Wildflower Wednesday: Scutellaria parvula — Small skullcap

Dear readers,  There are far too many lovely native wildflowers that are underappreciated or overlooked and Scutellaria parvula is one of them. Even its species name "parvula" means very small and insignificant! It may be small but, it's not insignificant. It's a lovely flower and I hope you are as excited about meeting it as I am to introduce you to our Wildflower Wednesday star.

The flowers of this diminutive beauty are best seen and appreciated close up and that means you gotta get down on your knees to see it's pretty flower face. Trust me when I say, it was so worth the dirty pants to get a close look at this sweet flower. While there I could clearly see the square stems and opposite leaves that are hallmarks of a mint family member.

Photo Source 

It stands less than a foot high and its tiny flowers are about 1/3 inch long and are located in the leaf axils in the upper third of the plant. The blue/violet tubular corolla flower has fuse petals that form upper and lower lips. The lower lip with its white patch and blue dots is a perfect landing pad for bees.  

Those dots on the lower lip are not just for looks they're actually nectar guides. Nectar guides or floral guides as some scientists prefer to call them, are markings or patterns seen in flowers that guide pollinators to their rewards. These markings may appear as lines, spots, or "blotches". Flowers use all kinds of signals/visual displays to attract bees, butterflies and other insects to the nectar source, after all they want pollination to occur! That's how mutualism works: both species benefit, bees collect nectar and pollen from flowers, providing themselves with food and resources, while simultaneously helping the flowers reproduce by transferring pollen from one flower to another. 

Nature is truly marvelous.

interesting seedpods

Small skullcap is a denizen of limestone outcrops, cedar glades, shallow soil prairies,  clearings, savannas, glades, ledges and bluffs, in open forests, in pastures, as well as along railroads and roads in eastern and central north America. 

I've seen it growing in a somewhat protected area in my own neighborhood and suspect that once upon a time it could be found in bee friendly lawns all over here. There are areas of limestone outcropping and with its calcareous soil which makes a great place for small skullcap to be found. 

Photo taken in protected area in my neighborhood

Small skullcap is happier without competition and the rough and tumble wildflowers at Clay and Limestone are just too much for it, so I grow it in a container. I am editing to create space for it and other small plants and I will let you all know how they all fair.

Source

I suggest that gardeners plant Scutellaria parvula in the front of their garden bed. It may spread by rhizomes to form a small colony and/or it may seed among your other wildflowers, but it's by no means aggressive, even if it is a member of the mint family.  

 

Missouri Wildflower Nursery has a cool four star rating system for native plants they sell and they've given small skullcap a 3 star rating, which means it has lovely flowers, but they don't think the foliage is beautiful all season. Personally, I like when plants go to seed and I think skullcaps seeds look pretty cool. Btw, they sell Scutellaria parvula if you're interested. Local gardeners, we can find it at  Growild.

The Particulars

Botanical name: Scutellaria parvula

Family: Lamiaceae (mint family)

Common names: small skullcap, little skullcap and dwarf skullcap

Species: There are three commonly accepted varieties of Scutellaria parvula which are distinguished by the type and location of hairs on the plant. Two are in Davidson county, TN where I live: Scutellaria parvula Michx. var. australis and Scutellaria parvula Michx. var. australis

Range: Native to eastern US

Zone: 3 to 8

Leaf arrangement: Opposite with square stems

Habit - Perennial forb with fibrous roots and slender Moniliform rhizomes

Bloom time: spring into summer

Flower color: Purple/Blue

Light: Full sun to medium shade 

Moisture: Dry, average

Size: 12 inches maximum height

Wildlife value:  The flowers are cross-pollinated by various bees, including Mason bees (Osmia spp., Hoplitis pilosifrons), Little Carpenter bees (Ceratina spp.), and Halictid bees (Halictus spp., Lasioglossum spp.). Bees usually suck nectar from the flowers, although some of them also collect pollen. Less common floral visitors include skippers and Syrphid flies, which are less effective at cross-pollination. Insects that are known to feed on the foliage of Small Skullcap include the caterpillars of Prochoreutis inflatella (Skullcap Skeletonizer Moth), the leaf beetles Phyllobrotica lengi and Phyllobrotica limbata, and Asphaera lustrans (Shiny Flea Beetle). Source Illinois Wildflower

Reproduction: If you transplant small skullcap you'll notice that it has formed a string of beads underground; these are the moniliform rhizomes that it produces as a means of reproduction. Stems arise from the "beads".

