Violets are blooming everywhere right now. I see them in fields and along the edges of forested trails. I even have wild violets growing in my gravel driveway and through the cracks between the bricks in my walkway. One of my favorites though is the bird’s foot violet (Viola pedata) – one of the most distinctive of the Violas. And with its ability to thrive in sandy, gravelly soil, these violets are quite common on Cape Cod. Unlike most violets…
Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara) is an introduced wildflower from Europe, likely from early settlers that cultivated it for its medicinal value. It had been one of the most popular European remedies for a wide range of chest complaints. In fact, the root of the genus name Tussilago comes from the Lain word tussis, which means ”cough” – a reference to the supposed curative powers of coltsfoot. The flower buds, young flowers, and young leaves are also edible raw or cooked. Some caution…
While walking along a salt marsh I visit frequently, I was surprised to see clusters of blooming flowers I’d never noticed before. It’s amazing how many things I still overlook, despite careful observation and multiple return visits throughout different seasons. But it also means there are still happy surprises and more plants to get to know. This new-to-me-plant ended up being American germander (Teucrium canadense), a member of the mint family (Lamiaceae) with a terminal, dense spike-like cluster of flowers. …
Wood anemones (Anemone quinquefolia) are low-growing delicate perennial herbaceous plants with three leaves arranged in a whorl below a solitary five-petaled white or pinkish flower. The leaves are actually divided into three parts, but with the deeply lobed lateral leaflets, it often appears as though there are five distinct leaflets. In fact, the appearance of five separate leaflets is sometimes so pronounced that when Carl Linnaeus named Anemone quinquefolia in 1753, he described the plant as having leaves with five…
Yesterday’s snow managed to stick long enough for a lovely winter walk (unlike the last few snow storms that transitioned to rain before they were over and washed away all evidence of the snowfall by morning). One of the interesting things about a walk in the snow is that the stark white background makes the stalks, stems and seed heads of last year’s wildflowers even more evident. Among the much taller common evening primrose and sweet fern, even remnants of…
The long, four-parted woody fruit capsules of common evening primrose (Oenothera biennis) are readily recognizable even in winter. These capsules are arranged in spikes at the tip of the stem. Common evening primrose often grows as a single tall stem, 3 to 6 feet tall, but can develop multiple branches. In the case of a plant having more than one branch, each stem tip will produce a spike of flowers, and ultimately a spike of these woody capsules. The seeds…
American pokeweed (Phytolacca americana), or often more simply just “pokeweed”, is a common eastern North American herbaceous perennial found in damp thickets, recent clearings and roadsides. It can grow up to 10 feet tall, but more commonly reaches a height of 5 or 6 feet. It has a widely branching form and distinctive bright red or purplish stems. Clusters of green and white flowers are borne on hanging stalks. The flowers are petal-less; the small petal-like structures seen around the…
To me, one of the quintessential summer-blooming wildflowers is the common St. John’s wort. By, or shortly after the summer solstice, you should start to see its sunny yellow blossoms everywhere. Common St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum) can be distinguished from other Hypericum species by its five-petaled yellow flowers (with black dots on the margins) that are approximately 1-inch across, and its many branching stems, growing to a height of 1 to 3 feet, as well as its oblong oppositely…
On a recent hiking trip to the White Mountains in New Hampshire over Memorial Day weekend, I was delighted to see flowers blooming everywhere. Below are a few of my favorites. Rhodora (Rhododendron canadense) Rhodora is a fairly low growing (up to 3 feet high) deciduous flowering shrub. In early spring, this shrub produces bright pink flowers in clusters of two to six. The leaves open only after the flowers have bloomed and wilted. Rhodora can survive in a range…
If you look along the edges of wooded trails, where the land rises up slightly from the level of the path itself, you may notice low mats of rough, sand-papery, hairy, evergreen leaves. Although younger leaves are a brighter green, they become rust-spotted with age, eventually browning and dying on the stem, leaving patches of rather worn looking vegetation by early spring. This low, creeping shrub is trailing arbutus (Epigaea repens), also known as mayflower. One of Cape Cod’s earliest…