Our wildflowers – 13

DEFINITION OF TERMS:

  • KEYSTONE means they are listed by National Wildlife Federation as core plants for a wildlife garden in my ecoregion (Ecoregion 8).
  • NOT QUITE NATIVE means they are slightly out of range but adjacent to NYS as determined by GoBotany and NY Flora Atlas.
  • Otherwise the plant is a NY-native or native to the area noted.

MIDWEST NATIVE: Bradbury’s bee balm (Monarda bradburiana)

Bradbury's monarda

This is an early-flowering bee balm. I discovered that it’s native to the midwest, not here, and I don’t remember where I got it.

It doesn’t seem particularly vigorous, and I have just a few stems of it left. I won’t replace it!

Fortunately, we have other beautiful monardas that are native here in CNY.

Wildlife: Hummingbirds
** SPECIAL VALUE TO NATIVE BEES **
** SPECIAL VALUE TO BUMBLE BEES **

Oswego tea aka scarlet beebalm (Monarda didyma)

Oswego tea

Monarda is in the mint family, so they’re easy to grow, and they’re a wonderful source of nectar. Hummingbirds love them!

(BONUS: Deer don’t like minty foliage, such as that of any of the monardas!)

They spread underground, but not aggressively, so I don’t consider it a problem. If I get too many in one spot, I transplant them to other parts of the yard where I need to fill space and a splash of color. I’ve never had to throw any out yet!

Wildlife: Hummingbirds, butterflies, bees
** SPECIAL VALUE TO NATIVE BEES **
** SPECIAL VALUE TO BUMBLE BEES **

Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa)

Wild bergamot

Another of the monardas and a special favorite of bees and especially the hummingbird moth.

This is the plant used in Earl Gray tea. I hate that kind of tea, but I love the plant!

Wildlife: Birds, butterflies, hummingbirds
Deer resistance: High
** SPECIAL VALUE TO NATIVE BEES **
** SPECIAL VALUE TO BUMBLE BEES **

Dotted horsemint (Monarda punctata)

What an unusual-looking plant! I love Cullina’s description of its unique color combination: he compares it to that of the kitchen in his old house: “Yes, that bad,” he says. I don’t know if he was serious, but I really like this intriguing plant.

But as he also says, though, I find it to be a short-lived plant. I’ve learned to seek out small seedlings and label them so I don’t pull them up accidentally. I haven’t been able to establish an ongoing patch of these yet, though I’d really like to.

Dotted horsemint

Wildlife: Insects
** SPECIAL VALUE TO NATIVE BEES **
** SPECIAL VALUE TO BUMBLE BEES **
** Attracts predatory or parasitoid insects that prey upon pest insects **

NOT QUITE NATIVE: Glade mallow (Napaea dioica) -native to PA

Glade mallow flowers

This very tall herbaceous shrub is a butterfly favorite—and also, unfortunately, a Japanese beetle favorite. It’s worth it, though.

Glade mallow with red admiral
Glade mallow with red admiral ©Janet Allen

For some reason, the red admiral butterfly is drawn to its flowers. I’m not sure what the attraction is since there are other flowers in bloom at that time, but I always can count on seeing red admirals on the glade mallow.

UPDATE in 2022: I haven’t seen any Red Admirals at all on any plant this year. Many other butterflies are missing, too. Not good news…

Glade mallow

It’s a very large plant, dying back completely in the fall, then springing up into a full-sized bush in the spring. The foliage is very attractive, here shown in late May. It will eventually get much taller each season — about 6 feet altogether.

KEYSTONE: Evening primrose (Oenothera biennis)

Biennial primrose
Biennial primrose ©Janet Allen

This is a nice, sunny-yellow plant that brightens up the woodland garden.

Wildlife: Birds, hummingbirds
** SPECIAL VALUE TO NATIVE BEES **

KEYSTONE: Sundrops primrose (Oenothera fruticosa)

My mother gave me some of this plant decades ago, a plant which she had received as a gift from another relative decades before that.

Appropriately named, this sunny plant! A big patch of these is certainly eye-catching. At first, I didn’t realize that it’s a native plant, not only native, but a Keystone genus. Good news!

Sundrops primrose

Wildlife: Birds, hummingbirds, and a variety of moths
** SPECIAL VALUE TO NATIVE BEES **

MIDWEST NATIVE: Pink ladies (Oenothera speciosa)

Pink ladies
Pink ladies ©Janet Allen

A beautiful pink primrose. It hasn’t been very vigorous in my yard — or maybe it’s another case of my not-so-benign neglect! I recently discovered that this isn’t actually native to the northeast, so that may be why it’s not thriving. I imagine I picked it up at a native plant conference many years ago.

*** Special Value to Native Bees ***