Passion Flower (Maypop)

Passiflora incarnata

Note: I do not know if Passiflora incarnata applies to the white blooms, or only the purple version.

These pics are from previous years, but the Passions are in full blitz right now.

While some believe the fruit of the Passion flower stirs the passions of the standard kind, the Passion flower is not named for any aphrodisiac effects--Rather it gained its name when Spanish explorers came to the new world and were startled by the bloom, and saw in it symbols from the Passion of the Christ.

Symbols include: three prongs (Trinity), five wounds, crown of thorns, robe of purple, and forty lashes. While I do not know if God works to communicate on such a level, I am content with the idea the the one who made the world ---and the Passion flower, entered into the world robed in flesh.






For a picture of an unusual Yellow Passion flower, see Marvin's wonderful nature site:
http://elmostreport.blogspot.com/2008/07/yellow-passionflower-passiflora-lutea.html

Passion Flower 2 (fruit)

Passion flower fruit: info to be added.

I hope to soon add some of my own experiences with the eating of the Passion fruit (my old writing is hidden in an E-file somewhere, but Carla Herra of Mature Health < http://maturehealth.wordpress.com/ > shares that she has harvested the flower itself for medicinal purposes.

Traditional medicinal use of the flower and vine has been to treat nervous disorders and insomnia, but recent studies of the herb indicate it also relieves muscle spasms and lowers blood pressure. Tablets and other products containing passionflower are popular in Europe as a mild sedative and anxiety reliever.

For more on possible uses of the Passion flower see Carla's essay posted in the comments section.

Wild Garlic/ Field Garlic

Sequence (I think)

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(this is a recycle, posted from last year. It appears the Garlic were in their prime last of June, but a number are still visible in latter stages of bloom.)

Field Garlic

Allium vineale

Lily family (Liliaceae)

http://www.alabamaplants.com/Bluealt/Allium_vineale_page.html

Dodrums

You will see that there is nothing new from the last week, snapshot or otherwise. That's because I really am on vacation and outside of Arkansas. It appears however, that we have hit something of the summer doldrums and far fewer new floral things to present. (Truth is there is a great deal of floral weed stuff going on.) Even so, upon my return I hope to post some dozen things that I missed posting at the time due to a lack tof the same. And keep your eyes peeled for more info on the September 24 ID ARKANSAS showing at the Faulkner County Library.

Snapshot, Week 25: 6/21-6/27 2009

White Crepe Myrtle in camophladge (sp?)

Snapshot, Week 25 June 21-27

Not a lot of variety here. Not because there is nothing going on outside, its just so dang hot and I'm inside.

Major Players right now

Plains Coreopsis

Black Eyed-Susan

Mimosa

and

All and every shade of Crepe Myrtles, from bushes to sprigs, to firework trees.

Hairy Wild Petunia

I'm a Little Petunia in a Petunia Patch!


Wild Hairy Petunia
Ruellia humilis

Acanthus family (Acanthaceae)

The light lavender or light purple flowers are funnel-shaped, with 5 flaredlobes, and range in length from 1½-2½". There are usually fine purple lines towards the center of the corolla that function as nectar guides to visitinginsects. There is no noticeable floral scent. A flower typically opens duringthe morning and falls off the plant by evening. The overall appearance of HairyWild Petunia resembles cultivated petunias, but they are members of differentplant families. The blooming period occurs from early summer to late summer, and lasts about 2 months. The root system is fibrous. The dark seeds are fairlylarge and fall to the ground not far from the mother plant.

http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/prairie/plantx/hw_petuniax.htm

Note: As mentioned, I picked up several flowers later in the day to examine them, and they fell right of the stem, leaving the purple trumpet bloom in a single piece (on the ground) and the pistil and stamen parts still sticking from the stem. I put the nectar to my tongue and found it less sweat than honeysuckle, but still a treat.

Purple Headed Sneeze Weed (Clown Nose)

Helenium Flexuosum

aka: Funky Susan, Clown Nose,

http://www.missouriplants.com/Yellowalt/Helenium_flexuosum_page.html

Snapshot Week 24: 6/14-6/20: Bring on the Heat

Mimosa (Silk Tree)
Elderberry

Butterfly Weed

Idunno

Purple Headed Sneeze Weed

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Its a disk flower bonanza: Blackeyed Susans, Plains Coreopsis, and Daisy Fleabane in the mix.

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Wild Parsley? (member of the Wild Carrot Family)

Snapshot, June 14-20

Info to come

Dandelion

Common Yard Dandelion

Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Tribe: Cichorieae
Genus: Taraxacum

Species (uncertain)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dandelion

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This particular post is not spot-on seasonal. If my old filing system is correct, I took these images in the middle-Spring and early-Fall of 2003. I post them here now, to set the stage for presenting other (spot on) members of the dandelion family.

Odd memory. As kids, we not only blew the seeds, but used the juice from a broken dandelion stem to "tattoo" our arms. By placing the bottom of a hollow stem on our skin, we could leave a little ring of juice, or even smear the juice... which in turn tuned dark on our skin as it dried. I am not sure if the juice was "photo" sensitive, but it really did turn darker after applied.

Carolina Chicory (Texas Dandelion)

Carolina Desert Chicory

or

Pyrrhopappus carolinianus

False Dandelion - 2
Or that which is also not-a-Dandelion but which is not the-other-False-Dandelion.
Or (my name)
"Lion's Mane Dandy"

http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioimages/species/pyca2.htm

http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=PYCA2


I need to be careful that I do not call too many things my favorite weed, but this one has to be one of my very favorite favorites. I like the contrast of its outlandish Southern Bell flower, with the Gothic (almost gargoylish) support works. Look at the stem parts holding the bloom, and it looks like iron works that could support a vase. And there is the height, in combination with the gargoyle leaves.

Of interest: I do not know if I have photographed one or two different varieties of Carolina Chicory. I see some of these plants that are only about a foot high, and rise like periscopes out of lawns. Then there are the three and four foot variety that climb out of the "ruins."

Also of interest: These are sun tracking flowers that follow the sun across the sky. For more on "Heliotropism" see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heliotropism

Purple Thistle

Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Subfamily: Carduoideae
Tribe: Cynareae
Genus: Cirsium





I do not yet know what species of thistle this is, though it belongs to the genus "Cirsium", which includes a wide variety of thistles. All pics, early June, 2005 Northern Arkansas.


(9/23/08) It would appear that this is Carduus nutans, or a "Musk Thistle." For a different variety of purple thistle see: http://idarkansas.blogspot.com/2008/09/purple.html




Variant Species (we have these here, but these are from Nebraska, July 05)

Wild White Indigo (or False-Indigo)

5/18/05




Reissue from end of May last year



Wild White Indigo, or False Indigo
Baptisia Alba


Dena Gets the gold star for helping me identify this plant. I knew that it was a Legume (ie member of the Fabaceae (pea) family, but I had it as part of the Lupine genus. Turns out to be a part of the Baptisia family

Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Genus: Baptisia

Species: B. alba

(more later)