August is when our many asters begin to blossom here in New Hampshire and one of the first is the whorled wood aster. It’s one of the easiest asters to identify because of its early bloom time and because the narrow white ray florets look like they were glued on by chubby fingered toddlers. The plant can take quite a lot of shade and I usually find it growing alongside the edges of woodland paths.
Whorled wood aster (Oclemena acuminata) gets its common name from the way its leaves appear to grow in whorls around the stem from above. In botany, a whorl is an arrangement of at least three sepals, petals, leaves, stipules or branches that radiate from a single point around the stem, and the leaves of this aster really don’t fit the definition. Looking at the from the side the tiers of whorled leaves of would appear flat like a plate, but these leaves appear randomly scattered up and down its length. Indian cucumbers have tiers of whorled leaves as do some loosestrifes. The plant is also called sharp leaved aster and grows to about a foot tall.
One of the most beautiful late summer wildflowers that I know of is called eastern forked blue curls (Trichostema dichotomum), but blue is my favorite color so my opinion is slightly biased. Each tiny flower has four long arching stamens that dust bees with pollen when they land on its lower lip. It is an annual plant that grows new from seed each year. It likes dry sandy soil and I find it growing along river banks and in waste areas. It grows to about ankle high and its flowers might reach a half an inch long on a good day.
Virgin’s bower (Clematis virginiana) is a late summer blooming native clematis vine that drapes itself over shrubs so it can get all of the sunshine that it wants. I’ve also seen it climbing into trees. An extract made from the plant is hallucinogenic and was used by Native Americans to induce dreams. Mixed with other plants like milkweed, it was also used medicinally. It is a very toxic plant that can cause painful sores in the mouth when eaten. It is also called old man’s beard and devils’ darning needles.
Spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare) is also called bull thistle and is native to Europe. It is considered an invasive weed but it’s far less invasive than creeping thistle (Cirsium arvense) because it spreads itself by seeds and not root fragments like that plant does. It is thought to have been introduced to eastern North America during colonial times and to western North America in the late 1800s and early 1900s. It’s now found in all of the lower 28 states and most of Canada. Spear thistle likes to grow on disturbed ground and I find it in vacant lots and at the edges of cornfields. Many different bees and butterflies love its nectar and several species of small seed eating birds like finches love its seeds.
The flowers of spotted jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) have 3 sepals and 5 petals but are far too complicated to explain here. That information is easily found online anyway but what often isn’t included in the jewelweed flower’s description is the cluster of stamens with white anthers that sits just under the ovary near the upper lip. When a long tongued inset crawls into the flower to get at the nectar deep in the nectar spur its back gets dusted with pollen from these anthers. Sometimes the pollen can also end up on a humming bird’s head; they love the nectar too.
An interesting fact about jewelweed flowers is their ability to change from male to female. According to an article in the International Journal of Plant Sciences, when nectar is taken from a flower pollen collecting hairs are stimulated and the duration of the male phase of the flower is shortened. From then on it enters its female phase and waits for a visitor to dust it with pollen from another male flower. It’s no wonder these plants can produce so many seeds!
There are enough different goldenrods (over a hundred it is said) which look enough alike to convince me that I don’t want to spend the rest of my life trying to identify them all, but some are quite easy to identify. One of the easiest is gray goldenrod (Solidago nemoralis). It’s one of the first to bloom and its flower heads always look like they have been in a gale force wind and were all blown over to one side of the stem.
After years of trial and error Thomas Edison found goldenrod to be the best domestic source of natural rubber and bred a plant that grew to twelve feet tall and contained about twelve percent rubber in its leaves. Henry Ford and George Washington Carver developed a process to make rubber from goldenrod on an industrial scale during World War II and the USDA took over the project until synthetic rubber was discovered a short time later.
Northern bugleweed (Lycopus uniflorus) has opposite leaves that turn 90 degrees to the previous pair as they make their way up the square stem. The leaves are sessile, meaning they sit directly on the stem with no leaf stem (petiole,) or they can occasionally have a short petiole. Tufts of very small white flowers grow around the stem in the leaf axils. This plant likes wet places and, since there are many different species of Lycopus, it can be hard to identify.
