Prairie Fleabane - Erigeron strigosus

Florida is home to seven species of native fleabanes. For most of us, their identification is difficult. Some of the clues needed are in the shape of the leaves, the timing of their blooming, and the number and shape of the white ray petals that encircle the central yellow disk.
Prairie fleabane (Erigeron strigosus) is common to the northern two-thirds of Florida in open habitats, including disturbed edges of roadways.  It also is found throughout all of North America south of the most-northern tier of Canadian provinces and a few arid states in the US Southwest.  As such, it is an extremely adaptable species.
Prairie fleabane blooms in late spring and early summer. Various sources list it as everything from an annual, biennial and perennial, but it acts more as an annual here in Florida.  Growth is rapid in spring and mature plants can reach 3 feet tall by May.  This species is characterized by linear basal leaves several inches in length.  The lower stems have small stiff hairs that are only really noticeable with a hand lens or by touching the stem lightly.  Another characteristic helpful in making the identification is that the linear leaves tend to be absent about halfway up the flower stalk.
The flowers are typical of the genus - white ray petals and a yellow central disk. Each bloom is about 1/2 inch across and there are a great many thin ray petals along the outside - more than 50 typically and, thus, more than most other species in this genus.
Prairie fleabane is one of the most attractive members of this species for use in a wildflower garden and it is sometimes offered by members of FANN - the Florida Association of Native Nurseries.  All members of the daisy family are valuable for pollinators and fleabanes mostly serve as nectar sources for small bees and small butterflies such as hairstreaks and skippers.  Because it acts mostly like an annual, it will need some bare ground to reseed - or light mulch.

Scrubland Goldenaster - Chrysopsis subulata

Scrubland goldenaster (Chrysopsis subulata) is yet another endemic species within this distinctly Florida genus.  Out of 11 species native to Florida, six are endemic.  Though it's name would suggest otherwise, scrubland goldenaster is most common to well-drained uplands - especially xeric flatwoods and sandhills, but not scrub.  These photos were taken in early June in a sandhill area of  Brooker Creek Preserve, Pinellas County, near its intersection with Hillsborough and Pasco Counties.  Its range in Florida includes most of the north and central peninsular counties.
Like other members of this genus, the basal leaves are densely hairy and seem silvery in color because of them.  In many species, the resulting upright stems and leaves that develop later are shiny - the "hairs" are lost, but in scrubland goldenaster the hairs remain obvious on the leaves and elongating stems, though not as densely silvery as in Florida goldenaster (C. floridana).
Scrubland goldenaster is a perennial that dies back to the ground in winter, but often retains its basal leaves.  These are narrow and somewhat spatulate in shape.  The main stem grows rapidly in the spring and reaches a mature height of about 3 feet by early summer.  The thin, twisting leaves alternate along the stems and remain conspicuously hairy.
The flower buds form at the top of the stem and form an open irregular multi-stemmed panicle by June in most parts of its range.  This early bloom time is another feature that separates it from other goldenasters.  Like other members of this genus, the ray petals and central disk are golden yellow.  In this species, the ray petals are very narrow and sometimes twisted in appearance.
Goldenasters, like other members of the aster family, are excellent pollinator flowers.  Though maybe not as showy as some other, more commonly planted genera, they sometimes are offered commercially to the home gardener.  Scrubland goldenaster has not been one of those to this date, but we hope to add it at Hawthorn Hill in 2016.  Its tolerance of a variety of growing conditions should make it a relatively easy species to maintain in a typical landscape situation and its growth habit should allow it to mix well with other species. If you are interested in this species, ask us next spring.

Coastalplain Dawnflower - Stylisma patens

Coastalplain dawnflower (Stylisma patens) is common to upland habitats throughout the northern 2/3's of Florida and also occurs throughout the Southeast Coastal Plain from Louisiana to North Carolina.  Like other members of this genus (except S. aquatica), this is a thin-stemmed vine that creeps across the ground in all directions from the main stem and bears snow-white flowers.  All four of our native white-flowered upland species are most easily separated by the size and shape of their leaves.  Coastalplain dawnflower is no exception.  Unlike the others, its leaves are extremely narrow. These are members of the morning glory family and the solitary 3/4-1 inch blooms open in the morning and start to fade by afternoon.  They are pure white and remain open for only one day.  During that time, they draw the attention of a great many pollinators - especially the small bees and wasps.
Dawnflowers are not especially showy, but the sprawling mass of crystalline white flowers can be quite attractive during the late spring and early summer months. They also are not likely to attract much attention from home gardeners as their sprawling habit requires that they be given a lot of space. I am not aware that any of our native species have ever been offered for sale by members of FANN - the Florida Association of Native Nurseries.  Despite that, I always appreciate their presence while I am hiking in Florida's uplands. Look for them.

