Enchanting Essex

Tag: wildflowers

  • The Bee’s Teacup

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    Cup Plant is an herbaceous, native, hardy perennial in the Daisy family. These beauties adorn the meadow beneath the Caldwell First Nations’ Boardwalk from August to September. Fun Fact: Cup Plant is fancifully known as the Indigenous “Chewing Gum”. The Anishinaabe peoples (including the Chippewa/Ojibwe, of which the Caldwell First Nation is a part) historically…

  • The Flower Hour #46: PQR – One of Each

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    A single little wildflower standing bright and free,Is all the floral beauty our Flower Hour needs from me! Fun Fact:  Because it blooms early in the spring, it is a critical food source for butterflies, when many other plants are still dormant, specifically Swallowtail Butterflies. Fun Fact:  Legend says Queen Anne pricked her finger with…

  • Amethyst and Emerald

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    Swamp Vervain is an herbaceous perennial of the Verbena family.  It is native to Ontario, thriving in our province’s natural wetlands and wet meadows and along stream banks.   Juncos, Cardinals, and Sparrows eat the flower’s seeds and rabbits eat the leaves.  Amethyst and Emerald Where emerald reeds catch the breeze,And marshlands dip to muddy…

  • Rosy Crowns

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    Swamp Milkweed is an herbaceous, native, water-loving perennial of the Milkweed family.  In fact, it is a highly beneficial  plant that has belonged to Ontario’s wetlands, shorelines, and wet meadows for thousands of years.  Today’s pictures are all from the Pannes at Presqu’ile.  The freshwater pannes at Presqu’ile Provincial Park are a globally significant and…

  • The Flower Hour #45: Absolutely no advice whatsoever from the Wild Sunflowers of Essex County!

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    Here in Essex County we have three varieties of wild sunflowers: Woodland or Rough Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus): Sunchoke or Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus): False Sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides): At this time of year there are glorious, orangish-yellow pops of colour seemingly everywhere – roadsides, meadows, woodlands — you simply cannot escape their vibrant beauty (and why…

  • The Faerie’s Bonnet

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    Columbines — both the wild and garden varieties — are herbaceous perennials of the Buttercup family.  The only species native to Ontario is the Canada or Wild Columbine: This is the species I grew up knowing and loving.  They grow everywhere in the wild — meadows, woodlands, stream banks, and roadsides.  Its flowers are a…

  • Forest Jewels

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    Violets are native, herbaceous perennials that are their own family within the plant kingdom.  The most common species in Ontario is the Wooly Blue (sometimes Common blue).  It prefers damp woodlands and forest floors — exactly the environment behind our home where, unsurprisingly, several species of Violet flourish.   Fun Fact:  Violets use their local…

  • Lens-Artists Challenge #410 – My Editing Exercises

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    The beautiful cow took a leap from the bridge,And sailed past a swan on a mountain-side ridge.He landed right onto a flower by the barn,And laughed as he knitted this frivolous yarn. “The Cow” I “met” this young lad the week he was born.  The farmer and his wife were over the moon to have…

  • The Meadow Bell

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    Tall Bellflower is an herbaceous, native, biennial that is an excellent self-seeder.  These gems flourish in the meadows at Point Pelee National Park.   Fun Fact:  One of my all-time favourite plant facts is that Tall Bellflower is a botanical misfit.  The Latin “Campanula” translates to “little bell” but, if you look closely at a…

  • Water’s Wizardry

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    Yesterday I enjoyed my first outing in 13 weeks. Thirteen weeks!!! Can you imagine? True that I was not alone, but the euphoria was every bit as wonderful as if I was.  Whilst confined to quarters, I decided to embrace my new (self-assigned) role as a pseudo-sociologist; after writing about “Third Spaces” last week, I’m…

  • Ethereal Dancers of Sanctuary Pond

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    Water Willow (Decodon verticillatus), also known as Swamp Loosestrife — not to be confused with Purple Loosestrife — is a native Ontario shrubby perennial that plays a healthy role in our wetland ecosystems. This beauty is growing on the edge of Sanctuary Pond at Point Pelee National Park in Ontario. Ethereal Dancers of Sanctuary Pond…

  • The Flower Hour #44 M, N, O — Quaint Quadrilles

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    Wild and Free Soft grass bends beneath our feet.Milkweed smells so cool and sweet.Thistles form like little drums.Bees fly past with gentle hums. Trees stretch high to catch the sun.Silver brooks gurgle and run.Asters wear their sapphire ring.Bumblebees begin to sing. Petals brush our wandering knees.Oxeyes flutter in the breeze.We are wild and we are…

