Prairie forbs in full color

The consistent rains have been a boon to prairie plants and the fields are the most colorful they have been in many years. I made a list yesterday of species that are in full bloom at Pleasant Valley Conservancy right now.

Asclepas purpurascens: Purple milkweed

Asclepias tuberosa: Butterfly milkweed

Ceanothus americanus: New Jersey tea

Coreopsis palmata: Coreopsis

Desmodium canadense: Showy (Canada) trefoil

Desmodium glutinosum: Tick trefoil

Desmodium illinoiense: Illinois trefoil

Echinacea pallida: Pale purple coneflower

Euphorbia corollata: Flowering spurge

Heliopsis helianthoides: Ox-eye sunflower

Liatris pychnostachya: Gayfeather (in bud)

Monarda fistulosa: Bergamot

Napaea dioica: Glade mallow

Ratibida pinnata: Yellow coneflower

Rudbeckia hirta: Black-eyed Susan

Silphium integrifolium: Rosin weed

Silphium lacinatum: Compass plant

Silphium perfoliatum: Cup plant (just starting)

Silphium terebinthenaceum: Prairie dock (mostly in bud)

Verbena stricta: Hoary vervain

Veronicastrum virginianum: Culver’s root (in bud)

Illinois trefoil

Hoary vervain

Ox-eye sunflower