Comments: Not a preferred food of mammals. 

 

Happy Gardening and while you're walking around do get down on your hands and knees to get a good look at all the sweet low growing small beauties.

xoxogail

Welcome to Clay and Limestone and Wildflower Wednesday. This day is about sharing wildflowers and other native plants no matter where one gardens~the UK, tropical Florida, Europe, Australia, Africa, South America, India or the coldest reaches of Canada. It doesn't matter if we sometimes share the same plants, how they grow and thrive in your garden is what matters most. Sharing native wildflowers on social media is one of the best ways to educate others of their value to wildlife and the ecosystem. 

Gail Eichelberger is a gardener, Tennessee Naturalist and nature writer 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.

Wildflower Wednesday 2024 Year in Review

 December 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Parade of Stars

There's still color in the garden thanks to the Hypercolored Hypericum's December color and while I'm here I want to thank the beige colored stalks of wildflowers, grasses and shrubs for brightening the gray days. Because everyone knows that browns are beautiful. Also present are our brightly colored winter garden residents~Cardinals, Robins, Titmice, Chickadees, Nuthatches, house finches, Goldfinches, and woodpeckers....Many feasting on seedheads left standing just for them. 

 

One thing we do here in winter is make sure there is water for visiting creatures. Which means on days when it's below freezing we've turned on our pond heaters. I totally recommend this for all folks who garden with critters in mind; water is essential for their health and survival.

Gardening in the Middle South is mostly a treat, we have four seasons, but our winter is mercifully short and spring and late autumn make up for the steamy hot summer weather. The last several years have been especially rough with weather extremes of incredible cold, incredible droughts and incredible rains...But we remain positive knowing that before long the earliest spring ephemerals will break dormancy and the gloriously long bloom of wildflowers will begin.

Here's the Wildflower Wednesday Parade of Stars.  Please follow the links to read about our glorious wildflowers. Seasons Greetings and Happy New Year. xoxogail 

 

January 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Winter Sowing

 I've been a toss the seeds on the soil in the fall and see if they germinate kind of gardener. But, honestly, I've not had the best success from direct sowing in my sloped garden. Winter rains either rot the seeds or wash them away. Then there are the rough and tumble wildflowers like Verbesina virginica, Symphyotrichum novae-angliae and Solidago, that reproduce on their own just fine and have a habit of crowding the garden space making it tough for some plants to get a toe hold in the soil. So, I am going to experiment with winter sowing a few wildflowers and planting them in the spring. I may even transplant them to larger containers for fall planting.  

Most perennial wildflower seeds need some kind of stratification to germinate. Stratification happens naturally over the winter when seeds ripen on the plants and then fall to the ground where they are covered with leaves or decaying plant matter all winter long. Seeds remain dormant until conditions are favorable for germination. Winter exposure to cold temperatures (cold/moist stratification occurs around 35-40F.) and moist conditions breaks dormancy and the seeds germinate (the embryo's cells start to enlarge) when temperatures increase in the spring.

milkweed fluff caught on Goldenrod

Winter sowing is the process of planting seeds outdoors in a container during the winter months. The containers get rained on, snowed on and the seeds get both the cold treatment and moisture they need to make them ready to germinate when it gets warm. I use a variety of containers to winter sow, including tall skinny nursery pots (for some trees) and clear plastic gallon jugs, which I am using for this post. In early spring I will sow annuals and perennials that don't need a cold treatment to germinate in seed trays.

 

February 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Necklace Gladecress

Leavenworthias, generally known as gladecresses, are late winter rosette-forming annuals with the sweetest little flowers. Our Wildflower Wednesday star is Leavenworthia torulosa and could easily be mistaken for another of the Leavenworthia  found in middle Tennessee. What made identifying this species from the others was the necklace/chain of beads' pod holding the seeds.

Gladecresses are members of the Brassicaceae/Mustard family and have a few iconic features.

• Usually herbaceous plants    
• 4 petals form a cross     
• Fruit: a pod or a capsule that is either a long and slender pod (silique) or short and broad pod (silicle)
• Flowers usually have 6 stamens (male flower parts), 4 tall and 2 short 
• Flowers are usually yellow, white, orange and lavender
  

 

 March 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Enemion biternatum

Welcome to  Clay and Limestone and the Wildflower Wednesday celebration of a sweet little spring ephemeral wildflower.

