Wildflowers: May 25, 2010

Today I will catch up some with the wildflowers.

First the Buttercups or Caltha paulstrus that grows quite freely in wet areas here.  They are also called Cowslips and Marsh Marigolds.  I always look for these as a signal that winter is finally over, they start blooming in early May and bloom for most of the month.

I found a bunch of Leafy Spurge down by the river. It is Euphorbia esula..rolls right off the tongue doesn't it? It is a non native, it is an introduced plant from Europe.  Minnesota considers it a noxious weed.  It has a milky sap and is quite poisonous with it's laxative properties.  Think pooping yourself to death.

The pretty little Wood Anemone or Anemone quinquefolia has a single white flower..it is a plant that is native to Minnesota and is also called Mayflower.  These are found quite readily in our woods.

One of my favorite colors..yellow..the Common Dandelion or Taraxacum officinale.  It is actually many tiny flowers clustered together..beauty is in the eye of the beholder on this one.  We have many of these non native plants in our yard..

The last one is called Scrambled Eggs.  I had never seen it before.  I searched through a bunch of my books, I cruised the net and finally I put a photo up on the Minnesota Wildflowers Facebook site and it was identified.  Corydalis aurea or Golden Corydalis or Scrambled Eggs.  I found this plant last week when we were planting trees.

This is what the area looks like where it was found.  It was in a small flat topped mounded area, it is on my baby brothers land.  Far Guy thought it might have been one very large ant hill..and it could have been..but there were no active ants.  It has spurred tubular flowers with finely dissected blue green leaves.  This is an endangered plant in some other states but not in Minnesota.

I like finding new plants, but they haunt me until I get them identified and named and can make some sense of them.  Yes, it may be an obsession..there may be a name for it..obsessive compulsive wildflower disorder or OCWD :)

Now for a little fun..what kind of flower is hidden ..being a shy sort of flower..but native to Minnesota and one of my favorites?  It is hidden by one of its petals..what do you think it is..I will reveal it on Thursday!