Wildflowers appear all through the season, from early spring to late fall. There are even weeds that bloom in the winter, which would be wildflowers too. My neighbor used to say that if his wife liked it, then it was a flower, if she didn’t it was defined as a weed.
The mountain laurel grows wild in the mountains. They have a truly delicate beauty.
More Foxgloves come up from seeds and spread every year.
A bee is helping pollinate this Evening Primrose. The seeds must number in the thousands when then are finished blooming. At one time I had them at the top of the driveway. Seeds were washed everywhere as evidenced by the multitude of plants that came up all over. Those were definitely weeds!
By far the greatest enjoyment provided by Evening Primrose is watching them open around nine o’clock each night. Here’s a link to three videos showing them open in real time. Just wish you could also smell the lovely lemony fragrance too. Opening Evening Primrose
This Monarch caterpillar is usually devouring milkweed. Butterfly Weed is a type of milkweed. Hopefully it will spin it’s chrysalis close by. I know some children who love to watch them emerge and release them.
When I walk by these Butterfly Weeds that line the garden path a cloud of orange butterflies surround me. They quickly land back to extract the nectar they seem to love. If I’ve correctly identified them they are Aphrodite Frittilaries. It also attracts lots of black swallowtail butterflies later.
These swallowtail butterflies were photographed on my neighbor’s Butterfly Weeds last year. Not sure if these are the Spicebush swallowtails or Black Swallowtails. Here are both butterflies together on the Weed,
and the a close-up of both taken this year.
One thing I’ve learned is a new respect for photographers of butterflies. It takes many, many shots, and much waiting, plus luck to get a shot without fluttering. And the ones below were especially wary of my picture taking. They flitted from one flower to another with no pause.
Lavender isn’t a wildflower here, but this elusive Cabbage White also likes other wild plants, including butterfly weed.