Enemion biternatum is lovely with delicate columbine like leaves and small white flowers. Small bees collect the pollen  and flies feed on it, but, they would search fruitlessly for nectar. It hasn't any nectaries.

 Eastern False Rue-anemone, False Rue Anemone or Enemion biternatum is a sweet little Spring ephemeral in the Buttercup family (Ranunculaceae). It's native to shady rich or calcereous woods & thickets; floodplain woods and limestone ledges (slightly alkaline soil) and is native to Middle Tennessee. The delicate looking foliage of False Rue Anemone emerges in late winter and makes a beautiful leafy mat that grows about 6 inches high. The flowers, scattered here and there,  emerge as the days warm and the bloom period is at least a month long. It would make a lovely ground cover, but, like all Spring ephemerals, grows, blooms, gets pollinated, sets seed in a short period of time before it fades and retreats back underground.

April 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Krigia biflora  

Krigia biflora, aka, two-flowered Cynthia, is one of my favorite wildflowers. Those of you who shy away from vibrant golden yellow or luminous orange flowers may be asking yourself, "What ever does she see in that flower? It looks like a dandelion."

It does resemble a dandelion and that doesn't bother me! In fact, it looks so similar to Taraxacum that one of its common names is two-flowered dwarf dandelion.

What's special:

• It's an early blooming native that could replace dandelions in your garden
  
• Its color is more orange than yellow
• That blue-green foliage
  
• The flower is lovely
• Fairly long bloom time
  
• It doesn't spread all over your garden like a dandelion will. Although, I wouldn't mind if it did. 
• It will grow in almost any soil (except water logged)

 

May 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Thermopsis villosa, Another Fabulous Fabaceae

If you're looking for a beautiful accent plant that's attractive to bumblebees and butterfly I think you'll be happy with Carolina lupine. Itslong spikes of butter yellow pea-like flowers are beautiful.This upright beauty resembles lupines and is related to Baptisia. 

Thermopsis villosa  grows happily from Maine to Georgia and west to Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama. Plants are indigenous to the Appalachian Mountains of Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina, but have been introduced into other states. In the wild you'll find it in woodland clearings, open meadows, prairies, road banks and disturbed fields. (source) It is adaptable to rich garden soils throughout the eastern United States. Although, it's described as drought tolerant, that  doesn't apply to our extended southern droughty months, you will probably need to water it.

June 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Liatris spicata  

Liatris spicata is a delightful exclamation point in my June meadowish habitat. Bumblebees, butterfly and hoverflies are the most frequent visitors to the purple flower wands.

 It has grass-like foliage and blooms in June at Clay and Limestone for about 3 weeks. The common name blazing star or even dense blazing star makes sense when you look closely at the clusters of tiny purple to pink, star shaped flowers atop the wands/terminal spikes. Blazing star is often described as low maintenance and if you have average to moist, well-drained soils then you're in luck. Blazing star's natural habitat is wet depressions in prairies and meadows. Long time readers know the conditions in this garden do not meet that description.

The soil at Clay and Limestone is shallow and sits over limestone rocks and boulders. It dries out fast  when the summer temps arrive and drains slowly during the winter. I've had the best luck growing L spicata in a container. 

Why containers? They're perfect for any plants that need good drainage or consistently moist soil. Winter loss is a huge problem with Blazing Stars because too much moisture over winter will rot the corms. Planting in containers with well draining soils has been a good solution for stopping winter rot and keeping blazing star happy.

 

 July 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Path Rush

 I found Juncus tenuis/Path rush growing at Clay and Limestone.

Despite the common name of Path Rush it wasn't found on a path. The paths through my garden are neither sunny or damp enough to please this rush plant. Instead, it has found a home in the cracks in the asphalt driveway. In fact, the only time I've ever seen this plant growing has been in cracks in asphalt driveways.

Juncus tenuis is a rhizomatous cool season perennial rush. It's a common species of rush that can be found throughout North America. 

Plants in the rush family typically have      

• Basal leaves (a)
  
• Round and solid stems (b)
  
• With 3 sepals and 3 sepal-like petals  (e) 
  
• Many-seeded capsules that split open lengthwise into 3 sections. (f)
  

 

 August 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Dicliptera brachiate 

Some of my favorite wildflowers are those I've chanced upon while I was out walking in my neighborhood, the greenway or a local park. Unknown plants in flower are magnets for me! I need to get close and try to id them. That's how I met our Wildflower Wednesday star. A  tiny pink/lavender flower tempted me to stop and check out the massed greenery were it was growing in a weedy ditch. I had never seen it before, but there was something familiar about the plant that made me think of Ruellia strepens/smooth wild petunia. Although the flowers are very different, the almost square stems, opposite leaves and position of the flowers were a great help in starting my search in the Acanthaceae family.

