Late Summer Blooming Plants of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden

Friends of the Wildflower Garden

Seasonal Photos - Late Summer Mix

Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden and Bird Sanctuary

The golden summer when the days are long is here again. The dainty spring flowers have long since passed and the deeper colors of summer flowers are now noted. Mingled with these are a number of white flowers all too little appreciated. They give us a source of light and restfulness, and serve to intensify the brilliant colors. In nature no colors clash. Former Curator Martha Crone.

Most of these plants will be in bloom during late July and most of August. More photos and plant information can be found by looking up individual plants in the "Plant Name List." Alternate common names for plants are listed here in ( ).

**Groundnut (Wild Bean)** (*Apios americana*) Family: Pea. Woodland Garden and Upland Garden. This example in the wetland area of the Woodland Garden. A veining plant that produces edible tubers. Minnesota occurrence mostly in the south.

Compass Plant — **Compass-plant** (*Silphium laciniatum*) Family: Aster. A very tall plant of the Upland Garden with hairy stems and leaves. Many books will also list this plant as "Rosin-weed" due to the sticky juice. This is one of the four *Silphiums* in the Garden.

Pale Gentian — **Plain Gentian (Yellowish Gentian)** (*Gentiana alba*). Family: Gentiana. Found in the Upland Garden late August.

**Red Turtlehead** (*Chelone obliqua*). Family: Figwort. The main and very impressive grouping is found in the Woodland Garden at Station 24. There are other small groups around the Garden. Blooms mid to late August.

Monarch Butterfly — **Monarch butterfly on a Wild Bergamot**(*Monarda fistulosa*) Plants are in the Upland Garden.

Cardinal Flower — **Cardinal-flower** (*Lobelia cardinalis*). Family: Lobelia. Found in the moist areas of the wetland. Blooms late August into September.

Joe-pye Weed — **Spotted Joe-Pye Weed** (*Eutrochium maculatum*). Family: Aster. Located in the wetland area, this plant is a good butterfly attractor. Prefers moist areas. Native to the area.

**Cup Plant** (*Silphium perfoliatum*). Family: Aster. A distinctive tall plant of the Upland Garden with leaves that are paired and joined at the stem forming a cup and giving the name. One of the four *Silphiums* in the Garden.

**Common St. Johnswort** (*Hypericum perforatum*). Family: St. Johnswort. Found in the Upland Garden this woody plant blooms most of the summer. The flowers have a few black spots on the petals. It has a long herbal history - still available in drug stores as a herbal supplement - but in the wild it can become very invasive.

**Bottle Gentian (Closed Gentian)** (*Gentiana clausa* and the very similar *Gentiana andrewsii*). Family: Gentiana. Found in the Upland Garden.

Live-forever — **Live Forever (Witch's Moneybags)** (*Hylotelephium telephium*). Family: Stonecrop. A somewhat short plant of the Upland Garden with star-shaped flowers and coarse toothed leaves. Stems are un-branched.

A **Monarch butterfly** on a Field Thistle head.

**Butter and Eggs** (*Linaria vulgaris*) Family: Figwort. Found in the Upland Garden. The irregular flower has a spur on the bottom and with an orange-yellow spot on the lower lip. A European import from settlement days, now naturalized in Minnesota. A favorite of Eloise Butler.

**Purple Prairie Clover** (*Dalea purpurea*). Family: Pea. Located in the Upland, this plant is only 1 to 2 feet high with very small leaves separated into linear leaflets. The plants were first collected by Lewis and Clark in 1804 on their journey westward.

**White Prairie Clover** (*Dalea candida*). Family: Fabaceae (Pea). Found throughout Minnesota except rarely in the NE quarter. It is similar to a purple variety but taller. In our Upland Garden. Finished blooming by early August.

Jewel Weed — **Pale Touch-me-not (Pale Jewelweed** (*Impatiens pallida*). Family: Touch-me-not. Similar to the darker colored **Spotted Jewelweed** (*Impatiens capensis*). Woodland Garden.

**Virgin's Bower** (*Clematis virginiana*). Family: Buttercup. A vine plant of the Upland Garden. Native to the area.

Canada Goldenrod — **Late Goldenrod (Tall Goldenrod)** (*Solidago altissima*). Family: Aster. Upland Garden in many places. The most common roadside Goldenrod in our area.

**Grass-leaved Goldenrod**. (*Euthamia graminifolia* var. graminifolia ). Family: Aster. Upland Garden. Narrow leaves, but wider than those of the Slender-leaved Goldenrod. Found throughout Minnesota.

**Rough Hawkweed** **(Yellow Hawkweed)** (*Hieracium umbellatum*). Family: Aster. Growing in sunny areas of the Upland Garden. Occurs in Minnesota in dry area north and east.

**Swamp Milkweed** (*Asclepias incarnata*). Family: Dogbane. One of the most beautiful milkweeds, the flower umbels are held erect and are a butterfly favorite. It prefers moist soil so look for it in the wetland. The stem frequently branches at the top which is different from our other native milkweeds.

**Climbing Nightshade (Bittersweet Nightshade)** (*Solanum dulcamara*). Family: Nightshade. Found in the Woodland Garden. A vine without tendrils that grows near other plants for support. The ends of the stem with the flower clusters are usually self supporting. Leaves first taste sweet, then bitter, hence one of the common names. Flowers all summer long. Widely distributed in Minnesota.

©2015 Friends of the Wildflower Garden, Inc. All photos are ©G D Bebeau unless otherwise credited by copyright. Links on the plant name will link to an information sheet with more photos of each plant. www.friendsofeloisebutler.org [012826]