The tiny flowers of northern bugleweed are about 1/8 inch long and tubular with 4 lobes, a light green calyx with 5 teeth, 2 purple tipped stamens, and a pistil. They are also very difficult to photograph because they’re so small. The plant is usually about knee high when I find it along the edges of ponds and streams. They often fall over and grow at an angle if there aren’t any other plants nearby to support them.
Dodder (Cuscuta) is an annual and grows new from seed in the spring. It is a leafless vining plant that wraps and tangles itself around the stems of other plants. It is a parasite that pushes root like growths called haustoria into the stem of the host plant. Dodder can do a lot of damage to food crops and some of its other common names reflect how people have felt about it over the years: devil’s guts, devil’s hair, devil’s ringlet, hail weed, hair weed, hell bine, pull-down, strangle weed, and witch’s hair.
In this photo that I took a couple of years ago if you look just to the upper left of the white flower in the photo you can see how the orange dodder stem has burrowed into a goldenrod stem. Once it is feeding on its host it loses all connection to the soil and from then on will survive by sucking the life out of the host plant. Dodder has no chlorophyll and its stems can be bright orange, yellow, or red. The round growths are seed pods.
If you search for rosebay willow herb (Chamerion angustifolium) on the USDA Plants Database you find that the plant doesn’t grow in New Hampshire, but if you search for fireweed you find that it does grow here. That’s odd because they’re the same plant, and I thought that this was a good illustration of why it’s so important to use a plant’s scientific name, especially when buying plants. Otherwise you never really know what you’ll be getting. The name willowherb comes from the way its leaves resemble those of the willow and the name fireweed comes from how it quickly colonizes burned areas of forest.
I know of only one place along a stream in Nelson New Hampshire where fireweed grows but it isn’t included in the New Hampshire Natural Heritage Inventory list of rare plants, so I’m guessing that it isn’t rare statewide even though it is here. Henry David Thoreau mentions seeing great stands of it growing in burned areas in 1857. It’s a beautiful color and its dangling stamens and large white pistil make it very easy to identify. This plant is a favorite of bee keepers and is an important nectar producer for the honey industry throughout Canada and Alaska. The honey is much sought after and commands premium prices.
The bright sunshine turned the usually brownish maroon color of the insides of these groundnut (Apias americana) flowers salmon pink. These unusual flowers always remind me of the helmets once worn by Spanish explorers and in fact Spanish explorers might have seen the plant, because it was a very important food source for Native Americans from New England to Florida. It has been found in archeological digs of Native settlements dating back 9,000 years.
The groundnut plant grows as a twining vine and will climb just about anything. In this photo it is climbing a small oak tree. It grows from tuberous, potato like roots that can be as big as a tangerine but are usually smaller. Native Americans used them in the same ways we use potatoes today, but groundnut “potatoes” contain about three times the protein. Natives taught the early colonials how to use the groundnut and the roots became such an important food source for them that they went so far as to forbid Natives from digging them on colonial lands. How’s that for a thank you?
I can count the times I’ve seen gentians on one hand and still have fingers left uncounted. I’ll never forget finding these plants growing beside the same dirt road that I found the fireweed on up in Nelson last year. I jammed on my brakes and jumped out of my truck and fell to my knees beside them. If anyone had seen me they would have been sure that I had escaped from an asylum, but I didn’t care. That’s how rare these plants are. I drove for 45 minutes to see them again this year.
At first I thought they were bottle gentians (Gentiana andrewsii) but further research told me that they were narrow leaf gentians (Gentiana linearis.) These plants like moist, calcium rich soil and that’s one reason you don’t see them here very often. Another reason is that the flowers never open so insects have to force their way in, and it takes a strong insect like a bumblebee to do so. Third is how its seeds are too small to interest birds and its foliage too bitter to interest herbivores. Put all of that together and it’s a wonder that this plant is seen at all. It’s listed as rare, endangered or vulnerable in many areas. I love its beautiful deep blue color and I’m very grateful to have seen it. Now if only I could find a fringed gentian or two.