Unless you are like me, a ditch watching naturalist looking for plant treasures, you might have assumed that the mass of plants were just weeds. When I say mass, I really mean it. There was a dense stand along the bank of the ditch/small creek with Phytolacca americana/pokeweed, non native Asian dayflower, smartweed and other moisture loving plants. What a treasure trove of plants!

 September 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Verbesina virginica 

It's rough and tumble wildflower time in my garden and that makes me happy. The take care of themselves Autumn beauties are shining.

Rough and tumble wildflowers are simple wildflowers that bloom their hearts out and require the easiest of care. Verbesina virginica is one of the best and it deserves to be a Wildflower Wednesday star every fall, but, especially this year, because it has survived to bloom beautifully despite our severe drought.

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. The Goldfinches and other seed hungry birds descend upon this plant before the seeds are even fully ripe.

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!

 

October 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Clinopodium arkansanum  

I have a new wildflower that I'm excited to share with you. 

Courtesy of Illinois Wildflowers: Flowers two upper lobes and three lower lobes

It's common name is Limestone calamint and I already love it. It's just so darn cute.

katherinebaird source

A cute flowering plant with a lot to offer:

• It's a mint family member 
• It thrives in a neutral to slightly alkaline or limestone soil. 
• The leaves are fragrant, too. 
• Typical tubular lipped flowers that attract bees to the nectar and pollen
• Square stems and opposite leaves
  
• Mints spread, this one is a rhizomatous perennial 
• It forms a dense, low-growing foliage mat 
• The flowers are large for such a tiny plant
• It has upright, leafy flowering stems rising to 12” tall. 
• A pennyroyal-flavored tea can be made from them. 
  

 

November 2024 Wildflower Wednesday: Appreciative and Thankful For My Garden/Habitat 

It's Thanksgiving week and I am feeling appreciative and thankful about the good people, good things, good wildflowers and good garden critters in my life. The last two years have been especially challenging for me as a gardener, so I am working extra hard at appreciating what is revealed to me every day in my garden. This Wildflower Wednesday post is in celebration of the wildflower and native plant beauty in the garden. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have had in putting it together.

But first a little history to remind myself and long time readers of what this journey has been like! xoxogail

 Long before there was a Clay and Limestone this sloped land was a rocky forest of native trees, shrubs, perennials and ephemerals. When my house was built on this rocky soil almost 70 years ago this neighborhood was not part of Nashville. Metro Nashville didn't exist until 1962 when the citizens voted to consolidate the competing and duplicative city and county governments into one. Metro Nashville has thrived and grown ever since, so much so, that many groups are working to make sure that there are some protections for the tree canopy, for pollinators, for birds and for other critters.

To create this suburban neighborhood developer's bulldozers cut streets through the woodland. They built brick ranch houses that had deep backyards and grassy front yards. They left a few canopy trees, primarily the oaks, hickories and hackberry, but took out most of the understory and planted non native lawns, so that boys and girls could play baseball, kickball and reach for the sky on their backyard swings.

The rocky, shallow soil was not so good at supporting turf grasses, but, it was excellent at supporting bee friendly lawns that were populated with native plants like Danthonia spicata Poverty Oat Grasses, panic grasses, Ruellia humilis, Viola spp., Sisyrinchium angustifolium/Blue-eyed grass, Nothoscordum bivalve/False garlic, Claytonia virginica/Spring beauty, Downy woodmint, Erythronium americanum/trout lily, fleabane, toothworts, Lyre-leaf sage, Western Daisy and sedges.

Today, I look around and celebrate those wildflowers. They have brought me so much joy. When I stop and think about its those wildflowers that I have to thank for helping me gain new knowledge, for great adventures and for meeting new people. Without wildflowers I might never have realized the possibilities for a garden with difficult growing conditions like I have here at Clay and Limestone. I would surely never have met the unique plants and trees that grow in middle Tennessee, I wouldn't have begun blogging and I wouldn't have met wonderful friends like you dear readers or my dear friends from Garden Bloggers Flings. Nor would I have become a Tennessee Naturalist. My love for wildflowers opened my eyes to many things, especially to pollinators and their importance to our gardens, to agriculture and to the earth.

