Last year I started thinking about the idea of taking photographs of every wildflower species that I could find in one growing season. For many years I have been keeping a list of all the flower species that I find in the Mt. Pleasant city parks. With a list of over 200 species, I realized that I lacked photos for many species and I was pretty certain that I had misidentified some species.
So for 2014 I set about to refine my list of flowers and to fill in the gaps in my photographic record.
Here are the self-imposed rules that I set for myself for this challenge:
- Any native or non-native plant (including trees) can be photographed if it meets two conditions
- It must be growing in a wild population - it cannot be in a location where it was planted.
- It must be growing in one of the parks or other city properties within the city of Mt. Pleasant, Michigan.
- I have to photograph the plant on the day I first find the flower - but I can photograph any flower of the species that I find on that day.
- I have to be able to identify the species for it to count - unknown specimens do not count.
Wildflowers of 2014 - #99 American Highbush Cranberry (Viburnum Trilobum)
Wildflower #99 for the year was found growing on the banks of the Chippewa River behind the Mt. Pleasant City Hall. American Highbush Cranberry (Viburnum Trilobum) is a native shrub that prefers moist soils along shorelines, floodplains, wet woodlands, and deciduous and conifer swamps.
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| Flowering American Highbush Cranberry along the Chippewa River |
The white flower clusters of American Highbush Cranberry consist of a round cluster of small fertile flowers surrounded by a ring of larger sterile flowers. The shrub's leaves resemble small maple leaves.
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| American Highbush Cranberry - note maple-like leaves and white flowers |
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| American Highbush Cranberry - note small sterile flowers surrounded by large sterile flowers |
Wildflowers of 2014 - #100 Common Buttercup (Ranunculus acris)
The 100th wildflower species of the year is the non-native Common Buttercup (Ranunculus acris). This native of Europe has been introduced throughout most of North America. It has glossy yellow flowers with five petals and deeply lobed leaves. Common Buttercup can be found in fields, pastures, and meadows, along roadsides, and along shorelines. I found it growing in moist soil along the Chippewa River. Individual Common Buttercup plants may flower any time between May and August.
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| Common Buttercup - note the glossy yellow flower |
Here is the complete list of the first 100 wildflowers of 2014:
Thursday 10 April 2014
#1 Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus)
Monday 14 April 2014
#2 Yellow Birch (Betula alleghaniensis)
#3 Pussy Willow (Salix discolor)
Wednesday 16 April 2014
#4 Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides)
Monday 21 April 2014
#5 Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)
#6 Dutchman's Breeches (Dicentra cucullaria)
#7 Common Blue Violet (Viola sororia)
Tuesday 22 April 2014
#8 Red Maple (Acer rubrum)
#9 Speckled Alder (Alnus rugosa)
Thursday 24 April 2014
#10 Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica)
Tuesday 29 April 2014
#11 Boxelder (Acer negundo)
#12 Cut-leaved Toothwort (Cardamine concatenata)
#13 Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris)
#14 Yellow Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum)
Thursday 01 May 2014
#15 Field Penny-cress (Thlaspi arvense) NON-NATIVE
#16 Silver Maple (Acer saccharinum)
#17 Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense)
#18 Common Dandelion (Taraxacum officianale) NON-NATIVE
Monday 05 May 2014
#19 Large-flowered Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)
#20 Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides)
#21 Squirrel Corn (Dicentra canadensis)
Tuesday 06 May 2014
#22 False Rue Anemone (Enemion biternatum)
