Mimosa in Bloom

 

     People tell me the Mimosa tree is a "weed tree". Supposedly, it sprouts up everywhere from its seed pods and it is difficult to eradicate once you have one. Personally, I think it is heavenly. The one pictured above grows on the side of the road behind our house. Every July, we walk up the hill and cross the road to stand beneath its foliage. The branches spread out horizontally creating a wide, tropical canopy. The flowers fill the air with a very sweet scent. Hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees dart all over the foliage and flowers. They move so fast that it is impossible to track a single bird's movements.
     I thought it would be lovely to have a Mimosa tree at our place. I inquired about it at Rainfrost Nursery in Bedford last year but they didn't have any cultivated varieties to sell. The clerk said they might be able to get one called a Chocolate Mimosa (It sounds like a yummy drink!) and I gave her my name and number but no one ever called to say they got them in.
     Recently, I spotted a Mimosa seedling in one of our shrubbery beds. It is the first time in the twenty-one years we have lived here that a seedling has sprouted on our property. Now I am faced with the dilemma of whether or not to try and keep it and transplant it to a better spot. I am wary of the warnings and the trouble it may cause years from now. I hate to kill the little thing, which only adds to my dilemma. I could let it be for now and perhaps transplant it up near the road in the fall. That way I haven't killed it but I haven't committed it to the yard either.  I would much rather have a Mimosa tree up there than all the Black Walnut trees that self propagate. Talk about a nuisance tree! If I was forced to choose, I would choose a Mimosa over a Black Walnut any day.