I am grateful that so many plants happily grow in my shallow, clay soil and that they survive what nature throws at them. Thanks so much for stopping by and helping me celebrate November Wildflower Wednesday with a tour through my habitat and a look at a little of its history.

 

There are so many wonderful wildflowers to celebrate, I hope you have a list of your favorites. Here's my secret, all the plants in my habitat are my favorites, but, these wildflowers are incredible plants and if you can give them the growing conditions they need, then consider adding them to your garden. If you garden in middle Tennessee they may be perfect for yours.

I love when you visit and leave comments, especially when you share something about your garden. I hope to see you in 2025 and may your garden give you the joy that mine has given me. 

xoxogail

Welcome to Clay and Limestone's Wildflower Wednesday celebration. On the fourth Wednesday of each month I share information about wildflowers and other native plants. Please join in if you like. You can write a blog post or share your favorite wildflower on social media. 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.

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.

Wildflower Wednesday: Liatris spicata

Liatris spicata is a delightful exclamation point in my June meadowish habitat. Bumblebees, butterfly and hoverflies are the most frequent visitors to the purple flower wands.

 It has grass-like foliage and blooms in June (my garden) for about 3 weeks. The common name blazing star or even dense blazing star makes sense when you look closely at the clusters of tiny purple to pink, star shaped flowers atop the wands/terminal spikes. Blazing star is often described as low maintenance and if you have average to moist, well-drained soils then you're in luck. Blazing star's natural habitat is wet depressions in prairies and meadows. Long time readers know the conditions in this garden do not meet that description.

The soil at Clay and Limestone is shallow and sits over limestone rocks and boulders. It dries out fast  when the summer temps arrive and drains slowly during the winter. I've had the best luck growing L spicata in a container. 

Why containers? They're perfect for any plants that need good drainage or consistently moist soil. Winter loss is a huge problem with Blazing Stars because too much moisture over winter will rot the corms. Planting in containers with well draining soils has been a good solution for stopping winter rot and keeping blazing star happy.

I have seven containers that are sited in the sunniest part of my garden. The flowery wands top out at between 2 and 3 feet tall. Of course I wish I had deep soil so I could mass them and see them growing 5 foot tall and waving in the breeze. They would look like the statuesque beauties I've seen in wet prairie gardens! But, then this garden wouldn't be Clay and Limestone, would it! 

 Liatris is a member of the Asteraceae family and there are roughly 50 species of Liatris native to North America including many cultivars and hybrids from Mexico to Canada and from the Atlantic Ocean to the Rocky Mountains. L spicata has grass like basal leaves and non daisy like flower spikes (the flower heads have disc florets and no ray florets) that are a delightful rosy purple. They also come in white, but, I prefer the rich rosy purple. The blossoms begin opening from the top of the spike downward and according to one source they have a slight vanilla scent when the seedheads are dried. They would make a beautiful bouquet with other wildflowers, but I don't grow a cutting garden, I grow plants for the bees, butterflies and other pollinator and insect visitors. It’s a magnet for monarchs and tiger swallowtails, and also attractive to silver-spotted skippers, red admirals, painted ladies and sulphurs. Hummingbirds are known to visit and I've been on the look out for them. I never deadhead them even though I've read they might rebloom. I prefer to leave the spent flowers to provide vertical interest long after their color has faded and for thethat  indigo bunting, goldfinches, and other seed-eating birds feed on the seeds.

I love seeing them massed with grasses and other prairie plants. That's the community they thrive in and the grasses and taller forbs provide support and keep them from flopping. I think they look especially lovely with  yellow flowers. For my garden that means Rudbeckias, Hypericums and Partridge peas. They also look spectacular with Purple coneflowers/Echinacea and Phlox paniculata. It can be planted in drifts or groups for a big display of color, or individually as an accent in a more formal setting. There are numerous possibilities with this beautiful plant that make it a great choice for any garden.

Blazing stars are tough plants and most of the Liatris genus are quite drought tolerant. L spicata is the most wet tolerant of all the species, but none of them like a wet winter. In fact, that's a guaranteed way to rot the corms. I've planted them in a good mixture of soil, soil conditioner and expanded shale to give them the drainage they require.

I want more blazing star!

Why grow Liatris?  

It checks a lot of boxes!