#23 White Trout Lily (Erythronium albidinum)
Sunday 11 May 2014
#24 Wood Anemone (Anemone quinquefolia)
#25 Jack-in-the-pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)
#26 Spring Cress (Cardamine bulbosa)
#27 American Dog Violet (Viola labradorica)
#28 Swamp Buttercup (Ranunculus hispidus)
#29 Downy Yellow Violet (Viola pubescens)
#30 Two-leaf Mitrewort (Mitella diphylla)
#31 Mouse-ear Chickweed (Cerastium fontanum) NON-NATIVE
#32 Woodland Strawberry (Fragaria vesca)
#33 Garlic Mustard (Alliara petiolata) NON-NATIVE (INVASIVE)
Tuesday 13 May 2014
#34 Broad-leaved Toothwort (Cardamine diphylla)
#35 Downy Serviceberry (Amelanchier arborea)
#36 American Black Currant (Ribes americanum)
#37 Shepherd's Purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris) NON-NATIVE
#38 Mouse-ear Cress (Arabidopsis thaliana) NON-NATIVE
#39 Common Winter-cress (Barbarea vulgaris) NON-NATIVE
#40 Hoary Alyssum (Berteroa incana) NON-NATIVE
#41 Field Peppergrass (Lepidium campestre) NON-NATIVE
#42 Creamy Violet (Viola striata)
Sunday 18 May 2014
#43 Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum)
#44 Star-flowered False Solomon's Seal (Maianthenum stellatum)
#45 Common Periwinkle (Vinca minor) NON-NATIVE (INVASIVE)
Tuesday 20 May 2014
#46 Common Yellow Wood-sorrel (Oxalis stricta)
#47 Wild Strawberry (Fragaria virginiana)
#48 Nodding Trillium (Trillium cernuum)
#49 Early Meadow-rue (Thalictrum dioicum)
#50 Wild Blue Phlox (Phlox divaricata)
#51 Small-flowered Buttercup (Ranunculus arbortivus)
#52 Downy Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum pubescens)
#53 Small Pussytoes (Antennaria howellii)
#54 American Mountain Ash (Sorbus americana)
#55 Purple Dead-nettle (Lamium purpureum) NON-NATIVE
Wednesday 21 May 2014
#56 Horse-gentian (Triosteum aurantiacum)
#57 Lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria majalis) NON-NATIVE (INVASIVE)
#58 Choke Cherry (Prunus virginiana)
#59 Redbud (Cercis canadensis)
#60 Morrow's Honeysuckle (Lonicera morrowii) NON-NATIVE (INVASIVE)
#61 White Oak (Quercus alba)
#62 Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa)
Friday 23 May 2014
#63 Thyme-leaved Speedwell (Veronica serpyllifolia) NON-NATIVE
#64 American Bladdernut (Staphylea trifolia)
Monday 26 May 2014
#65 Tartarian Honeysuckle (Lonicera tatarica) NON-NATIVE (INVASIVE)
#66 Common Apple (Malus pumila) NON-NATIVE
#67 Wild Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis)
#68 Red Baneberry (Actaea rubra)
#69 Cleavers (Galium aparine)
#70 Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum)
#71 Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia)
#72 Pennsylvania Bitter Cress (Cardamine pensylvanica)
#73 White Baneberry (Actaea pachypoda)
#74 Canada Mayflower (Maianthemum canadense)
#75 Red Oak (Quercus rubra)
Monday 26 May 2014 (Part 2)
#76 Wayfaring Tree (Viburnum lantana) NON-NATIVE
#77 Dame's Rocket (Hesperis matronalis) NON-NATIVE (INVASIVE)
#78 Upright Carrion-flower (Smilax ecirrata)
#79 Pawpaw (Asimina triloba)
#80 Red-osier Dogwood (Cornus sericea)
#81 White Campion (Silene latifolia) NON-NATIVE
#82 Canada Anemone (Anemone canadensis)
Thursday 29 May 2014
#83 Feathery False Solomon's Seal (Mainthemum racemosum)
#84 Indian Strawberry (Potentilla indica) NON-NATIVE
#85 Common Fleabane (Erigeron philadelphicus)
#86 Wild Black Cherry (Prunus serotina)
#87 Black Medick (Medicago lupulina) NON-NATIVE
Sunday 01 June 2014
#88 Fistulous Goat's Beard (Tragopogon dubius) NON-NATIVE
#89 Garden Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) NON-NATIVE
#90 Autumn Olive (Elaeagnus umbellata) NON-NATIVE (INVASIVE)
#91 Golden Ragwort (Packera aurea)
#92 Nannyberry (Viburnum lentago)
#93 Forget-me-not (Myosotis scorpioides) NON-NATIVE (INVASIVE)
#94 Southern Blue Flag Iris (Iris virginica)
#95 White Clover (Trifolium repens) NON-NATIVE
#96 Black Raspberry (Rubus occidentalis)
#97 Green Dragon (Arisaema dracontium)
#98 Yellow Pond-lily (Nuphar variegata)
Tuesday 03 June 2014
#99 American Highbush Cranberry (Viburnum trilobum)
#100 Common Buttercup (Ranunculus acris) NON-NATIVE
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