  • Green Lace

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    Green Lace Goldenrod tips begin to curve,Holding their pollen in reserve.Wispy tendrils reach for the skiesTo wait for bees and butterflies. Not yet a bright and yellow flame,But they’re whispering autumn’s name.The little buds are packed in tight,Preparing for their golden light. Bees and wasps and hornets will meet,To taste its pollen gold and sweet.But…

  • Fireweed’s Finale

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    Fireweed is an herbaceous, native perennial, sometimes regionally known as Rosebay Willowherb.  Why Fireweed?  This species is a forest fire endurance specialist.  Its tough roots survive despite high underground temperatures.  They sprout very quickly after a fire which helps prevent soil loss.  A single plant can produce up to 80,000 tiny seeds (which they produce…

  • The Bee And Her Blossom

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    Pink Turtlehead is an herbaceous, native perennial, and we have a bumper crop in our pollinator garden this summer. It is a valuable, late-summer and early-fall food source for Bumble Bees, which are (near as I can tell) the only species strong enough to pry open the tight, snapdragon-like blossoms.  I was lucky enough to…

  • Happy Little World

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    White Panicle Asters are an herbaceous, native perennial and, at this time of year, their buds are beginning to burst.  They are a favourite of all the pollinators and already (the flowers aren’t yet at their peak) it’s a veritable honey factory in our laneway garden. Happy Little World White panicle asters bloom by the…

  • The Flower Hour #43:  Random August Amble

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    My Green In-Between Beyond my pillow and my desk,Lies something grand and picturesque!A secret lane where bees carouse,And nodding blossoms gently drowse. I snap a picture of a bee,Chat with any neighbours I see.No longer strangers passing by,We watch the busy Hoverfly. Away from chores and indoor care,We weave our stories through the air,A little…

  • The Golden Road

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    Sweet Yellow Clover, also known as Melilot and Hart’s Clover, is an herbaceous, non-native biennial in the Pea (legume) family.  At this time of year, roadsides and meadows in rural Ontario are painted yellow with an extravagance of these pretty yellow blossoms.  It is listed on the Ontario Invasive Species register but, despite its status,…

  • In Her Sunday-Best

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    Cow Vetch is an herbaceous, non-native perennial in the Pea family.  It is now listed as an invasive species here in Ontario so I’m sure my friend Tyler is rolling his eyes or groaning (or both!) as he reads this.  It is in full bloom at this time of year and is truly a glorious…

  • Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge: #Yellow Hues — Mellow Yellow

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    I’m just mad about saffronA-saffron’s mad about meI’m-a just mad about saffronShe’s just mad about me They call me mellow yellow (Quite rightly)They call me mellow yellow (Quite rightly)They call me mellow yellow* Let’s get mellow, then, shall we…….. And, my personal favourite for last — cutest wee bum of the day: Thanks to my…

  • Pink Bells

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    Hedge Bindweed is an herbaceous, native, perennial in the Morning-Glory family.  This is a smooth, fast-growing, twining vine which always and only curls (twines) against the sun (counter-clockwise). Fun Fact:  If you gently pinch or squeeze the large green jackets (bracts) at the bottom of the blossom, the entire trumpet-shaped flower will pop cleanly off…

  • Rural Ballerina

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    Philadelphia Fleabane is an herbaceous, native perennial in the Aster family that blooms May through October.  It is a great draw for all species of pollinators — just look at this one picture: Fun Fact:  At one time folks believed that using the dried flowers would drive away fleas (hence its name), but this has…

  • Woodland Splash of Spring Fire

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    The Trout Lily is an herbaceous perennial of the Lily family that thrives in moist woodlands.  Its fanciful names are Yellow Dogtooth Violet and Fawn Lily. The leaves are edible.  It is a spring ephemeral, blooming May to June. Fun fact:  Trout Lily, because the speckling on its leaves resemble the body of the Brook…

  • Kings and Queens of the Lane

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    The Black-eyed Susan is an herbaceous, native, perennial of the Aster family.  It blooms June through September. The seeds are a favourite of goldfinches, especially in winter when their food sources are limited.  Garden folklore is filled with romance, but few stories match the poetic history of the Black-eyed Susan.  Unless you’ve flipped through volumes…

  • The Flower Hour #42:  Six Steps Through the Alphabet Garden

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    A lens, a challenge, a creative quest,To find the blooms the alphabet blessed.Right in the middle, where letters align,Six pretty frames of botanical design. The journey began with the letters of J,Where wild Joe-Pye Weed was swaying away;Beside it, the Japanese Peony grows,With layers of silk in a stunning repose. An herbaceous perennial of the…