![]() ![]() Want something…well…prettier than aphids? More graceful? Watch a twelve-spotted skimmer dragonfly stand guard over the stream. ![]() Rattlesnake master (Eryngium yuccifolium ), Belmont Prairie Nature Preserve, Downer’s Grove, IL. Ants, aphids and a seven-spotted lady beetle (Coccinella septumpunctat ) on gray-headed coneflower (Ratibida pinnata ), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.įascinating! Check out this article from Science Daily or more information, or enjoy reading about blogger Kim Smith’s aphids in her intriguing post here. Check out that lady beetle, too! You can often find it where aphids are, as it was once introduced into the United States as a biological control. This season, many of our prairies’ gray-headed coneflower plants are covered with ants and aphids, which have a mutualistic relationship. New Jersey tea ( Ceathus americanus ), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. Possibly a box turtle (Terrapene carolina ), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.ĭespite our severe drought this year, the prairie is resilient. I give her a wide berth, and leave her undisturbed. So does this turtle, laying her eggs along the path. Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. Scurfy pea (Psoralidium tenuiflorum ), Belmont Prairie Nature Preserve, Downers Grove, IL.ĭiscovering plants going to seed always gives me hope for the future of the world. Speaking of scurfy pea, it’s in its transition from bloom to seed. Belmont Prairie Nature Preserve, Downers Grove, IL. When juxtaposed with blueish-purple scurfy pea, laced with compass plants, it’s perfection. Butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa ), Belmont Prairie Nature Preserve, Downers Grove, IL. The best fireworks today are just a hike away…on the tallgrass prairie. Halloween pennant dragonfly (Celithemis eponina ) with pale purple coneflowers (Echinacea pallida ), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. Its range is centered in the Midwest, extends south to Texas and Florida.“And I know it’s gonna be…a lovely day.”-Bill Withers While this species is indicative of the tallgrass prairie, it will also occur in open woodlands and roadsides. It is a long-lived drought tolerant plant and a legume, meaning it fixates nitrogen. Although it may take several years to reach maturity, White Wild Indigo grows quickly in the Spring. The dried plants often act as tumbleweeds and blow with the wind along the land dropping seeds as they roll along. Mature plants can be quite large, with a the base reaching up to four feet in diamater.īumblebees and butterflies like to visit White Wild Indigo. The plant has a deep taproot and does not respond well to being moved however, the taproot makes these very drought tolerant plants. Individual plants are very long-lived, but young transplants can take up to four years of development before they are full grown and producing flowers. The species name "alba" means "white," cleary referring to the white flowers. The name "Baptisia" means "to dye," referring to some species with indigo flowers in this genus being used as a dye. By late June it has transformed into a beautiful, five foot flowering perennial with spikes of white flowers. Its growth cycle begins in Spring when a slender purple stem emerges from the ground. It stands out among other prairie plants reaching up to 5 feet tall. White Wild Indigo (Baptisia Alba) - Referred to as White False or Wild Indigo. ![]()
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