There are too many deerflies to view wildflowers on the Wiouwash Trail right now but there are plenty of blooms alongside country roads and even in town in neglected or rough areas.
The most prevalent bloomer right now is Queen Anne’s Lace. This name is appropriate as the flat-topped white flower has a lovely lacey look. In the very center of the flower is a small purple floret. This floret distinguishes Queen Anne’s Lace from the very similar, but poisonous, Water Hemlock. The 3-5” flowers sit atop stiff 1-3’ stems. Queen Anne’s Lace was a European garden plant that was introduced into North America in 1739. Each plant produces up to 40,000 seeds which explains why it is considered invasive by the Invasive Plants Association of Wisconsin.
The entire plant smells like carrots and it is thought to be an ancestor of the common garden carrot. One nickname for Queen Anne’s Lace is wild carrot. Another nickname is bird’s nest, which refers to how the small stems of the florets flip upward like a wind-blown umbrella after bloom. The dried flowers are often used in autumn floral arrangements.
Growing even closer to the edge of the road is sky-blue chicory. Each 1 ½ inch flower opens for only one day and closes by noon. There is nothing more beautiful than a morning drive down a mile of country road lined with chicory, or more scraggly than an afternoon drive down the same road. The plant itself is rigid with leaves similar to those of dandelions growing low to the ground. The stems have no leaves and the flowers grow right out of the sides of the stems. Chicory is a European import brought to the United States to be cultivated for its taproot which can be roasted and ground as a coffee substitute. Occasionally you will see white or pink chicory flowers, but they are rare.
In early August the goldenrod is just beginning to bloom. There are over 100 types of goldenrod in North America and twenty in Wisconsin, making identification difficult. The most common type we see locally is Canada Goldenrod. Goldenrods are easily identifiable by their plumes of bright golden flowers clusters. They grow up to five feet tall on stiff stems. The long narrow leaves are rough and have toothed edges. They grow all the way up the stem to just below the flower plume. Many people think they are allergic to goldenrod, but this is highly unlikely. Goldenrod pollen is too heavy to blow in the wind. Most allergies attributed to goldenrod are actually allergies to ragweed which is in bloom at the same time and produces large amounts of wind-blown pollen.
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