Prairie Plants

Week of 08/05/2001 Fruitful days to plant for above-ground growth

My morning walk down nature’s trail leads me along the creek. There’s a place where the babbling water runs parallel with the road for about 100 yards. Here, between the road and the creek is a stand of native prairie plants. The area is mostly canary grass and goldenrod but about a fifth of it is native wildflowers. There are many yellow coneflowers with their bright yellow petals drooping from dark chocolate button tops. The tall dark green leaves and stalks of the cup plant stand above all. With rich yellow sunflowers reaching up to the sky.

The brush-like lavender blue flowers of the wild bergamot are a beautiful show. I brush my arms across the flower tops as I walk slowly along. They give off the pungent wild smell of the tall grass prairie.

Several tall white spikes of culver’s root flight their way through the rough goldenrod! They seem to refuse to be fenced out of their long time home.

Next spring I’ll run a fire through this half acre and hopefully open it up for the native plants. The fire will set back some of the alien plants but will encourage the native prairie plants to spread.

I wanted to pick a few of the lovely flowers for a bouquet on my kitchen table, but I just didn’t have the heart to pick even one.

My walk led me back through the yard and along the flower beds. I didn’t think twice about picking 15-20 different garden flowers for the house. Under the sink I found the old blue, 2 quart fruit jar that has held so many flowers over the years.

As a young man I got into the habit of taking bunches of these lovely flowers to a couple of lovely ladies whom I knew. My mother and grandmother were always happy to get them.