• Pollinator magnet: It attracts bees, butterflies, and birds!     
• Four seasons of interest, exceptional ornamental value
• Adaptable and easy to grow.
  
• The dried flower heads provide seeds for birds
• Once established it's fairly drought and heat tolerant  
  
• Interesting flowers, great for cut flower arrangements     
• Deer resistant
  
• Grows well in average to poor soils, but prefers moist soil
  

 

 

The flower heads have disc florets,  but no ray florets.

The Particulars

Botanical Name: Liatris spicata 

Family: Asteraceae 

Common Name: Blazing star, dense blazing star, gayfeather

Plant Type: Herbaceous, perennial

Hardiness Zones: 3–9 (USDA) 

 

Native Area: native to the eastern United States

 Mature Size: 2–5 ft. tall, 9–18 in. wide 

Sun Exposure: Full or light shade

Soil Type: Well-drained 

Soil pH: Acidic, neutral 

Bloom Time: Summer/June in my mid-south garden

Flower: Liatris flowers are clusters of many small, individual florets located on one composite head. The flower heads have disc florets and no ray florets.

Leaves: grass like leaves are narrow

Color: Rosy lavender/Purple, white 

Propagation: Plant corms in the spring. The corms should be planted 1-2" deep and spaced 12-18" apart. After planting, water well. The flowers usually bloom about 90 days after planting.

Wildlife value: Liatris species are host plants for the flower moths Schinia gloriosa and Schinia sanguinea, both of which feed exclusively on the genus. L. pilosa, L. scariosa, L. aspera, L. pychnostachya, L. spicata and L. punctata are amongst the species that are recommended as monarch nectar sources by the Xerces Society.

Comments: While not commonly grown in containers go ahead and plant them there. They would be beautiful on your  full sun balcony planted with other natives that love the same growing conditions. The important thing is to make sure the soil is well draining. It is attractive in mass plantings in a pollinator garden, rain garden, perennial border, native plant garden, or a cottage garden. I've seen photos of a mixture of white and purple liatris and I must admit they do look beautiful. 

Deer resistance: Visiting deer have browsed on Phlox and a few other plants, but so far they've left the Liatris alone. I appreciate each and every bloom that survives what the deer and bunnies think of as the Clay and Limestone all you can eat buffet.

The Genus: There are 8 different species of Liatris in Tennessee and I have hankered after all of them. Most require full sun and dry, but fast draining sandy or rocky soils. Both L aspera or L squarrulosa are native to Davidson county, TN and available from a local native plant nursery. Thinking about trying them!

My goal has been to have as many in containers in order to make a big rosy purple presence. I'll keep you in touch with my successes or failures with the genus.xoxogail

 Welcome to Clay and Limestone and Wildflower Wednesday.  This day is about sharing wildflowers and other native plants no matter where one gardens~the UK, tropical Florida, Europe, Australia, Africa, South America, India or the coldest reaches of Canada. It doesn't matter if we sometimes share the same plants. How they grow and thrive in your garden is what matters most.

 

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.

Wildflower Wednesday: Winter Sowing For More Wildflowers

I am dreaming of spring and thumbing through seed catalogs helps me dream! An actual catalog has corners to fold over and pages to write upon. I love reading the descriptions of the plants, seeing photos of them in natural settings and then imagining them in my garden.

 A great seed catalog is about more than selling pretty flowers. My favorite seed/plant catalogs do a wonderful job of organizing and presenting plants and their cultural information. Every wildflower, grass, or sedge they offer is shown with detailed information including genus, species, common name, germination guide, sun, soil, bloom, color, height and even a few  comments. Catalogs that include this kind of detailed information are great teaching tools for gardeners wanting to learn about wildflowers and their cultural requirements. When you find this information included, you know immediately that the nursery owners want you to find the right plants for your prairie restoration, native habitat or new wildflower garden.

 

Dogbane seeds

I've been a toss the seeds on the soil in the fall and see if they germinate kind of gardener. But, honestly, I've not had the best success from direct sowing in my sloped garden. Winter rains either rot the seeds or wash them away. Then there are the rough and tumble wildflowers like Verbesina virginica, Symphyotrichum novae-angliae and Solidago, that reproduce on their own just fine and have a habit of crowding the garden space making it tough for some plants to get a toe hold in the soil. So, I am going to experiment with winter sowing a few wildflowers and planting them in the spring. I may even transplant them to larger containers for fall planting.  

