The photo below is Poke Salad, Illustris colocasia, Texas native lantana and Red Wave cannas. This is a photo right at the bottom of the Boardwalk at the entrance to the Orchard. I didn't plant the Poke Salad, it grows wild on our property, and this plant just showed up. Poke Salad is a perennial herb and a host plant for the giant leopard moth. It's quite pretty with its pink branches and its green and purple berries, although so common that it's hard not to take it for granted. The young leaves can be cooked and eaten, but they have to be cooked in water, drained, cooked in water again, then drained and then cooked again because they contain a poisonous chemical that can harm you. The dark purple berries are a favorite of many wildlife species - deer, mice, possums, raccoons, and of course birds. Right now, it is being quite a garden bully, and I need to go down there and trim it a bit so that it's not blocking the Orchard entrance.
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