What's Blooming Now?

It seems to be everywhere. and it can be a real nuisance. But the delicate pink flowers of caesarweed (Urena lobata) are worth a closer look. Caesar-weed is a member of the same mallow family that includes hibiscus and hollyhock flowers, cotton and the marsh mallow, once used to create the confection kids love to roast at picnics.

But caesarweed is a vagabond and a black sheep of the family. Hooked bristles that cover the plant's five-seeded fruit mean that caesarweed readily

latches onto clothing and fur. Originally from eastern India, caesarweed made its way around the tropical and subtropical world because of those seeds. This woody perennial weed of sunny disturbed areas rarely gets much over five feet tall in Florida landscapes. It produces pink flowers a scant half-inch in diameter year-round.

Other cultures appreciate caesarweed a bit more than we do. In the Caribbean, its leaves and flowers are used in folk remedies for an array of ailments. In some areas of Africa and South America, people cultivate caesarweed for fiber and use it much like jute in making rope and coarse fabric.

-Jerome A. Jackson, Florida Gulf Coast University