Mystery plant is likely a common purslane

Q: I have several large patio pots that for years I’ve planted with flowering purslane and portulaca. Since they both are easy to grow, colorful and pretty low maintenance, they work great for me. Now in an uncultivated part of the backyard I’m finding plants popping up that look a lot like the purslane except they aren’t flowering (hardly at all and only a smallish pale white-yellow flower), but the leaves sure do look like my ornamental purslane. What do you think this plant is? Should I let it go or get rid of it? — N.P., Albuquerque

A: From your description, I’m thinking you have a variety of what I found to be called common purslane. It’s defined as a weed so unless you want lots of it, wearing only those small flowers, don’t leave it. It’s a terrific self-sower, so you will have it everywhere as the years go on, unless you pick and remove it.

The purslane that you have in your patio pots, that you probably paid for, is a strain called Wildfire. Some botanist/horticulturist went through a lot of trial and error to cultivate that variety of purslane you have. Wildfire is colorful and near foolproof as to ease of growing.

Back to the ones in the uncultivated area. This weedy purslane really likes warm weather and needs several good rains for it to pop up. Essentially, it’s purslane season right now, which coincides with monsoon season.

How it got to your yard is a mystery. The weedy purslane seed is very small, making it very light, so it could have blown in. I’ve learned from the “Weeds of the West” book, the seed may have been lying dormant, which it can do for years, the stars aligned, and voilà, you have a never-seen-before crop of weedy purslane.

If you choose to pluck the weedy purslane, don’t leave it sitting piled up. It can reroot and grow all over again, flowering and setting more tiny black seed. If you pluck it, throw it away.

I guess since it’s showing up all of a sudden it could be making you nervous, but remember it has no stickers and it does make oxygen.

So as far as weeds go, your weedy purslane isn’t a true bad guy after all. It’ll just depend on whether or not you’ll be vigilant and prevent it from becoming an invader into the balance of your grounds.

Dear readers: Just a note. Now that we are having some monsoonal wetness, I’m going to remind you to look for places that might collect water that sits for some time. Those wretched mosquitos are around hunting for places to rear their young. Tip over or drain anything that could collect water to help keep these wretches from having a home.

Meanwhile, Happy Diggin’ In!

Tracey Fitzgibbon is a certified nurseryman. Send garden-related questions to Digging In, Albuquerque Journal, 7777 Jefferson NE, Albuquerque, N.M. 87109, or to features@abqjournal.com.