Wildflower Wednesday~Never Fail Wildflower Favorites

PPPP!

My friends, it's Wildflower Wednesday and I've been pondering what to share with you from Clay and Limestone. I usually talk about one plant and if at all possible share a new one with you~But, not today.

Tradescantia virginiana

Today, I'm sharing flowers that are the mainstays of my Spring garden. 

Astranthium integrifolium/Entireleaf Western Daisy

   Some of them bloom all summer

Penstemon calycosus

Others for too short a period of time.

Amsonia 'Seaford Skies'

Like my rough and tumble wildflower favorites of late summer and fall, these Spring lovelies are dear old friends and I cannot imagine gardening without them.

Baptisia 'Starlight Prairie Blues'

They are never fail beauties!  Native plants that you can count on to bloom, year after year,  providing nectar and pollen for all the resident  pollinators.

Baptisia 'Carolina Moonlight'

Even the cultivars.

Aquilegia canadensis

But, especially the species plants.

Oenothera speciosa with Agastache

 I don't even mind that some of them are...shall we say, a bit thuggish!** 

Oenothera speciosa

In fact, I like a plant that makes it easy for me to create large drifts or to repeat color and texture elsewhere.  To borrow someone else's tag line~It's a good thing!

Phlox pilosa

I love these rough and tumble, take care of themselves wildflowers. My love affair with native plants has been going on for so long that they seem more beautiful to me than many classic garden flowers.  

Salvia lyrata

Part of their charm is their good wildlife value, but, their real charm is that they are absolutely perfect for Clay and Limestone! 

Practically Perfect Pink Phlox pilosa!

You know, you can't ask for more from a plant.
xxoogail

**Please don't use invasive to describe their behavior. That is a powerful word and should be used for exotics that are on the state noxious and invasive species list. Instead,  you can refer to them as colonizers, aggressive natives or just plain thugs. 

 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 they are in bloom or not; and, it doesn't matter if we all share the same plants. It's all about celebrating wildflowers. Please leave a comment when you add your url to Mr Linky.







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.

The Garden Is Bumblebee Ready, Now Where Are My Bumbles?

Baptisia x bicolor 'Starlite' Prairieblues™

Clay and Limestone is Bumblebee ready, but, there's not a bumble to be found.

Ornamental Kale

I've seen  carpenter bees,

Pollen beetles, bee flies

Geranium sanguineum

bee imitators,

Ox-eye Daisy a non-native 'weed' I happen to love

hover flies and even small bees.

Zizia aurea (Apiaceae/Carrot Family)

All perfectly good pollinators. But, not one Bumble.
Should I bee alarmed?


No, I'll be patient!
They always show up and it's never on my schedule.


In the meantime, I still work to make Clay and Limestone as pollinator friendly as possible by following the Golden Rules.

• plant large swathes of nectar and pollen producing plants
• plant host plants~don't stop at nectar and pollen plants
• plan for bloom from late spring to early winter (witch hazels fit the bill)
• bee sure to include water
• provide nesting sites for a variety of visitors:  leave some bare ground (ix-nay on the plastic landscape cloth);decaying logs are perfect for beetles and bees who like to use old bee tunnels;  and,  you can provide special  bee houses. 

xoxogail

PS  Please raise your hand and solemnly swear that you will never, ever, ever, ever, ever use pesticides in your garden. Now, don't you feel better for having made that commitment! I know I do. 
In case you want to read earlier pollinator posts~

Now Is The Time To Bee-gin Thinking About Bees ( here)
This Is The Place To Bee ( here)
If You Could Plant Only One Plant In Your Garden~Don't (here)
Must Bee The Season of The Witch (here)
Go Bare In Your Garden (here)
We can't All Be Pretty Pollinators (here)
Eye, Eye Skipper, Big Eyed Pollinators (here)
What's In Your Garden (here)
Royalty In The Garden~Monarch Butterfly (here)
Carpenter Bees (here)
Got Wildflowers?(here)
It's Spring and A Gardener's Thoughts Are On Pollinators (here)
The Wildflower and The Bee (here)
A Few Good Reasons To Plant Milkweek (here)
Got Shade? You Can Have Pollinators ( (here)
A Pollinator friendly Shrub (here)
Big Goings On at C and L (here) 
Where Have All My Pollinators Gone (here)

Other bee posts you might want to read~

Count Yourself Lucky To Have Hoverflies ( here)
Bumblebee Hotel (here)
Still Taking Care Of Bzzness (here)
My Sweet Embraceable You (here)

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.

