Two Easy Wet-Season Transplants

Large-Leaved Avens and Fragrant Fringecup are evergreen, perennial forbs native to the Puget Lowlands. I’ve had good success “rescuing” and transplanting both during the wet season without irrigation. Because of the way they spread by seeds along trails, they often sprout in the path of passing boots. I look for these volunteers when they are small and move them to safer spots out of harm’s way. It’s usually easy to keep their root balls intact as they are transplanted, thus enabling them to be successfully transplanted without water. Both are versatile, tolerating a wide range of soil, moisture, and sunlight conditions. They are useful in filling gaps in the groundcover, though they can appear a little “weedy” once they have gone to seed. I wouldn’t necessarily plant them in a “showcase” native garden bed, but since they are easy to transplant, they can always be moved again later to make way for different plants.

I first learned about Large-Leaved Avens (Geum macrophyllum) during the dry season when I found dozens of seeds stuck to my socks after a walk in the woods. It’s one of those plants whose seeds have hooks or barbs that cling to fur for dispersal by passing animals. It took me awhile to recognize Avens in the winter during its basal leaf stage when it lies flat on the ground. At first glance it can be confused with Creeping Buttercup with which it often associates, both being fond of wet, heavy soil. One key to tell them apart is the way the individual leaves of Avens get progressively larger towards the ends of their stems. Invasive Wall Lettuce has a similar leaf structure, but it’s a lighter green color and lacks hairs.

Fragrant Fringecup (Tellima grandiflora) is very common and widespread in the Puget Lowlands. Its flowering stems are not showy, but a group of them together make an attractive display. When in flower, it can be confused with Tolmiea menziesii whose common names, Youth on Age or Piggyback Plant, come from the tiny “plantlets” that sprout from the base of petioles on basal leaves. These miniature clones apparently drop off when they reach a certain size and can sprout roots. Apparently one can take advantage of this characteristic of Tolmiea to propagate it by carefully detaching an older leaf with an attached plantlet and securing both to the ground so that the underside of the “mother leaf” touches soil.