2ins) and a new plant sprouting at the end of each, as pictured in the first picture.

 

Malva Sylvestris, IMHO, is a lovely plant - except for the rust. But I don't think it has spread for me with runners like that.

Those runners make it look like rather invasive - which makes me think weed.

 

Couldn't it be "Chinese Lanterns", could it. In that case it's invasive. Took me a year and lots of SBK to get rid of it.:(

 

They are two seperate plants... the second pic is a holyhock... the first is white dead nettle... a weed,,, those white roots break easily ... so fork out carefully

 

Quercus I am sure you are right. Dead nettle is the only plant in my garden that produces white runners like that. So the other must be a Hollyhock or similar.

 

I haven't a clue what it can be,but if it was in my garden I would dig it up very carefully and keep it in a pot til i can see what it is.Might be something that will colonise the whole garden.

 

Re ;- Chasing Wild Geese

Ahem............ After some thought, (as Hollyhock did ring a bell, and was on the end of my tongue), and upon futher investigation (digging up the Hollyhock), I have discovered that there is infact.....two separate plants.....
One is indeed a Hollyhock with two fairly deep roots and two very "moth-eaten" leaves, and the white runners and roots leading to the several new plantlets is in fact from a separate plant/weed? .
The non-Hollyhock plant could well be a wild/weedy type plant, but does anyone recognise it?

......Having just read the later posts......well done to those who realised that it must have been to plants......shows that you must be true experts.......and that maybe, I should have looked closer....I have indeed dug up, separated and isolated the "other" plants, but will probably end up burning them.......unless they are a worthy wild plant in which case I could discard them on a nearby waste land.




Many thanks whilst hiding behind the garden shed.
Steve

 

White deadnetle is a weed and not worth saving!