What's Blooming At Clay and Limestone!

Iris germainca (Lily family), Phlox pilosa (Polemoniaceae family),  Aquilegia canadensis (Ranunculaceae family) and Lunaria  annua (Mustard family)

Hello and welcome to Clay and Limestone's Garden Blogger's Bloom Day celebration.  Many of my favorite plants are blooming today, like Phlox pilosa, the Practically Perfect Pink Phlox,  my favorite sweet grape scented iris and the perfect red and yellow of native columbine. (A Wildflower Celebration)

Phlox pilosa is  blooming all over the garden

Phlox pilosa is so perfect it needs its own closeup!  This denizen of the Garden of Benign Neglect has been spreading through other parts of the garden with abandon.  This is a good thing, because the drought, over jealous sharing and a few nasty rodents have taken a toll on it.  I can see light at the end of the tunnel and it's pink!

 It's been an odd year and plants that normally are blooming in late April and May are blooming now and plants that should be blooming now are already past their prime.  The very best news is that the critters are back~Pollen eating beetles and a small skipper are happy with the Ox-eye daisy that's found it's way to Clay and Limestone.

Then there's this absolutely delightful late blooming narcissus that held out past the 80F degree days in March  to  start blooming this past week. It's a small cup narcissus~Possibly 'Actaea' or another one whose name I have misplaced! You'll have to forgive the out of focus beauty, the winds were gusting like crazy this weekend and this is the best shot I have! That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

Physocarpus opulifolius/Ninebark~Rosaceae family

Ninebark has been fantastic this spring...What a delightful shrub with  great foliage color when the flowers fade away. Later, this month, I'll share 'Little Devil' a miniature of the cultivar 'Diablo' that is perfect for smaller gardens and/or tucks into a border beautifully.

Salvia lyrata/Lyreleaf sage~(Lamiaceae family)

Lyreleaf sage is blooming in the lawnette~This is a perfect evergreen plant to replace lawn grasses~Sometimes it repeat blooms if you mow/deadhead the flower. I am always shocked when I see neighbors trying to get rid of this wildflower~Call me folks, I'll be glad to come dig it up!

Ornamental Kale (Mustard family)

I can't imagine not having kale in my garden from fall through the spring. It brightens up the winter garden, but, really sparkles when it flowers in the spring to make a delicious combo with Iris germanica.

Euonymus americanus/hearts-bustin'-with-love~ Celastraceae family

 Hearts-bustin'-with-love is blooming~it's not a showy flower and is quite small,  but, later when the seed head bursts open you'll fall in love.

Astranthium integrifolium/Entireleaf Western Daisy~Asteraceae family

Western Daisy will bloom all summer and is happy in the lawn or in a garden bed.  This little cutie pie is an annual and native. If you want more you must let it go to seed. I know you can do, trust me, even if Mr I has been known to mow it down before it's gone to seed.

Monarda bradburiana/Eastern bergamot~Lamiaceae family

 I had to go to Chicago to discover  this Tennessee beauty that can take dry conditions! It's a major planting at the Lurie Garden and although, not as showy as some of the other monardas...it has its charms.

Hypoxis hirsuta/Yellow Stargrass (Lily family)

Yellow Stargrass is absolutely charming and it will bloom on and off all summer....It's a small plant and you can tuck it  here and there.

Baptisia X 'Starlight Prairie Blues'~(Fabaceae Family)

I love baptisia~all of them, but, please  don't tell the species that I told you that this hybrid is my favorite! (A Fab Fabiaceae)

Penstemon smallii 'Violet Dusk' in the background (Scrophulariaceae family

Although, my garden isn't as floriferous as it has been in past years~It's not looking bad! As the spring heats up the Penstemons will burst into bloom and the Hummers will be feeding like crazy.  Maybe this year, I'll catch a photo!

One of the seedlings of Penstemon 'Dark Towers' or 'Husker Red'

Have a wonderful day.
xxoogail

PS Now, please pop over to May Dreams Gardens, where our delightful hostess, Carol,  has set up the Mr Linky magic carpet ride  to more Bloom Day posts than you can imagine.  You're in for a treat~it's Spring (and Autumn in the Southern Hemphisphere) and gardens are dressed in their finest.

