Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Wildflower Wednesday

I have had a busy day, but did remember to go out this morning to take some photos for Gail's Wildflower Wednesday.  I like the way she focuses on one or a few plants at a time and provides good information about them.  I tend to try to show what all native plants I have blooming on the day, but one of these times, I just may do it her way.  I did provide links for those who want to find more information on the plants, though. I am so happy that spring is here, and there are a number of plants blooming!

I think I've posted the lovely blooms of the ground plum milkvetch that I just planted last year.  There are 3 of them in the curb area, and each is a different size.  This is the largest one, and I am tickled at all of the blooms, and that they are lasting longer than many of the spring blooms.



I am posting the Fremont's clematis again, because it's, another of my favorites.  I am so happy that the mature clump I divided into 2 survived the move.


I just looked up merrybells and see they are not native here.  I just have a couple, and they are quite small, but are a welcome bit of color.


Someone in the Facebook group, Gardening with Nature in Mind recently identified this for me, and I think he said it was an anemone of some kind, but I am not remembering the common name he said.  There are a number of kinds, and the ones I found have similar blooms, but differently shaped leaves.


The pasque flowers are finishing up already, but the seedheads will look good for awhile.  (I have different kinds of these, and as it turns out, some are not the native ones.  I think these are, but I am not sure which are which for some of them.)


It is hard to photograph native coral bells, heuchera richardsonii.  I sure enjoy them, and the foliage looks good  even in the winter, turning a reddish, if I'm remembering correctly.


I am pretty sure this is purple prairie verbena.   It is a native that a friend of mine dug up at her acreage.  It is a good plant for the edges of a flower bed or if one would need a ground cover.


Woodland phlox is another of my favorites, and also one of the rabbits' to eat.  We seem to have a bumper crop of rabbits this year, so I am protecting this clump, and put a basket over another clump that had been eaten down, so hopefully, it will bloom still.


The clump of Virginia bluebells is getting a little larger each year.


Some of the native columbines mixed with non-natives that used to be in the area, and some of them have larger blooms.  I see more of them this year are back to having the smaller ones.


Amsonia hubrichtii is another of my favorites, with their many about half inch star shaped blooms, but by next month, they will probably be finished blooming, so I'll show them in bud.  The plants will grow more, too.  I am sad, because in finding the link to provide, I saw that these are not native here or to areas close by.  At least they are native somewhere, though, and do grow well here.


I took this photo of violets in the vegetable garden with my zoom, and the blurry images are a tomato cage.  We have eaten a few leaves and blooms.  I let Larry know that after we had them in some mushrooms with a bit of asparagus from our garden, and some spinach from the store.


Happy spring, garden blogging friends!  We got down to 26 this morning, but warmed back into the lower 60s.  I think we are expecting some cooler days, but nothing that should hurt the plants.  I know some of you still have snow on the ground, but soon you will be joining the rest of us.  Hang in there!

10 comments:

  1. I always enjoy seeing the progress of your garden. Thanks for sharing. It's also always interesting to see the difference in the seasons depending on where you live. Here on the Gulf Coast in southeast Texas, we're beginning the transition from Spring to Summer. Most of the Springtime blooms are gone and the Summer blooms are gradually starting. It's amazing how much a few degrees of latitude make.

    ReplyDelete
  2. You've got quite the splash of color there! I think I like the verbena the best. I'm partial to blues, and you've got lots of it. Enjoy your blossoms! I hope you'll come share this outdoor post on The Maple Hill Hop!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great blooms! I really love the plum milkvetch. You have such unusual blooms to me. Your spring gardens are just starting, enjoy!

    FlowerLady

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sue you have such a great collection of natives...many of which are not native here so i love learning about them especially the ground plum milkvetch. Bloodroot is the only one just coming up here right now as our warming trend went back to cold and some snow.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Sue, everything is in full bloom here on the west coast of the Nebraska Missouri river. The Redbud trees and the Lilac bushes are glorious right now. The Tulip trees have dropped all their blooms but other trees have taken up the spot light. My Spring flowers have all gone by the way and are now just green foliage until the summer dries up the plants until next year. Iris and Peonies will be in bloom soon which brings more color into the yard for a time. I don't have much for summer flowers in the ground. My summer blooms come from hanging baskets on the poor main's living patio. This is by far my favorite time of the year.

    Have a great day outside in the garden.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I always enjoy your tours of your amazing plant collection. Happy WW! We've had some cold nights this week, too. I'm surprised you got down to 26, since you're south of me. I didn't cover any of the native ephemerals or perennials, but I have a few non-natives near the house that are just about to bloom. I hope the cold doesn't knock them out. I've covered them during the night--so far, so good. Thanks for the reminder to eat some violets! I grew some lettuce in a cold frame this winter, and I think I'll add some violets to my salads when they're ready. :) Love your Pasque Flower background--that plant is so fuzzy!

    ReplyDelete
  7. You have so many flowers and more coming! I'm in love with the purple prairie verbena. Thanks for the update. My garden is getting more green. Starting to see the irises budding.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Good Morning! Thank you for introducing this kind of clematis to me! Have to search for it. Looks very lovely. You do have a lot of interesting and beautiful plants in your lovely garden.
    Happy spring and all my best from Austria
    Elisabeth

    ReplyDelete
  9. I've never heard of purple prairie verbena before--such pretty blooms! I always plant some annual verbenas, especially in containers, but I will have to look for this. Is your Illinois bundleflower up already? I noticed a small plant in my butterfly garden that I was hoping might be it. I scattered the seeds you sent me over this area in late February or early March, so I'm hoping I see some this year.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Wow, I've never heard of milkvetch, but they sure are pretty in bloom! I grow amsonia hubrichtii along my front walk, mostly for their golden glow in the fall. I always admire pasque flowers, I really need to plant some here.

    ReplyDelete

I welcome comments and questions from anyone, including those who do it anonymously. Some people find my posts by doing searches, and I like hearing from them. I guess spammers won't even read this message, but I will delete spam as soon as I see it.