What In The Heck...?

(If you're looking for Works-For-Me Wednesday, just scroll on down--it's the next entry).

I have a climbing rose bush that climbs up the front corner of my house.  This time of year, when I'm too lazy preoccupied to weed, climbing weeds tend to overtake it.  But this year, hanging from the climbing weed, I have found this:

There are three of these strange-looking cocoon-type things that are, as you can see, quite large (I showed my hand to give you an idea of scale).  I have never seen anything like them.  They're kind of creepy. 

So, you horticultural-types out there--what is this?  Some sort of other-worldly flower about to burst into bloom?  Or are alien spawn hatching in my front yard?  Because y'all, the holidays are coming, and I do not have time to fight Evil Pod People.

Comments

[Leslie]

I think it's definitely an alien pod. Have you seen Tom and Katie in your yard?

]:)
Leslie

[Allyson]

The weed looks like Morning Glory - aka "Bindweed". I've never seen it flower, as I devote copious amounts of time to killing the stuff before it could even dream of flowering, but I did a google image search for Morning Glory Flower Bud and came up with a couple of results that look similar to yours.

[Chris]

Proof of my lack of gardening ability, what struck me in this picture was that glorious pink fingernail. What a beautiful color!

[Jenny]

could it be some kind of fig? we get invasive fig vines in our yard sometimes, but it doesn't look exactly like that.

Jenny in Ca

[katherine @raisingfive]

No idea, but it gets my vote for beauty, and it's obviously care-free (my main criteria for gardening)! I mostly want to know if those are THE NAILS from our get-together (knowing you'd gone to so much trouble made me feel so honored, and here I couldn't even get there on time!). Looking mighty spiffy!

[Ranee Mueller]

My guess would be either the fruit from the Morning Glory, or from Honeysuckle. I know honeysuckle fruit is edible, don't know about morning glory. Sweet potatoes are related to morning glories, but they grow underground, so it doesn't mean that the fruit is edible.

[The Wooden Porch]

Very weird instead. Love the nails though!

I found a huge beautiful weed in our yard this summer. (We live in the woods, and it was along the driveway) It was producing neat berries. I started watering it and then one day I noticed it was dying. I took Hubs out to see it and he confessed that he dumped his leftover pain thinner on it. I almost cried. Turned out it was a poke weed which you can actually eat the leaves or stalk or something. That sucker is dead now though.

[Sarah Cool]

And THAT is EXACTLY why plants really freak.me.out.

[Laurie]

It looks like a seed pod to me. In reference to the poke week of The Wooden Porch. We love to eat poke salat. You just have to be careful to cook it in several changes of water or you can get rather sick.

[Kilikina]

aaahhh. alien pod to me...

[Lei]

evil pod people. roflmbo.

[Heth]

I know nothing about southern plants. You people get to grow things year round, my stuff is all dead. Sorry, no idea. Just let it do it's thing, it can't be THAT evil can it? mwahahahaha

[Kathleen Marie]

It kind of looks like an air potato - the leaf anyway? Sort of like a morning glory but I don't recall any morning glories I have seen that have a seed pod like that. Also morning glories around here anyway have a smoother more heart shaped leaf but this could easily be a different variety.

What is really reminds me of is a linden tree leaf and linden trees come in all sizes, varieties and have very strange seed pods. But, I am no horticulturist by any means.

My next guess would be aliens from Pluto, getting revenge for demoting their non-planet to I am not sure what.

[Jules @ Everyday Mommy]

Yes, those are Morning Glory seed pods.

http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/txgard/msg102158551757.html?10

[Jules @ Everyday Mommy]

OH MY LORD! YOU TOUCHED IT!!

[Kara]

Wow, I didn't even know Morning Glory got that big! All I've seen is the little ones that I get rid of when pulling weeds.

[Samantha]

Sorry sister, looks like you have evil pod people to fight off before you can get on with your holidays hehehehe

[Sarah Cool]

For you cute little gardener types who suggested eating it... DUDE! You can't eat POD PEOPLE! I'm cringing just thinking about it! Ick! Ick!

[Mom2fur]

If I were you, I wouldn't go to sleep any time soon...
Ever see "Invasion of the Body Snatchers?"

[Aunt Murry]

If it were me, I'd take it off the vine, put it on some news paper and crack that sucker open. But that's me. I'm in agreement, it looks like a Morning Glory Seed pod. You could e-mail the pickture to the garner guy at KRMG radio. His e-mail is on their web site. He is on Saturday mornings. I used to love to listen to him while I was tooling around T-town and Owasso getting my errands done. Love Jules reaction...I don't think there is anything wrong with touching it as long as you wash your hand after. LOL.

[Beck]

If it is a Morning Glory, be careful with your kids around it - they're pretty toxic!

[GiBee]

Are your nails still on your fingers? Or did they melt off with some strange form of toxic acid?

Very weird. That sort of stuff freaks me out ... yet another reason I hate gardening.

Have you ever seen those weird poop-shaped mushroom-looking things that grow in your yard? (okay, grow in MY yard) Shivers!!!

[Heather]

Sorry - I DON'T think it's morning glory -- I grow several varities and the seed pods don't quite look like that.

I do think it's a seed pod - I would love to have some better pictures of the leaves of the plant and maybe an overall of the vine. I might be able to track it down.

Did you ever notice flowers? If so what did they look like?

(K- I'm an avid gardener! Can you tell??)

[Jennie C.]

I grow morning glories every year, and they have small round seed pods with about 6 seeds inside. I don't know what that is, but I don't think it's a morning glory.

[Lisa S.]

Don't eat pokeweed! The young shoots in the spring are edible, but when the twigs get reddish they are very, very poisonous. They also will bave berries on them that look a little like blueberries - also poisonous but the kids might try to eat them. People have died from eating the roots.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pokeweed

I think it's this:
http://www.missouriplants.com/Whiteopp/Cynanchum_laeve_page.html
more pics here: http://ipm.ppws.vt.edu/scott/weed_id/ampal.htm

More commonly called Honeyvine.

The plants from that genus are usually toxic and the sap is irritating. It's a kind of milkweed.

[Sarah]

It is definitely ninjas.

[floorplan]

It's been said already, but...
INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS!

[Pam]

Shannon,
I love reading your blog and the reader's comments! You all are a fun bunch of people!

[faithdevlin]

it's a moonflower

[faithdevlin]

That is the flower bud. It opens at night. It is a member of the morning glory family.

[edj]

Well I'm glad to read your other comments and see I'm not the only one who was SO IMPRESSED at your lovely manicure! Wow. V. nice. And you just go through your days like this? Cute colour, too!
Also, again from reading the other comments, I suggest you panic and run screaming for the hills. Just a thought. Don't eat it, whatever you do.

[srusnowangel]

What you have is a milkweed vine. I believe the one you have is called a honey milweed vine or honeyvine milkweed.

[Bradys Mom]

We have a lot of those too! I can't stand those vines they climb all over everything.
We were wondering what those pods were on our other tree.