This wild sweet pea seeded itself in our garden many years ago and has persisted ever since. It’s a perennial variety – the same weedy thing you see taking over roadsides that haven’t been taken over by crown vetch. I like it in controlled, finite form. It blooms and then quickly loses steam, at which point I cut it harshly back , almost to the ground, and it will usually send up a new crop of foliage and flowers for a second, smaller flowering. This is our routine. This is our covenant. An agreement we have honored ever since I allowed it to take up some space in the prime area of our sunny garden section.
It’s tried to push its boundaries, seeding itself further out, only to be met with strong resistance, if I’m observant enough to catch it in time. Occasionally one gets by and it’s a battle when it comes back stronger the next spring. In the end, the human wins. For now. We can handily beat nature in certain battles; She will always win the war.
As for this wild sweet pea, her wilderness impresses me. She won’t ever be anything less than wild, nor anything more. She persists and pushes herself. If I allowed it, she’d bloom and set immediate seed, sapping her strength for the season but probably ensuring an ever-expanding perpetuity. I force her to put on a second show, saving the garden from an invasive monster, and allowing a second round of prettiness.
These things must be done delicately.
