Plants for a Plant Zoo: Common Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea)
Karen Few plants have flowers that are as appealing as common foxglove. The 2-3″ long blooms that cover the 4-5′ tall flowering stalks are purple with enticing spots inside and appear…
Plant Profile: Alpine yellow Fleabane (Erigeron aureus)
Native to the Cascades and Rocky Mountains of northwestern North America, this short-lived herbaceous perennial is a member of the aster family, Asteraceae, that also includes daisy, yarrow, and sunflower.…
Plant Profile: Common Ladybells (Adenophora confusa)
Native to China, this herbaceous perennial is a member of the bellflower family, Companulaceae, that also includes lobelia and balloon flower. The plants grow 2-2.5′ tall and have fleshy roots…
Plant Profile: Orange Fleabane (Erigeron aurantiacus)
Native to the mountains of Kazakhstan and Xinjian in central Asia, this clump-forming, herbaceous perennial is a member of the aster family, Asteraceae, that also includes daisy, yarrow, and lettuce.…
Plant Profile: Downy Amsonia (Amsonia ciliata aka A. angustifolia)
A native of southeastern United States, this herbaceous perennial is a member of the dogbane family, Apocynaceae, that also includes perwinkle, oleander, and milkweed. The plant grows 1-3′ tall and…
Plant Profile: Wandering Fleabane (Erigeron peregrinus)
Native to bogs, streamsides, wet meadows and moist mountain soils from the Rockies to the Coastal Range, wandering fleabane is also called subalpine fleabane, coastal fleabane, and mountain daisy. It…
Plants for a Plant Zoo: Beebalm aka Bergamot (Monarda didyma)
Grow beebalm and introduce children to wildlife, butterflies and American history. Also known as oswego tea, this clump-forming herbaceous perennial is native to eastern North America from Maine to northern…
Weeds and Their Control: Common Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare)
Common tansy is a herbaceous perennial and a member of the aster family, Asteraceae, that also includes daisy, yarrow, and lettuce. It is native to Europe and Asia but was…
Plants for a Zoo Garden: Cat’s Ear (Hypochaeris radicata)
Although considered a weed in many parts of the country this herbaceous perennial resembles the common dandelion with its basal rosette of leaves that lie close to the ground and…
Plant Profile: Virginia Waterleaf (Hydrophyllum viginianum)
Also called eastern waterleaf and Shawnee salad , this herbaceous perennial is native to moist and wet woodlands in eastern US and is a member of the borage family, Borginaceae,…