I should like to enjoy this summer flower by flower, as if it were to be the last one for me.~ Andre Gide
Thanks for stopping in.
The gentian was a find. Such a beautiful blue flower. I’m pretty sure we don’t have dodder, or at least I e never seen it. We don’t have ground nuts either but we do have plenty of thistles. I love their flowers but not their spikes.
You’re lucky that you don’t have dodder. It can be a real pest.
Thistles can be invasive too, but they aren’t at all aggressive and many people let them grow for the flowers. Bees sure do like them!
There should be more gentians in the world, and less dodder. Dodder gives me the creeps, I have to say. There are few goldenrods I don’t like, they are one of the signs of fall I find very cheering. I particularly like the smaller goldenrods like S. odora and S. caesia. S. nemerosa seems handsome as well. My S. odora is just about to bloom any day.
I agree. You sure don’t want dodder in your garden!
I like goldenrods too. Solidago odora is very rare here but we do have bluestem goldenrod (S. caesia). There is a commercial version of S. nemerosa called “little lemon” that is nice and compact.
Hello there!
I’ve been meaning to thank you for your work: the pictures and information have been so valuable and educational for me.
I live in Groton, NH and, as I believe you are aware, this past winter was BRUTAL. I mean, life-changing tough. I began to miss my plants and started learning about them. Never really felt that way before. I’ve always been a very rigid gardener.
When I found your site, it was like I had written it for myself! The simple joy of discovery and connecting in this way got me through the last months, and gave me a reason to get up and out in the first dreary cold days.
It was in this way I found a small group of Dutchman ‘s Breeches in April, and fell in love. Since then, I’ve covered our area, making friends with our natives and getting to know them. It’s rare that I go out and do NOT find something new to explore.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! Please keep doing what you do, if you can. I only wish there was a way to describe how important your site is. It has inspired me in so many ways, and through it I feel I’ve healed a lot, too. Thank you so much, again💚
You’re welcome, and thank you Abigail, I’m glad you’re getting so much from this blog and happy that it helps get you through the our often tough winters. Last winter was indeed one to remember, even this far south!
Nature study, as I keep saying over and over, is really just a matter of slowing down and paying attention to our surroundings, and it certainly seems like you’ve gotten the message. It does me good to hear that it’s getting through to people and makes me want to keep on blogging. I don’t have any plans to stop just yet-there’s just too much more to see!
Thanks again and have fun out there.
A great article as always! Last Monday we found some narrow-leaf gentian in Stoddard, near the bridge that crosses the brook between Rye Pond and Robb Reservoir. In previous years I’ve found gentian in Nelson across and up from the town barn, in a wet field. I think there is quite a bit around if you look in the right places—it’s always a treat to find.
Groundnuts are quite tasty–have you tried them? The easiest way I’ve ever gathered them was when I found some on the edge of the Connecticut River in Putney one spring, after winter floods had scoured the bank and left the tubers lying on the surface for easy collecting with no digging.
Typing this while in Oregon for a few days. Vegetation is different here—but not always different enough, sometimes. Wanted to reacquaint myself with the bigleaf maple I’d grown up with out here, but the first maple I found was Norway, a commonly planted and invasive in NH (last visited here 28 yrs ago).
Thanks Al.
There seems to be the right kind of soil for gentians (and orchids) up in the Nelson / Stoddard area. I found these on Bailey Brook Road which of course is right near Rye Pond. I’ll have to drive a little slower next time I’m up there.
I’ve never tried ground nuts because I always find them either on private land or along the Ashuelot River in places that are more like parkland than river bank. They do sound pretty tasty though.
I’ve heard that it’s been dry in the north west this year. I’d love to visit Oregon and Washington too someday. It would be a great chance to see some redwoods and a real rain forest. It’s too bad they’re planting Norway maples. I hope you find the big leaf. Have fun!
