By Grace Broyles
Big Country Master Gardener
So, what do we call those vibrant and colorful flowering plants that are showing their glory in our flower pots and garden beds in the last few weeks? They are Moss Roses! They are in the Portulacaceae family of plants, some with round and plump fleshy leaves, others with fingerlike fleshy leaves. And no, they are not really succulents, but semi-succulents, holding moisture for periods of drought. They last for a long hot summer season, and are gone by the first frost.
Moss Roses, or Portulaca grandiflora, are very popular in the summer time here in West Texas, but are happy wherever the sun shines for a good six hours a day. The pink, red, magenta, white, violet, salmon, purple, orange and yellow flowers do resemble roses, but are definitely smaller in size, about an inch to 1 1/2” in diameter. And left to themselves in the nice hot sun, in a somewhat sandy and well-draining soil, with a little moisture as needed, they spread up to 16 inches wide and look like a colorful moss ground cover, boasting the last color of the summer.
Moss Roses produce many seeds, and one can find tiny Moss Rose seedlings in a flower pot or in a flower bed where Moss Roses had been planted the year before when early summer arrives the following year. Moss Roses are native to the hot and dry areas of Argentina, southern Brazil and Uruguay, but now are found all around the world in gardens as easy-care summer annuals.
Another colorful plant in this family is the Ornamental Purslane or Portulaca oleracea, often labeled as “Portulaca” in nurseries or garden stores. It is a “cousin” of the Moss Rose. We also like to use this one in our flower gardens in the summer. This Portulaca can handle more moisture than the Moss Rose, but does require good drainage.
In fact, Purslane may be planted in pure sand that’s kept slightly moist. A flowerbed near the pool or by a pond would be a good place for this plant.
The flat oval-leafed plants also have the vibrant flowers of the Moss Roses, though the flowers are more saucer-shaped. Purslane comes in the same colors as Moss Roses, and new shades are still being developed. The flowers of the Purslane are beautiful and the plants can grow as wide as 18 inches.
Both the flowers of the Moss Rose and of the Ornamental Purslane open each morning and close up at night (or on very cloudy days). Both can be used in hanging baskets or window boxes, as they like to trail. They are also used as border plants, or to fill in a flowerbed along with some other sun-loving annuals, or even to fill in spots between rocks in a garden pathway.
To propagate Moss Rose or Purslane, a bit of the stem can be placed in moist well-draining soil and, within a couple of weeks, the bit will develop roots, and can be transplanted carefully into the perfect spot. Both can be started from seeds sprinkled in the fall or early spring on moist soil and lightly raked in.
What other Portulaca family members do we have in our area?
The Common Purslane is readily found in our area, and is viewed as a weed. It’s also called Little Hogweed or Wild Portulaca. It looks like the Ornamental Purslane, but produces tiny yellow flowers that are not showy. This Purslane is likely native to North Africa, the Middle East and India and was found in Europe in the 16th century. It has been grown for many centuries as a food and medicinal plant. We’re not so inclined to use it in these ways in West Texas as it tends to become invasive due to the number of seeds produced, unless kept in a very contained area.
For those of us who would like to use this Common Purslane, it can be added to fresh salads, cooked somewhat like spinach, or used in soups and stews. It has a slight lemony and salty taste. For medicinal purposes, the leaves contain more vitamin A than any other leafy green plant and is a good source of potassium, magnesium and calcium. A blend of Purslane leaves with yogurt or honey and applied to skin on your face and arms and legs can help rejuvenate and nourish your skin.
Then we have the Wild Moss Rose, or Portulaca pilosa, also called Kiss Me Quick or Pink Portulaca. It’s native to the Americas, which of course includes Texas. It can be found in the southern parts of the United States, in the Caribbean and down to Brazil. It survives in the driest of soils, on beaches and along roadsides and railroad tracks. The tiny pink flowers open in the sun and close when the sun goes down. The plants grow no larger than about 6 inches tall and wide. They are being grown in some parts of the world and harvested for use in skin products. One practical use for us here is to use the juice in the leaves to treat bee or wasp stings, if we happen to find some readily available.
Enjoy your Portulacas, whatever variety you find, as they are one of the happy plants of our hot little part of the world in the summertime. Oh, and it seems the deer love them, too!
If you have any questions about gardening and plants, call the Taylor County Extension Office at 325-672-6048 or email us at mgardeners@yahoo.com. We hope you visit bcmgtx.org for information on all Big Country Master Gardener events, like us on BCMGA Facebook, and check out training presentations on BCMGA YouTube. We are here to help you.
