Lawsonia inermis. "Recedad" in Spanish. The henna plant.

[UTUSN]

http://www.hennapage.com/henna/encyclopedia/growing/

The elderly lady who lived here before dying of smoke inhalation in a cigarette house fire had this bush near the front curb, greeting visitors with this wonderful SMELL -- herblike, fresh, wild, clean. After ten years with me, it finally froze. I thought it was a purely native plant in the wilds, irreplaceable. Somebody taught me its name in Spanish is "recedad." After years of searching, a nursery dude told me it's the fabled henna plant of India and Egypt, used for dyeing fabric and tattooing/make-up.

I tried planting five from the flea markets around the front, fantasizing about sitting outside evenings in an ethereal pool of smell. Well, they froze two winters in a row, only two now recovering knee-high again. I haven't given up on trying again with more, but sitting outside in the pools of bugs, flies, mosquitos, ants, fleas, and ticks ain't that much of an option. That's what windows and screens are for.


http://www.plantanswers.com/arcadia_pages/lawsonia%20inermis.htm : "among the most fragrant plants on earth"

[LaurenG]

1. Its a good looking plant . I like it with the marigolds.

:hi:

[UTUSN]

2. You've always been a friendly person

:hi: