Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
I've been pressed to keep up with the progression of plants in the prairie pasture. I know I've missed things, life gets in the way, but here are a few things from July.
Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Culver's Root (Veronicastrum virginicum)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Showy tick-trefoil (Desmodium canadense)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Big Bluestem in Morning Dew
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Canada Milk Vetch (Astragalus canadensis)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
False Gromwell (Onosmodium molle)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Compass Plant (Silphium laciniatum)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Narrow-leafed Purple Coneflower (Echinacea angustifolia)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
False Sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Hoary Vervain (Verbena stricta)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
Whorled Milkweed (Asclepias verticillata)
photograph - © Bruce A. Morrison
There is change in the prairie here...nothing new, its just that we're seeing the end seasons approaching...the mid summer prairie plants, though still offering pollen to many interested bees and butterflies, are passing their peak "glory" and most are now forming seed heads.
Last night I found the very first Dotted Liatris, Prairie Onion and False Boneset blooms of this new season; things will be progressing more quickly than I'd like now - the prairie bloom periods never last long enough for me!
I found a resting Monarch settling in for the night on some field goldenrod and a skipper feeding on some common milkweed; several small Bumble Bees still taking advantage of the Wild Bergamot's remaining blooms and a male Western Meadowhawk Dragonfly cruising the upper story of grasses and forbs. I have yet to watch a Robber Fly, a Katydid or an Argiope this summer, and the Argiope spiders have been very scarce for two or three years now...a concern.
This is a bittersweet season, for when it comes and the flaming magenta and riotous yellows wow the senses - it seems to finish as quickly as it started. Ah, but isn't that the way of things!? One can never take something so special for granted.
Still...looking forward to what August has to offer!
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