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Monthly Archives: June 2014
Flower of the Day: Trumpet Creeper
Campsis radicans; Bignoniaceae (bignonia family)
There are always small, subtle flowers to be found, but now is the time of year for big, showy flowers. Trumpet creeper practically shouts for you to come have a look. It grows along the rock walls of the Clara Barton Parkway, and the flowers are so large (2-3 inches long) and bright you can see them as you’re driving by.
It’s a woody vine that grows vigorously to thirty feet long, so think twice before buying one for the garden, unless you have a very large area that you’re trying to naturalize. It does attract hummingbirds.
By the way, if you are interested in native plant gardening and attracting wildlife, read this very interesting article before buying plants at the nursery. Many native plant cultivars developed for the garden are far enough removed from their native form that animals don’t recognize them. They’re useless.
Flower of the Day: Thimbleweed
Anemone virginiana; Ranunculaceae (buttercup family)
The same day I found water willow (yesterday’s FOTD), I found another native amongst the aliens. It was also amongst a terrifying stand of poison ivy, so I couldn’t get terribly close to it. Out of seven new plants I saw that day, only three were natives. (Check back tomorrow to see the third one.)
Thimbleweed likes a moist to dry soil and some shade. It can be found in open woods in rocky areas and slopes, throughout the eastern US (except Florida) and much of the midwest, and Canada. Here it is growing along a rock wall between the C&O canal and the flooded Potomac River:
Flower of the Day: Water Willow
Justicia americana; Acanthaceae (acanthus family)
On a mid-June weekend Steve and I walked along the C&O Canal towpath from Pennyfield Lock to Violette’s Lock. The wildflower scene was lean. I have a rule that’s a cynical twist on Murphy’s Law: if it’s found growing along the canal, it’s probably an alien. Sadly on that day the rule mostly held. But then I saw this:
Tricky to photograph, as the plants were growing right in the water. I couldn’t get any closer without sliding down the embankment into the water myself. I figured these for aliens, too, but took some pictures, went home, and cracked open Newcomb’s. And guess what? They’re natives!
There’s another native with the common name water willow, Decodon verticillatus, aka swamp loosestrife. They aren’t even closely related. Common names are an annoyance.
Water willow grows in colonies in wet soils or shallow water, from Texas east and north through Quebec. It stands about three feet tall with narrow leaves; the purple and white flowers are borne on long stems arising from the middle and upper leaf axils.
Flower of the Day: Fringed Loosestrife
Lysimachia ciliata; Primulaceae (primrose family); some authorities place it in the Myrsinaceae (myrsine family)
Of the 22 species of Lysimachia in the continental US and Canada, this one is by far the most common, found everywhere except California, Arizona, Nevada, Louisiana, and the arctic. Eight native Lysimachias, some of which are threatened or endangered, can be found in Maryland, as well as four alien species. Two of these, garden yellow loosestrife and creeping jenny, are considered noxious.
The plants stand one to four feel tall, with flowers in the upper leaf axils. Since the flowers are nodding, the picture above is what you’ll see of them as you walk along; you have to gently move the plant up and back to expose the flowers’ faces:
Elizabeth's Wildflower Blog 