I couldn't find a picture of this plant on the web but it's the classic three leaves but the "pulpit" is tall and narrow and green. The "jack' is a long black thread that extends way beyond the pulpit.

This plant doesn't care about growing conditions: sun, shade, dry or wet . . the monsters just keep on coming. As a matter of fact they seem to be getting worse.

For those who may ask; I use a wood mulch from a local garden nursery but I can't blame the nursery because these &$*#! plants were here when I moved in.

This year I am so sick of them that I just rip them out (they're very weak) hoping that the corms will die if they don't have leaves for photosynthesis.

If any of you can give me advice or at least help me identify these monsters I would appreciate it.

--Madeleine in Philadelphia

--Madeleine in Philadephia, PA

I don't want to use Roundup so I'm battling them with my bare hands (oh ok - ripping them out like weeds ;) I never heard of a situation like this and hoped someone could give me some insight as to where they came from and how they spread :/

--Madeleine in Philadelphia

"I don't think you understand the magnitude of my Jack invasion."

My Response:

I am new to the forum and a beginner woodland gardener, however, I wanted to say that I feel your frustration in battling invasive perennials. My problem is not JITP but some mystery ground cover (2 types) that I don't even care to identify because I have so much of it.

Your response that I quoted was hilarious by-the-way and I understand it completely from a serious standpoint too.

Good Luck -- I'll watch this thread as I too have some JITP that I'm relocating and I hope it behaves (finger's crossed).

It turns out that these monsters are native to Southern Japan and are called "Pinellia ternata"

here's the picture:
http://www.weedalogue.com/crowdipper/crow_05.jpg

And here's a discussion I found about it. The writer says "P. ternata thrives in the mid-Atlantic region and, left on its own, is capable of nearly doubling in population every year. " aiyeeeeeeeee

Apparently the only way to get rid of it is through digging it out entirely, securing it in a plastic bag and throwing it in the garbage. sheesh
http://blogs.scottarboretum.org/gardenseeds/2008/09/pinellia-ternata/

Thanks for your responses everyone. I didn't know 'Jack" about these plants but now I do!

--Madeleine
Philadelphia, PA

The following web site has gorgeous images of how prolific this monster can be and shows how the seeds are formed. Too bad it's in Czech but as they say, "a picture is worth a thousand words:"
http://botany.cz/cs/pinellia-ternata/

The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) so they make seeds easily. The seeds are distributed when the flower reaches maturity and flops over, broadcasting the seeds.

The plant also spreads by rhizomes, and there are also small bulblets (a.k.a. bulbils) at the base of each leaf.

See what I'm up against? my summer will be spent trying to beat this pest and I'm determined to be the winner >:)

I am so angry about these things, and that it took me two years to figure out what they were and how invasive they were. My garden was just getting a nice, mature look to it and now I am afraid to transplant, plant or do anything. All it does is move these things more around the yard and deeper into the roots of my plants.

I was told to cut off the leaves, but I can't see how that helps if it is still forming a bulblet at the base, or underground, as the stem is sometimes (often) buried.

Digging is the only way, yet I see the small bulbs drop as I do so. it is amazing how large the bulbs get, and the mass of bulbs itself becomes huge, sort of actually erupting from the ground. Terrible stuff, I can't imagine planting it by choice.