I’ve never seen a gentian, but I am convinced I would recognize one if I came across it. My response would probably mimic yours. However, it can’t be rare everywhere, as gentian root extract is one of the ingredients in Moxie.
There really isn’t any other flower like either closed gentians or fringed gentians that I know of, and it’s hard to miss that intense color that they all seem to have.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Vermont had a good gentian population with their limey soil. I think parts of Michigan do too. Maybe parts of New Hampshire do too. They aren’t on the New Hampshire Natural Heritage Inventory list of rare plants so maybe they do better up north than they do here.
You just made me realize that I’ve drunk a lot of gentian root in the past!
I still enjoy Moxie on a regular basis. It’s flavor is polarizing – some people love it, and some hate it. My wife and I fall on each side of the divide. She describes it as cough syrup mixed with root beer (and she has an equally dim opinion of root beer).
I’ve always liked it too, but I haven’t had any for years. I’ll have to see if I can find some and see if it still tastes the same. At least you don’t have to fight your wife over the last glass full!
Such an interesting post Allen. We have both Spear Thistle and Creeping Thistle in our garden and I can definitely confirm that Creeping Thistle is almost impossible to get rid of! I have only seen Dodder once and that was about 15 years ago and it had almost completely covered some Gorse bushes on heathland. The photograph showing how it burrows into its host plant is fascinating and horrific at the same time. I can understand your reaction on seeing the gentian – it is really lovely.
Thank you Clare. I’ve never had to try to get rid of creeping thistle but I’ve heard that new plants will sprout from just a tiny piece of root, so I’m sure it’s a tough one to eradicate. At least it has pretty flowers!
I’m sure the dodder was killing those gorse bushes too, since that’s what it does. I thought I’d re-use that photo because showing is easier than explaining and it says it all. Parasitic plants are hard to fathom but I suppose they have to eat too. There has to be a good reason for their existence, I would think. Maybe they keep the population from exploding like predators do with deer.
Since my favorite color is blue I have a hard time passing blue flowers, but especially that deep, intense gentian blue. It’s a beautiful color!
We tried digging it out and soon gave up. The roots are about 1/8 inch thick and very brittle. Most are near the surface but some seem to go down very deeply. We have resorted to spraying though we prefer not to use herbicides.
That’s what I’ve heard. A couple doses of Roundup would probably take care of them but I only use it as an absolute last resort. It sounds like you’ve reached that point!
I’m afraid we have!
I got a chuckle from the story of your slamming on the brakes and so on when you spotted the gentians, I’ve done about the same thing while birding, except for the falling on my knees part. 😉 I should look for those, as it sounds as if the soil in Michigan is better suited for them, and fringed gentians are somewhat common farther north of where I live.
I wonder how many of the writers of science fiction movies knew something about botany, and plants like the dodder ? On a larger scale, a plant like that would be frightening, it’s a bit creepy as it is.
I love everything about this post but the title, it’s August already, and it seems as if summer just arrived. I’m seeing leaves turning already, and the early fall flowers are about to bloom.
Thanks Jerry! I’m glad there wasn’t anyone behind me that day. I should have some kind of a warning sign on my tailgate or something! I wouldn’t be surprised if you found plenty of gentians in the sweet soil you have there. I’m pretty sure Chris of the Plants Amaze Me blog has posted them.
It’s hard to imagine what usefulness plants like dodder have, but they have to be good for something. I agree-I’m glad they aren’t interested in humans. Not yet anyway.
I know-summer is flying by! I can only hope that winter does the same but somehow I doubt that it will.
I liked the unassuming bugleweed. I take it that it doesn’t blow its own trumpet a lot.
That’s funny. No, it’s a shy little thing that is barely noticeable. I see it because I look for it but I think most just pass it by.
That spotted jewel weed photograph is amazing. It was also interesting to learn how much rubber was in those golden rod leaves.
Thank you Susan. I was surprised to learn that rubber was made from goldenrod too!
Really enjoyed the story on Dodder. That’s quite a collection of hateful names that have been assigned to it over the years. Your close-up photo was especially instructive as to why.
