Aug. 16, 2020 - Wildflower Garden

We have a wildflower garden at our lake home in northern Minnesota. Right now, it is at the peak of flower production.

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We have many varieties; some bloom early in the season and they have now finished and gone to seed. Here are some of those early bloomers. This is Golden Alexander. It’s in the carrot family and produces a flat-topped cluster of small yellow flowers.

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Last year we had our first Butterflyweed plant. This year there are five or six of them scattered around the garden. We are pleased to see it spreading because it will attract butterflies to the garden. As you can see, it is also attractive to ants.

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Columbine is one of my favorite wildflowers. I just think it has an interesting shape and makes a great photo subject.

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This bright, almost fluorescent plant is Indian Paintbrush. The colorful red parts are bracts, not petals. The actual flower is small, yellow, and inconspicuous. It looks like there is one flower visible in this photo.

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You can’t miss Downy Phlox when it starts blooming. The bright pink flower clusters cry out “look at me”! Ours started blooming around the end of June this year.

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To my eye, St. John’s Wort has a scattered, busy look to it. The flower has five yellow petals and many yellow stamens.

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