 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.

The Wildflower and The Bee

Baptisia australis, dusk, April 25, 2011

I've been watching and hoping to catch a few pollinators buzzing around Baptisia australis! Today I was rewarded, when this busy Bumble began working its way from flower to flower to flower. What was most astonishing, and I so wish I had been able to capture the images, was watching the Bumble work. She landed on each flower and with her back legs pushed open the petals in order to give her room to reach inside with her tongue to drink the nectar. I've shared with you that long and short tongue bees visit plants; well, this is a plant that is pollinated by bumbles and other long tongued bees. It was the first time I saw how clever these critters are when trying to get at nectar. It was a marvelous dance to watch.

Her pollen baskets are filled with orange Baptisia pollen!

Just look at the pollen that's been collected. She'll take it back to her nest to feed her young, while she feeds on the nectar to maintain her energy for her sunup to sundown job.

The stems stand tall above the plant

Watching her buzz from flower to flower drove home how important it is to plant in drifts. The plants are right there all together and make it easy for bees and other pollinators to do their job~pollinating those flowers! Baptisia with it's mass of blooms is its own drift. But, if you have the space plant more.

Bumble doing her job!

Baptisia australis is a Central Basin native that is happy, happy, happy in my garden! That makes me happy! I love this plant. Love how it looks like a shrub, but, is a herbaceous perennial. Love the trifoliate leaves that remain good looking all season long and add a much needed different leaf shape to my garden. Love the tall flower racemes that bloom for a few weeks, then turn into the most marvelous charcoal colored seed pods. Love that bumbles and other pollinators visit. I so love that it is a host plant for Skippers and little hairstreaks, but, is not tasty to mammals and rodents!

I love purple in a garden

Commonly known as Blue Wild Indigo or Blue False Indigo, Baptisia is a herbaceous perennial in the pea family. It is native to much of the central and eastern North America and is seen in gardens almost everywhere. Blue Wild Indigo prefers full sun, average to well drained soil and is drought tolerant. The blue flowered plants do well in neutral to slightly alkaline soil. Yellow and white Wild Indigo prefer slightly acid soil.

Baptisia Starlite Prairieblues™Parentage: B. australis x bracteata

Baptisia Starlite Prairieblues™ from Chicagoland Grows is one of my favorite of the new hybrid baptisias. The flowers are a gentle bi-colored periwinkle blue that looks beautiful with the pinks and lavenders of the Garden of Benign Neglect. The stems arch rather then stand tall and they require excellent drainage. Which is always a challenge here.

Practically Perfect Pink Phlox pilosa looks lovely at the base of baptisia

Don't you love Spring! I'm so glad you stopped by to help me celebrate wildflowers and to continue our conversation about pollinators.


I'll be celebrating wildflowers everyday this week along with Frances of fairegarden and anyone else who wants to join the party. Post anytime this week~or everyday. Let's just celebrate!

xxoogail


PS. Because it bears repeating~ If you want to attract Bumbles and other pollinators to your garden:

• provide nesting sites for a variety of visitors, some bare ground (ixnay on the plastic landscape cloth), decaying logs and even special bee houses
• plant large swathes of pollinator friendly plants and host plants
• plan for bloom from late winter to late fall
• bee sure to include water
• and, never, never, never, ever, use pesticides in your garden.

This post is also part of a series on native pollinators in the garden~ Earlier posts and their links are listed below for your convenience.

Part I~Now Is The Time To Bee-gin Thinking About Bees ( here)
This Is The Place To Bee ( here)
If You Could Plant Only One Plant In Your Garden~Don't (here)
Must Bee The Season of The Witch (here)
Go Bare In Your Garden (here)
We can't All be pretty Pollinators (here)
Eye, Eye Skipper, Big Eyed Pollinators (here)
What's In Your Garden (here)
Carpenter Bees (here)
Got Wildflowers?(here)
It's Spring and A Gardener's Thoughts Are On Pollinators (here)

Other bee posts you might want to read~
Count Yourself Lucky To Have Hoverflies (here)
Bumblebee Hotel (here)
Still Taking Care Of Bzzness (here)
My Sweet Embraceable You (here)

This post was written by Gail Eichelberger for my blog Clay and Limestone Copyright 2011.This work protected under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Please contact me for permission to copy, reproduce, scrape, etc.