Most perennial wildflower seeds need some kind of stratification to germinate. Stratification happens naturally over the winter when seeds ripen on the plants and then fall to the ground where they are covered with leaves or decaying plant matter all winter long. Seeds remain dormant until conditions are favorable for germination. Winter exposure to cold temperatures (cold/moist stratification occurs around 35-40F.) and moist conditions breaks dormancy and the seeds germinate (the embryo's cells start to enlarge) when temperatures increase in the spring.

milkweed fluff caught on Goldenrod

Winter sowing is the process of planting seeds outdoors in a container during the winter months. The containers get rained on, snowed on and the seeds get both the cold treatment and moisture they need to make them ready to germinate when it gets warm. I use a variety of containers to winter sow, including tall skinny nursery pots (for some trees) and clear plastic gallon jugs, which I am using for this post. In early spring I will sow annuals and perennials that don't need a cold treatment to germinate in seed trays.

 

Clematis viorna seeds need 90 days cold stratification

 

Here’s what folks all over the internet have suggested and what I did.

1. Collect a bunch of clear plastic containers. We are a household of two and don't get milk in big gallon containers, but many of my friends and neighbors do and they gladly shared them with me. I am so appreciative of their saving them and in some cases dropping them off at my house!

1b. You can winter sow in almost anything. Opaque milk and water jugs, food containers with clear plastic tops,  two-liter soda bottles take-out containers with clear plastic lids and even foil pans with clear lids. The key is to have a container that's at least 4 inches deep.

2. Clean them. Those generous neighbors and friends gave me clean containers!

3. Poke holes in the containers on the bottom for drainage and the top for rain/melting snow to enter.

4. Cut around the jug but leave the handle in place. It functions as a hinge at the handle. I used scissors for cutting most containers.

5. Add about 4 inches of moist potting soil to the container. I let it sit to settle ...

6. Plant seed. Some seeds need to sit directly on the soil and others need to be lightly covered. Thos great catalogs should give you this info.

7. Tape the containers closed and toss the lids.

8. Write on the container the plant name and any other identifying info you want with a permanent marker. I also numbered each of mine and kept a list in case the name washed off.

9. Place them in shade. I placed mine in a kiddie swimming pool that has many holes punched so it drains.

It snowed before I could finish sowing

10. Wait patiently for spring, but, check periodically to see if they need water. I grow in the mid south and this might be necessary.

11. Plants emerge when they’re ready! Expect a few to sprout when it gets warm, some may take weeks or months longer.

 

 

Porteranthus stipulatus seed collection

 

I am winter sowing the seeds I've collected in my garden and ones I've ordered from trusted sources.

Partridge pea was sown several falls ago and now self seeds

Here's an incomplete list of plants that you might want to try winter sowing.

Asclepias 

Rudbeckia

Columbine

Vernonia

Hypericum

Perennial sunflowers

Amsonias

Downy Woodmints

Agastache

Mountain Mints

Baptisia

Bidens

Boltonia (don't cover seeds)

Carex

Seeds that drop earlier in summer  may need a warm period followed by a cold period. I usually let them reseed.

 Why winter sow

• Seeds are protected. They don't wash away in a heavy rain.They aren't eaten by critters. They don't dry out in the wind. They don't rot in too wet soil.
• Seeds do not need to be hardened off before planting in the garden.  
• Winter sowing is ideal for those with limited indoor space for seed starting. 
• No special lighting or equipment is required for germination. 
• Many container choices for propagating.
  
• It's fun.
• It's a fun/interesting project with your kids or grandkids. 
• You can grow plants that are hard to find at local nurseries.
• It's a great way to increase both the number of plants and the diversity of species in your garden.
• You will feel so good when they germinate.
• Seriously cheaper than buying dozens of plants.
  

 

I hope this is inspirational for you. Many of you still have time to winter sow. Plus, there are a lot of perennials and annuals that don't need 60 to 90 days of cold stratification.

 I sure hope there's room for all the plants I've sown!

xoxogail

 

Thanks to Laura for this quote

 

PS Watch for the First Wednesday Taking Care Of Wildlife In Our Gardens Challenge. The First Wednesday of every month.

Welcome to Clay and Limestone's Wildflower Wednesday celebration. I am so glad you stopped by. 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 and, it doesn't matter if we all share the same plants. It's all about celebrating wildflowers. Please leave your url when you comment. I love your comments, so thank you for leaving them.

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.