Viewing comments posted by Cyclaminist

Very slender leaves, but they tend to flop over in summer. Reseeds abundantly in the right conditions.

Prefers moist soil. I have it planted in a rain garden that sometimes dries out in the summer, and it tends to wilt. Liatris aspera, which is more drought-tolerant, would have been a better choice.

Very similar to Liatris spicata: they are both tall with thick spikes of small flowers. Can be distinguished by the shape of the bracts around the tiny flowerheads. L. pycnostachya has bract tips that curl back; L. spicata has bracts that lie flat.

I wasn't interested in this plant for a long time, because the flowers are small and green and not that showy. But I saw this in a friend's yard, and there were all these bees with bright orange on them. It turns out they were sweat bees collecting orange pollen on their legs. So last year I decided to get the plant for the bees. The leaves are lovely, even though they don't have the fancy patterns of coral bells.

A little more drought-tolerant than its close relative, Golden Alexanders (Zizia aurea). The leaves have a slightly different texture. I thought they were thicker and glossier, but I'm not so sure that's true. Like many parsley family plants, its leaves feed black swallowtail caterpillars, and the flowers provide nectar for small bees and flies.

Like golden alexanders and parsley, the leaves are eaten by black swallowtail caterpillars (also, farther south I assume, Ozark swallowtails). Flowers provide nectar and maybe pollen to small bees and flies. I got a plant from a friend, and I hope it will self-seed in my dry soil. My friend's plant was beautiful, with smooth glossy leaves and purple stems.

This is a European species very similar to the native eastern North American Blackseed plantain (Plantago rugelii) . According to Minnesota Wildflowers, the native can be distinguished from the European species by purple bases to the leaf stalks and by more elongated seed pods. Illinois Wildflowers mentions that the seed pods on the native species split open at the bottom, while the seed pods on the European species split open in the middle. The leaves (both leaf stems and blade) on the native are sometimes longer, up to 14 inches instead of 11 inches, but that's rare when the plants are growing in a regularly mown lawn.

A very common buttercup throughout most of eastern North America. Flowers are tiny; the seeds are numerous, small, and hard; and it tends to be weedy. However, its flowers provide nectar and pollen to bees and flies, so it's worth having around.

Prairie phlox has a lot of variation in the color and shape of the petals, so if you want a nice form, you should only buy plants that are blooming. My first prairie phlox, which wasn't blooming when I bought it, turned out to have light pink flowers that aren't very spectacular. The nicest forms, in my opinion, have deeper pink petals and dark markings around the mouth of the flower. There is also variation in petal size: wider petals are showier at a distance, while narrower petals make the flower more interesting.

The flowers are fragrant, and if you've got garden phlox (mid- or late-summer-blooming) or woodland phlox (spring-blooming), this is a great plant to extend the season of phlox fragrance. It blooms in between the bloom times of the two other species.

Phlox is self-incompatible: that means that the flowers will not be fertilized and produce seed unless pollen is transferred from another phlox plant that is different genetically. In my garden, I can attest to this, because I bought just one plant and never got any seed. Since I want it to self-seed, I got several more plants. Like all phlox, seed is in a round pod that splits open when ripe, and catapults the seed away from the parent plant.

Phlox produces nectar at the bottom of the floral tube and pollen on anthers near the opening of the floral tube. Because of the long floral tubes, only insects with long tongues can drink the nectar. That includes butterflies and very long-tongued bees (bumblebees). Shorter-tongued bees may try in vain to reach nectar, and shorter-tongued bees and flies may occasionally feed on the pollen, which is near the end of the floral tube.

The flower is ideal for butterflies because it has a large landing pad (the whorl of five petal tips on the end of the floral tube) and their tongues are more than long enough to reach down the tube, and they are the most effective pollinators. When they reach into the flower with their long tongues (proboscises), their tongue may pick up pollen, and if they visit another phlox flower that is different genetically and insert their tongue, they may touch that flower's stigma and transfer some pollen, which will fertilize the ovary and allow it to produce seed.

A neater and shorter relative of cup plant (Silphium perfoliatum). It spreads by short rhizomes to form clumps, and is more manageable than most perennial sunflowers, which spread by longer rhizomes. Probably the best Silphium species for small gardens (the other species are taller or have very large basal leaves), and a good replacement for perennial sunflowers. Drought-tolerant because of its deep fleshy roots. It matures and reaches flowering size faster from seed than prairie dock (Silphium terebinthinaceum) and compass plant (Silphium laciniatum).

As with all Silphium species, the flowers provide food to longer-tongued bees, which can reach the nectar, and occasionally to butterflies. The seeds are large, flat, and lightweight, and are sometimes eaten by goldfinches.

A lovely early-blooming sedge. The flowers look like dusty pompoms. Grows well under trees, even right up to the trunk. Very attractive with long, slender leaves that lean down gracefully.

