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The sweet alyssum is commonly used as
a border plant or
ground cover. It will flower nearly year round, if it gets enough
water. In my yard, sweet alyssum grows well in a part where most
plants don't. I also like it because it is a favorite of the
harlequin
bug (which I used for lab activities at school).
These flowers are small, but
many crowded
together. The plants sprawl and interpenetrate each other to
completely cover the ground, which helps to keep out weeds. And
the massed flowers are quite attractive.
This shows the manner in which the
flowers grow at the end
of the growing stem. The older flowers behind the growing tip
have set fruit. The stem at the right with its flowers out of
view, shows the fruit developing
progressively going down the stem. The
lowest fruit show the thin membrane remaining after both seeds have
peeled off.
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