![]() ![]() I’m not sure I want to do that-parsley seed doesn’t cost much-but it might be fun to see the flowers. My parsley is an open-pollinated biennial, which means if I let it grow this spring, it will eventually set seed. In the raised beds, last year’s Italian parsley is resurrecting. Shooting star (Dodecatheon meadia or Primula meadia), Beach Cemetery Prairie, Ogle County, IL. The few flowers I have in my backyard are beautiful, but they pale in comparison to those massed on the remnant prairies. Shooting star (Dodecatheon meadia or Primula meadia), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. I can’t wait to see the flowers in early to mid-May. Shooting star (Dodecatheon meadii or Primula meadia ), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL. Jacob’s ladder (Polemonium reptans ), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.Īnd look at that shooting star! The bunchy leaves are crisp and healthy-looking. Hopefully, now that there is more green stuff available to eat, the eastern cottontails will leave my shrubs alone. How could you? Wascally wabbits! The writer Michael Pollan once wrote in his book, Second Nature, that planting a garden clears the mind of any easy sentiments about wildlife, and nature in general. Note the cut stems!īut- oh no oh no oh no-the bunnies have been busy. American hazelnut (Corylus americana), Crosby’s yard, Glen Ellyn, IL. Next to it, the two-year-old native hazelnut shrub has its first catkins. How have my other native shrubs fared? No flowers on my witch hazel this year, but it’s still young. I’ve never seen the spicebush swallowtail in my yard, but I have high hopes. This pair was planted in 2021, sourced from Possibility Place Nursery, knowing that northern spicebush is a host plant for the spicebush swallowtail butterfly. The first flower buds are open! Northern spicebush (Lindera benzoin ), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.Ĭharming! I recently read that all parts of Lindera benzoin are said to be edible, including the buds, twigs, flowers and fruit. Moving away from the ruined hyacinths, I check the two native spicebush shrubs which seem to have escaped wildlife damage over the winter. Eastern fox squirrel (Sciuris niger ), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL. Looking closely, I find more hyacinth blooms, stripped and tossed into the prairie dropseed. Broken stem of purple hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis ), on top of the prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis ), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL. Purple hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis ), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.īut what’s this? Some of our backyard wildlife has sampled the flowers, then ruthlessly tossed them aside. As I walk around in the mud, looking for early butterflies, I see the purple hyacinths are in bloom. I’m on high alert for the first one in my backyard. Red admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta ), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. Red admiral butterflies are usually quick to show up around marsh marigold bloom time. Worth watching for this spring, and learning the difference. ![]() The aggressive non-native lesser celandine ( Ficaria verna) on the left the native marsh marigold (Caltha palustris) on the lower right. ![]() The lesser celandine has three green sepals on the back of the bloom the marsh marigold does not. Invasive non-native lesser celandine, sometimes called fig buttercup (Ficaria verna ) Willowbrook Wildlife Center, DuPage Forest Preserve, Glen Ellyn, IL.(2022)Īn easy way to tell the native and the non-native apart is to flip a bloom over. It’s important not to confuse my marsh marigolds with the non-native, very aggressive lesser celandine (Ficaria verna) which takes over wet areas in neighborhoods and forest preserves. Typically, it’s the first native plant in my yard to bloom each year, following my non-native daffodils, crocus, hyacinth, and snowdrops. Marsh marigold (Caltha palustris ), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL. In my backyard pond, the first marsh marigolds open. Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura ) over Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. I plan to keep a close eye on the weather radar and listen to weatherman Tom Skilling. This past week (and possibly today) we can expect tornadoes, severe storms, high winds, hail, and a deluge of rain that makes keeping my kayak handy sound like a good idea. ![]() What’s on the ballot today? Warm weather for starters. Prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis ) with spring bulbs, Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL (2022). After casting my vote, I’ll be ready to clear my head of being buffaloed by a deluge of ads, strident television commercials, and unwanted texts (how did they get my phone number, anyway?) Bison (Bison bison ), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. “Every spring is…a perpetual astonishment.”-Brother Cadfael ![]()
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