The clumps get bigger each year, and underground runners shoot out and create new plants a few inches away. Can be divided in spring or fall.

One of the toughest sedges. Evergreen. Seeds are big, so they have a good chance of sprouting and the seedlings are likely to survive, and they may also serve as food for seed-eating birds. Tends to look kind of weedy, but it's a good plant to have in a native shade garden.

I had seen this plant before on plant identification websites, but didn't think much of it. Then I saw the plant in person at a local native plant nursery, Landscape Alternatives, and I immediately had to get it. The leaves are so beautiful and silky, irresistible. I guess the beauty is hard to capture in a photo.

This plant produces a ton of food for native bees during its spring bloom time. New flowers open every day, renewing the supply of pollen and nectar. The flowers are a lovely shade of sky blue and have a slight sweet fragrance. Highly recommended for shade gardens in the eastern United States and Canada. Feed the bees and enjoy the flowers.

According to Heather Holm's Pollinators on Native Plants, it feeds both long-tongued bees (for instance, bumblebees) and short-tongued bees (for instance, sweat bees, mining bees, and small carpenter bees), which drink nectar or gather pollen and nectar for their nests. It is also sometimes visited by beetles and hoverflies (also known as flower flies and syrphid flies), which eat pollen. The larvae (babies) of several hoverflies eat aphids. Larger bees are the most effective pollinators, because they come into contact with the anthers and stigma more frequently than smaller bees.

I bought seeds this year, since I'm eager to grow a native shade plant that's edible. It's also mentioned, along with sweet cicely (Osmorhiza claytonii), in Heather Holm's Pollinators on Native Plants as a good plant for feeding bees, flies, and moths. The seeds are long and have spines that attach to fur or clothes, allowing them to be spread by animals or people.

A lovely plant: thick succulent gray-blue leaves and big pastel purple flowers. Likes dry soil and full sun, but is more moisture-tolerant than most of the other succulent penstemons. One of my absolute favorites. It blooms for a short time, but it's worth it.

Longer-lived if you cut off the seed pods (or leave one or two per stalk). Each pod has tons of seeds, and they use up the energy that the plant would otherwise use to prepare for next year's growth. One of my plants has survived for 3 or so years because I clip off most of the seed pods. One or two seed pods have more than enough seed for spreading around the garden to start new plants.

I planted this last year, and was very pleased when it bloomed. Long, slender arching streamers of golden flowers. This spring, I divided it and now have three clumps around my woodland garden.

One of the earliest flowers to bloom: here, usually in late March or early April, much earlier than any spring ephemerals native to Minnesota. So wonderful to see the golden flowers against the dreary gray and brown carpet of fallen leaves and twigs. So far I have three clumps and many immature plants under a hazel bush. They grow and go dormant before the bush develops its leaves. First a flower above a whorl of small bronze leaves. Then the flowers wither and the leaves expand and get greener while the seed ripens. Finally, the capsules dry and split open to reveal hard brown seeds, and the leaves go dormant for the summer.

Thyme-leaved speedwell is weedy, but it makes a good thick groundcover and can be walked on. We have it growing in a path.

Phlox divaricata subsp. laphamii has petals with rounded ends, while subsp. divaricata has petals with a notch at the end.

I bought one plant perhaps 4 years ago, and now have drifts in several areas of the yard. The flower color is very light, from blue-lavender to white, almost the color of the clear sky. The flowers are fragrant, and because I have so many, they're almost as fragrant as a lilac bush.

This is one of the few plants that really does well in dry shade. Minneapolis has sandy loam, and under the trees the soil is very dry unless it's watered. Once the phlox is established (after a year or two), it doesn't need watering in the summer.

I highly recommend planting this in drifts, because it looks best, and smells best, that way. Plant it around or over early spring bulbs (like Scilla, squill), and it will bloom just when they are finishing.

To make a clump larger, find the thick stems (not the thin flower stems) and push them down into the soil. Stick a pair of twigs into the ground on either side to hold them down. The thick stems will root, and send up a set of flower stems next year. You can also cut the thick stems off and root them as cuttings.

Because of its creeping stems, woodland phlox is a groundcover, and it doesn't grow well with another groundcover around it. It needs to have the leaves on its creeping stems uncovered so that they get sun. Don't try to grow it next to lamium or wild ginger.

Phlox will also self-seed. Leave the flowers on the plant (don't deadhead) and let the seeds ripen. When they are ripe, the seed pods shoot the seeds away from the parent plant. I've found seedlings in the lawn, and moved them into new areas of the garden. That's why I have so many plants. Maybe you can pick the seeds when they're ripe and plant them in pots, but I'm too lazy to do that.

I bought a plant from Prairie Restorations, and planted it on my sunny, dry, and sandy loam hill. This is a species that's very tolerant of dryness. It frequently grows on rock outcrops. I'd like to have it growing all over, so I'll start more from seed.