Thank you Judy. Dodder seems to be a plant that is easy to hate, especially when it attacks your crops.
I’m sure that it must have a purpose. Just because we don’t know what it is doesn’t mean it doesn’t have one.
So many tiny wonders! Every post of yours encourages me to walk slowly and look closer at the spots of color that appear. Thank you for bringing it all closer!!
You’re welcome Martha and thank you. I’m always happy to hear that this blog is accomplishing its mission. Helping people see what’s out there is what it’s all about and I’m glad that you’re finding these plants.
Reblogged this on Dawn of Divine Rays.
Thanks very much for the re-blog Agnes. I hope you’re well and hope your husband has made it back to good health.
You are very welcome, Allen. How have you been? I hope that you are enjoying the summer as autumn is arriving real fast.
Hubby is feeling much better than March & April – Thank you for asking, Allen. You’re very kind.
He had the biopsy done a few days ago … so .. we’ll just have to wait for the review on 18th Aug. Am feeling well too … tired .. just plain tired.
Had some water back up issues in the basement when we had a few weeks of rain .. so .. we’re getting it straighten out with the home insurance. Also had the sewer pipe line perma-lined (it’s a new system where they just insert the liner inside of the collapsed sewer line and it get aligned without having to dig too much .. like back in the old days). Like I’ve said before .. we love this old house .. but .. when you open up an old can … you’ll find worms.
Still, we’re ‘learning’ to get the best out of each day. This planet of soul lessons never cease to amaze me. Sending bright Reiki blessings your way, Allen. Wishing you a beautiful weekend. – Agnes
I’ve been fine but it sounds like you’ve had your hands full. I wouldn’t wonder that you were tired! An old house is a lot of work but every time you fix something that’s one less thing that you have to worry about.
At least your husband is feeling better. That’s a good sign. I hope the test results show that you have nothing to worry about.
I also hope you’ve seen the last of the drenching rains so you can have a nice weekend. Take care and be well.
Thank you, Allen. Namaste
That picture of dodder is fantastic! I love the detail. I’ve only seen gentian in gardens, would love to find it wild. Thank you for the gray goldenrod tip; I’ve always been intimidated by goldenrods, but would love to learn a few this year. Asters as well, for that matter, though I don’t think I’ve ever encountered a whorled wood aster before. Wonderful post, as always.
Thank you Sara. This year the dodder was growing in a patch of Joe Pye weed and though I searched for where it had pierced the stems I couldn’t find a good example, so I used that shot. It shows how dodder does its work well, I think.
I’ve been searching for gentians all of my life and have only seen them three times. They are just a rare plant in these parts.
Some goldenrods are easy, like the gray, the slender fragrant, blue stemmed, and a couple others, all of which you’ll most likely see here eventually.
Asters are the same. I only know the easy ones!
Again, I have been absolutely captivated by the flower series this summer. Flowers are a passion of mine and as I am now limited in walking ,the vicarious pleasure makes my day!
I meant to ask if you knew that in the Arctic , the women used to pluck the soft heads off the cotton grass.. They would then spin them with their fingers into wicks for their seal oil lamps. A nice image when I used to walk thru our Philbrick Crienti Bog here in New London.
Thank you Ruth. I’m happy to be able to bring flowers to you one way or another. They’ve always been a passion of mine too and I can’t imagine having to go without them.
I’ve never heard that about the Arctic cotton grass but it makes perfect sense. They have so little up there, nothing goes to waste.
I’ve never been to the Philbrick Crienti Bog but I’d sure like to see it someday.
You outdid yourself this time, Allen! A great posting with beautiful photos and so much interesting information about each plant.
Thanks Michael. I’m glad you thought so. There’s a lot of interesting information about plants that I’ve never heard and it usually ends up here.
So many beautiful and unusual flowers. I had no idea jewel weed plants produce rubber. I’ll bet I have enough in my yard to make tires for my Jeep! I think they are pretty, but, boy can they take over an area!
Thanks Laura. Actually that’s goldenrod that produces rubber, but I’ll be that you probably have a lot of that in your yard too.