Daffodil Blooms

The daffodils out in the woods at the edge our yard are finally blooming. The first opened on the last day of February, but gusty wind prevented me from taking photos for a couple of days.

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Daffodil Blooms

Peach Blossom Time in the Ozarks

                                                                                                                                  (Photo taken on 03/18/09 by Marvin)

Peach Blossoms

Growing peaches in the Ozarks is an excellent hobby for anyone who thrives on dashed hopes and expectations.  Here in northern Arkansas we are far enough south that longer days and warmer temperatures coax our peaches into bloom about this time -- or a little earlier -- every year, but we are far enough north that we will get at least one more hard freeze -- hard enough to destroy blooms or recently set fruit -- four years out of five.

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Peach Blossom Time in the Ozarks

Garden Flowers

The flower seeds Jo planted in the garden are doing well this year. The butterflies love them.

Garden Flowers

Indian Hemp

Indian-hemp (Apocynum cannabinum)

Other common names include Dogbane and Hemp Dogbane. Native to the U.S.

The strong, erect, purplish stem of Indian-hemp rises 3-4 ft., with branches ascending from the upper part. Long oval leaves often have a white coating or bloom as found on plums. Small cream-colored flowers are clustered at branch ends or on stalks from leaf axils. Tufted seeds form in spindle-shaped pods.

A. cannabinum is used as "Hemp", made from the twisted fibers of the plant.

Habitat - Open woods, pastures, waste ground, disturbed sites, wooded slopes, roadsides, railroads.

Sources:
LBJ Wildflower Center
Missouri Plants

Indian Hemp

Tickseed

Tickseed (Coreopsis palmata)

According to the Missouri Botanical Garden: Easily grown in dry to medium wet, well-drained soil in full sun. Thrives in poor, sandy or rocky soils with good drainage. Tolerant of heat, humidity and drought. Spreads by rhizomes and self-seeding, and in optimum growing conditions will naturalize to form large colonies.

There is a patch of tickseed growing at the top of the first hill along our road out. That spot definitely qualifies as open and rocky.

Plants in the genus coreopsis are often commonly called tickseed in reference to the resemblance of the seeds to ticks.

(A couple of Tumbling Flower Beetles included at no extra charge.)

See also: Missouri Plants

Tickseed

Moth Mullein

Moth Mullein (Verbascum blattaria)

A biennial that can grow as tall as five feet and have either white or yellow flowers. Moth mullein is found throughout most of the United States and grows in fields, pastures, roadsides and other disturbed or abandoned areas. This plant is growing in the garden next to the strawberries, and will have to be removed soon. We've also found the yellow variety down in the woods.

Several online sources (including the USDA) say that moth mullein is an introduced species. Missouri Plants says it is native. I dunno.

Additional Resources:
Virginia Tech Weed ID Guide
Missouri Plants
2bnthewild

Moth Mullein

Syrphid Fly

Syrphid Fly (Toxomerus geminatus)

These small (1/4" or so) flies are sometimes called flower or hover flies and are generally considered beneficial. Adults serve as pollinators. (The one above is helping to pollinate an ox-eye daisy.) Larvae consume aphids.

Additional information:
BugGuide
Texas A&M University

Syrphid Fly

Carolina Cranesbill

Carolina Cranesbill (Geranium carolinianum)

Some might call this variety of wild geranium a weed, and it does come close to qualifying for that description. It will grow well virtually everywhere and usually does. Fields, gardens, vacant lots and idle land are among its favorite locations. But weed or not it does have a pretty little (1/4 - 3/8 of an inch) purple flower and its seeds furnish food for quail, turkeys and doves.

See also:
Wildflowers of Western Kentucky
Missouri Plants
Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses

Carolina Cranesbill

Spiderwort

Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana L.)

I'm not 100% sure of species. As Neartica says: There are a number of other species of Tradescantia in eastern North America. These species can be difficult to separate from T. virginiana.

Growing on the bluff at the base of the trail off Jerry Joe's north pasture. Also alongside the trail as you enter the woods.

See also: Missouri Plants

Spiderwort

Hairy Phacelia

Hairy Phacelia (Phacelia hirsuta)

Another wildflower found down in the woods on our walk. According to Missouri Plants it should grow just about anywhere: Rocky fields and prairies, moist soils of valleys, glades, bluffs, open woods and roadsides. However, the site does warn that the flower will fade quickly in full sun.

Hairy Phacelia

Blackberry Bloom

The blackberries seem to be blooming heavily this year. This particular one happens to be on the hill in the garden.

Blackberry Bloom

Blackhaw Viburnum

Blackhaw Viburnum (Viburnum prunifolium)

We have a couple of specimens growing along the edge of the woods north of the house.

Black haw is usually grown as a large, upright, multi-stemmed, deciduous shrub with an irregular crown, but it also may be grown as a small, single trunk tree. As a shrub, it typically grows 12-15' tall with a spread of 6-12', but as a tree may reach a height of 30'. Commonly occurs in moist woods, thickets and on streambanks. Non-fragrant white flowers in flat-topped cymes (to 4.5" diameter) appear in spring. Flowers give way in autumn to blue-black, berry-like drupes which often persist into winter and are quite attractive to birds and wildlife. Ovate, finely toothed, glossy dark green leaves (to 4" long) turn attractive shades of red and purple in fall. Fruits are edible and may be eaten off the bush when ripe or used in jams and preserves. Common name refers to the purported similarity of this plant to hawthorns (sometimes commonly called red haws), though hawthorns are in a different family.

