It's rough and tumble wildflower time in my garden and that makes me happy. The take care of themselves Autumn beauties are shining.
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And when it blooms, it's a magnet for all kinds of
insects. Especially bumblebees. They're out every morning and will be there every day until the flowers have gone to seed. But, going to seed is not the end of all this flower has to offer.
I wasn't always so crazy about Frostweed. I
first saw it growing in the wayback backyard~behind the Garden Of
Benign Neglect. I decided to watch for a season to see
what it could be. That was one of my best gardening decisions.
It's a stately queen among the rough and tumble flowering natives in my garden. This tall Asteraceae family member (can reach 6 or more feet) is a plant that most of us wouldn't give a second look. At least not until it bloomed along with the other Autumn beauties. Plant it with Phytolacca americana/Pokeweed, Solidago/Goldenrods, Rudbeckia triloba/Brown-eyed Susan, Vernonia/Ironweed, Oenothera biennis/Evening primrose and Silphium perfoliatum/Cup plants. I will always have a special place in my heart for these wild and rough looking beauties.
As I wrote earlier, rough and tumble wildflowers are simple wildflowers that bloom their hearts out and require the easiest of care. What I especially love is that they haven't had their best characteristic bred out of them. They are so much more than pretty faces, they're landing pads of deliciousness for butterflies, bees, wasps and moths. They bloom just in time for the late arriving pollinators which are making a mad dash to collect as much nectar and pollen for their last brood.
Frostweed is a late blooming magnet for all kinds of insects, including those insects that are themselves food for spiders, birds and other insect eating critters.
Bumble Bees love it. Green Metallic bees love it. Giant Carpenter Bees love it. Butterflies love it. Skippers love it. Hoverflies love it. Soldier beetles love it. Hummingbirds love it. In fact, it's an essential late summer/early fall nectar food for all visiting pollinators and it's an especially important food for the Monarch Butterfly. It's has been selected for monitoring by Monarch Watch an organization devoted to education, conservation and research about/for the Monarch Butterfly.
It's a native herbaceous biennial/perennial in the Asteraceae/Sunflower
family. It has clusters of white ray florets and white disk florets
with noticeably contrasting purplish-black anthers.
Its leaves are dark green with rough surfaces and toothed margins and are oppositely arranged.
Its stem has distinctive wings running along its length leading to one of it's common names, wingstem. If you live in its native range, you've probably seen it along roadways or in natural areas and parks. It can be found on streams and river banks, bluff bases, bottomland and upland forests, pastures, railroads, roadsides, prairies, and in forest openings. It can be found all over my neighborhood where ever birds have transpooped the seeds. It is most common in areas with neutral or basic soils (Soil which is in the range from slightly acid to slightly alkaline) .
Frostweed is a robust spreader. Seedlings germinate far from the parent plants thanks to wind and birds! It self sows in my garden (I have to thin it out), but, I've begun scattering seeds here and there for their architectural and pollinator appeal. If you have seeds, plant them as soon as you get them to insure the seeds get at least a 30 day stretch of cold, moist conditioning. If there's snow on the ground you can mix them with sand and toss the mixture onto the snow or winter sow them in a container so you can keep an eye on them, then transplant where their height will best appreciated.
Verbesina virginica has a lot going for it:
- It blooms exactly when bees are provisioning a nest for the winter.
- It has a long bloom time (late July to October)
- Pollinators love it, especially bumblebees
- Provides seed for migrating birds
- It's a feeding station for over-wintering birds
- It's a host plant for the caterpillars of Summer Azure, Bordered Patch, and the Silvery Checkerspot butterfly
- Great architectural appeal (6 feet tall)
- The Chelsea chop in June will keep it shorter
- Drought tolerant when established
- Not particular about soils
- Not eaten by deer or rabbits
- Frostweed flowers are a winter bonus!
Although, more common on the first frosty mornings of fall, here in my
Middle Tennessee Zone 7a garden we have all the right ingredients for
frostweed flowers to make their special appearance all winter long.
Imagine a beautiful late fall day; it's warm and the sun is shining. The Verbesina's roots draw water up into the stem and late that night when the temperatures drop well below freezing, the stems freeze, split open, emitting plant juices, which immediately freeze into ribbons of ice that curl around the stem and the base of the plant!
It's magic! Well actually the scientific term is capillary
action.
Isn't nature grand!
Everyday there is something of the marvelous to behold.
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You've got to get this plant in your garden!
The Particulars
Family: Asteraceae
Common names: White crownbeard, White wingstem, Frostweed, Iceplant, Iceweed, Virginia Crownbeard, Indian Tobacco, Richweed, Squawweed
Native Range: Pennsylvania west to central Texas, south to Florida
Habitat: White Crownbeard occurs in prairies, in pastures, in forest openings, along streams, and on roadsides. It is most common in areas with neutral or basic soils.
Size: The stems are 3-8 feet in height and unbranched below the inflorescence. They have winged internodes, and are pubescent. The wings that make them easily identifiable
Bloom: Flowers are produced in heads. The heads are arranged in corymbs. Each head has 1-7 white ray flowers and 8-15 off-white disc flowers.
Bloom time: Late July–October.
Sun: Full sun, half sun, and, even fairly shady sites.
Water: Moist to dry
Maintenance: Weeding and editing, plants can become weedy, spreading by seed and from rhizomes.
Propagation: The fruit is a winged achene with two small bristles at its apex. Best planted from seed or if in a natural area allowed to self sow. Seed dispersal is by wind, animal or flowing water
Wildlife Value: Over wintering birds eat the seeds. Bumble Bees love it. Green Metallic bees love it. Giant Carpenter Bees love it. Butterflies love it. In fact, it's an essential late summer/early fall nectar food for all visiting pollinators and it's an especially important food for the Monarch Butterfly.
Comments: Best in natural garden, along pond edge or if well managed in the background of a butterfly garden. This plant is called "frostweed" because it often forms spectacular "frost flowers" in the fall, when a sudden overnight freeze causes the stems to burst and release sap.
I adore this plant, but, I also weed it ruthlessly if it's crowding other more delicate plants. I can't imagine Clay and Limestone without Frostweed and the other rough and tumble beauties. Local gardeners, let me know if you want seeds, I'll have extras for sure.
xoxogail
Thank you for stopping by and welcome to Clay and Limestone's Wildflower Wednesday
celebration. WW is about sharing and celebrating wildflowers from
all over this great big, beautiful world. Join us on the fourth
Wednesday of each month. Remember, it doesn't matter if your
wildflower is in bloom or not; and, it doesn't matter if we all share
the same plants. It's all about celebrating wildflowers. If you participate in WW, please leave a link.
Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.
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"Insects are the little things that run the world." Dr. E O Wilson