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Content tagged with "Wildflowers, Grasses and Other Nonwoody Plants"

Canada Thistle

Cirsium arvense
Like many of our common weeds, Canada thistle is a native to Eurasia and arrived on our continent probably before the Revolutionary War—most likely mixed in agricultural seed. A bad weed of crop fields and rangeland farther north, it causes problems in Missouri, too. More

Cardinal Flower

Lobelia cardinalis
If you're looking for a splash of bright red for a wet place in your yard, this long-blooming Missouri native wildflower might be the plant you're looking for. The rest of us enjoy cardinal flower along streams and rivers, in bottomland forests, in ditches by roads and in other wet places. More

Carolina Larkspur

Image of a carolina larkspur
Delphinium carolinianum
Small blue, lavender or white flowers shaped like cornucopias dance along the tall stems of this prairie and grassland dweller. More

Caucasian Bluestem

Bothriochloa bladhii
This grass and the closely related yellow bluestem are both aggressive, weedy degraders of pasturelands that escape cultivation and endanger native habitats. Learn more about these Old World bluestems, and please don’t plant them! More

Celandine Poppy

Image of celandine poppy
Stylophorum diphyllum
This showy, bright yellow flower really stands out in the shady woods and valleys where it grows. You should consider this species when you are planting a shade garden! More

Chinese Yam

Dioscorea oppositifolia (sometimes called D. batatas)
Similar to kudzu, Chinese yam is an aggressive vine that overtakes nearly everything within reach that stands still long enough! Learn more about this invasive plant—and please don’t plant it! More

Clasping Venus’ Looking Glass

Triodanis perfoliata (formerly Specularia perfoliata)
A single-stemmed plant with purple or blue star-shaped flowers and bluntly toothed, alternate leaves that clasp the stem. Venus' looking glass is scattered statewide in a variety of habitats and blooms May-June. More

Cleavers (Bedstraw; Goose Grass)

Galium aparine
The tiny white flowers of this native plant are not very memorable, but the curious, sticky-feeling whorls of narrow leaves and lightweight, 4-sided stems make an impression. And if they don't, then the tiny, round, "Velcro" covered balls of the seeds will get your attention when they "stick tight" to your socks! More

Closed Gentian (Bottle Gentian)

Image of a closed gentian
Gentiana andrewsii
This wildflower of moist prairies never opens—it stays closed and budlike throughout the pollination process. How is it pollinated? Bumblebees push their way into the flowers! More

Columbine

Aquilegia canadensis
Native to much of eastern North America, this columbine's range almost matches the breeding territory of the ruby-throated hummingbird, its number-one pollinator. Fancy that! More
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