Source: Missouri Botanical Gardens
Also: Missouri Plants

Blackhaw Viburnum

Wild Comfrey

Wild Comfrey (Cynoglossum virginianum)

Numerous in the wooded section of our walk, especially near the small pond.

Additional Resources:
Missouri Plants
To Be In The Wild

Wild Comfrey

Oxeye Daisy

Oxeye Daisy (Chrysanthemum leucanthemum)

We'll see tons of these before the summer is over, and many will be in a lot better shape, but I wanted to capture the first oxeye daisy we've seen this season.

Additional Resources:
Missouri Plants
Wildflowers and Weeds

Oxeye Daisy

Fire Pink

Fire Pink (Silene virginica)

Another wildflower that grows well in open woods and rocky slopes.

I always wondered why this pretty little red flower was called "pink". It is because of the notches in the ends of the petals. They look as if they've been pinked.


Additional resources:
To Be In The Wild
Illinois Wildflowers

Fire Pink

Jack-in-the-Pulpit

Photo by Jo April 4, 2007

Jack in the Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)

We usually only find a half dozen or so of these every spring because they prefer a rich, moist woodland that is in relatively short supply up here on our ridge.

Additional information: To Be In The Wild

Jack-in-the-Pulpit

Bird's Foot Violet

Photo by Marvin April 5, 2007

Bird's Foot Violet (Viola pedata)

Unlike most of our wildflowers, Bird's Foot Violet prefers rocky and/or dry woods, slopes and ridges. It's growing in and along the old road around the bench, almost back to the house on our routine afternoon walk loop.

There are two varieties of this violet other than the one pictured above. One has two petals that are much darker purple and is often called a Pansy Violet. Here, those bloomed a little earlier in the spring. Another variety is white, but we haven't discovered any of those on our place. Like all violets, Bird's Foot can hybridize easily in the wild. Unlike most violets, Bird's Foot has no cleistogamous flowers, making it impossible for this species to self-pollinate.

Cleistogamous flowers are flowers that do not open and are self pollinated. Cleistogamy insures that a plant produces seeds, even if conditions are unfavorable for wind or insect pollination. Cleistogamy occurs in many different and unrelated plant families, including violets (Violaceae), rushes (Juncaceae) and grasses (Poaceae).

Additional Resources:
Discover Life
Missouri Plants
Missouri Botanical Garden

Bird's Foot Violet

Redbud and Dogwood

Photo by Jo March 28, 2007

The last of the redbuds and first of the dogwoods bloom together along our road out.

Redbud and Dogwood

Pawpaws Are Blooming Too

From March 25, 2007

The pawpaw is a delicious fruit indigenous to this country and was eaten by native Americans and early settlers. The fruit has a distinctive creamy custard texture and a sweet mango banana like flavor. It is excellent when eaten fresh, and delicious in puddings, cookies, pies, ice cream and breads. Pawpaw fruit is reported to be higher in proteins and carbohydrates than apples, peaches and grapes, and it contains high levels of amino acids, vitamins A and C, and many minerals.

Pawpaw ( Asimina triloba ) is the only temperate climate member of the tropical family Annonaceae, which includes the cherimoya, a cultivated fruit popular in the tropics. In the wild it grows from southern Michigan to Georgia and from the Atlantic coast to Kansas. It is generally found in the understory of wooded areas, especially in rich moist bottomlands and along streams. The tree will grow in well drained upland wooded areas, although in these locations the fruit may be less abundant and somewhat smaller.


The pawpaw is deciduous and reaches heights of 20 to 30 feet, occasionally 40 feet. If space and light allows, it will develop into a handsome cone-shaped specimen. The tree tends to send up off-shoots from stolons every few feet, a tendency which diminishes if confined to one trunk. The tree's large, drooping, elliptical leaves give it a tropical appearance. The leaves measure up to 12 inches long and 3 to 4 inches wide. In the autumn they turn a golden yellow.

The above was unceremoniously copied from the Midwest Fruit Explorers Pawpaw page.

Other Links:
Kentucky State University
Missouri Plants (great photos)
Kathy Bilton's Pawpaw Page (lots of links)
Zebra Swallowtail (The Zebra's only larval host plant is the Pawpaw tree.)
California Rare Fruit Growers

Pawpaws Are Blooming Too

Dog-Toothed Violet

From March, 2007

The dog-toothed violet's name comes from the shape of its root. The numerous rhizomes on the bottom could resemble a dog's jaw and canine teeth if you've got a good imagination. "Violet" is a misnomer. The plant is a lily and not related to violets. Another common name is trout lily which is based on the speckled appearance of the leaves. Both the leaves and root are supposedly edible, although I've never been hungry enough to give either a try.

Dog-toothed violets are said to often grow in clusters. Most of the ones that grow around here are simply scattered around the forest floor, except for the ones picture in the top photo. They are clustered on the top of a large rock. I reckon the accumulated leaf litter and other rotted organic matter up there gives the dog-toothed violets as much soil to grow in as we've got in most places.

Additional information here and here.

Dog-Toothed Violet