Rugel's Hoarypea - Tephrosia rugelii

Rugel's hoarypea (Tephrosia rugelii) is endemic to Florida, but found in most counties in the peninsula as well as being reported from Jefferson County.  It is one of eight species found in Florida; a genus that can sometimes be confusing. Hoarypeas are legumes and they share the many characteristics of the family - compound leaves and flower shape, to name two.
Rugel's hoarypea is similar to Florida hoarypea (T. florida) and can be told apart mostly by the length of the petiole - the part of the leaf that attaches it to the main stem.  Rugel's hoarypea has much shorter petioles than Florida hoarypea.  Both species are common in upland well-drained sites and bloom from late spring into fall.  The specimens above were photographed in Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park, not in sandhill, but where the water table often rises to the surface during wet summers.
This is a perennial that dies back to the ground in winter.  Its stems are herbaceous and they are upright, though they grow outward more than upward and extend for several feet from the root in many directions.  The compound leaves are comprised of many elliptical leaflets, ending in a sharp point.
The blooms are interesting.  The deep rosy buds open by mid-morning, producing bright white flowers. By late afternoon, these blooms turn rosy once more before closing.  This makes it easy to identify this plant as two separate species, but of course, it is not.
Tephrosias are of great interest to pollinators such as bumblebees and serve as larval food for several butterfly species - including several species of skippers.  None, however, have ever been propagated to my knowledge by any of the native plant nurseries associated with FANN - the Florida Association of Native Nurseries.  Tephrosias, like Rugel's hoarypea would make a useful ground cover within a naturalistic mixed wildflower garden.  Perhaps someday at least one of them will be offered for that purpose.

Whitetop Aster - Oclemena reticulata

Whitetop aster, also known as pinebarren aster, (Oclemena reticulata) is one of many asters formerly included in the genus Aster, and now distinguished within a new and separate genus.  This species is the only one included in Oclemena, and it has characteristics that separate it from the many asters now included in Symphyotrichum. This species is found nearly statewide, except extreme south Florida and in states immediately north of us - Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina.  It is common to open prairies and moist pine flatwoods.
Whitetop aster is a perennial that dies back to the ground in winter and quickly reemerges in the early spring.  Its many stalks reach a mature height of about 3 feet by April.  Unlike other asters, it blooms in April to early May, sets seed shortly after and then largely stays dormant the rest of the growing season.  It leaves are oval, lime green in color, with a few teeth along the margins and with deeply incised veins.  These are on thin, but stiff stems.  Whitetop aster spreads by underground rhizomes in good growing conditions and quickly forms extensive colonies.
The flowers are typical of many "asters"; the ray petals are thin and white, surrounding a central core of yellow disk flowers.  The loose panicle of blooms stands well above the foliage and attracts a diversity of pollinators.  Unlike the vast majority of other "asters", these blooms are available early in the season and therefore can be a critically/valuable resource to bees, butterflies and other pollinating insects.
Whitetop aster is only rarely available from commercial sources, despite its utility and understated beauty.  In the home landscape it requires sun and relatively moist soil - especially during the spring and summer.  It will slowly decline if kept too dry.  In the right conditions, it can become a problem because of its tendency to sucker and spread, but this can be controlled through occasional thinning.  Do not use it in small mixed wildflower beds, but in more expansive areas it provides color at a time when few other wildflowers are blooming and it becomes a magnet for bees and butterflies. I have recently collected seed of this species and we hope to make it available by fall 2015.

Chapman's Hairyjoint Meadow Parsnip - Thaspium chapmanii

Hairyjoint meadow parsnip (Thaspium chapmanii is not found in Florida, but occurs just noth of the state line in Georgia.  The two native meadow parsnips - purple meadow parsnip (T. trifoliatum) has been reported in 5 counties in the central panhandle (in and around Torreya State Park), and T. barbinode has only been documented in Jackson County in Florida.  This species occurs throughout much of eastern North America, north to Ontario, Canada.  It is a member of the carrot family (Apiaceae) and it exhibits the foliage and umbelliferous flower heads distinctive to this family. This species closely resembles, T. barbinode, but is taller and has cream-colored flowers instead of white. I have written about T. barbinode eslewhere in this blog

Mexican Pricklypoppy - Argemone mexicana

Mexican pricklypoppy (Argemone mexicana) is an annual found primarily in disturbed sites throughout peninsular Florida.  It is also found in scattered locations throughout the Panhandle, and is documented in most states in the eastern 2/3rd's of the US.  It also has been introduced into Ontario and Alberta Provinces in Canada.
Mexican pricklypoppy might be considered an unwanted weed were it not for its beautiful flowers.  It behaves quite similarly to the true thistles in the genus Cirsium.  Plants develop from the copious seed in late winter/early spring.  A deep taproot is quickly developed as is a basal rosette of extremely spiny leaves.  Each of these leaves is about 6-8 inches long and deeply lobed.
Growth upwards begins in earnest by early spring.  Plants eventually stand 2-3 feet tall. In central Florida, full growth is achieved by mid-March and flowering commences. The bright canary-yellow blooms are several inches across and are similar in appearance to its well-known cousins, the true poppies.  Mexican pricklypoppy flowers are of great interest to pollinators.
This is a difficult plant to keep in cultivation as it spreads quickly in agreeable sites and its thorniness makes it a challenge to weed.  As it is an annual, it requires open soil around it to reseed effectively. Nonetheless, it and its white-flowered relative (A. albiflora) can make good additions to a pollinator garden if you are willing to do some thinning each year.  Plant it in open sandy and sunny areas, somewhere in the back half of the planting bed and not near a walkway or trail.  I have not seen this species offered in cultivation by members of FANN, the Florida Association of Native Nurseries, so gather some seed along roadsides or disturbed fields if you are determined to use it.