Wildflowers, Grasses and Other Nonwoody Plants
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Fragaria virginiana
Description
Wild strawberry is one of the parents of the cultivated strawberry and is one of our prized native wild edibles. It’s also a valuable food for innumerable animals, and it’s attractive in native wildflower gardens.
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Polymnia canadensis
Description
Leaf cup is named for the leafy appendages that wrap around the stem at the bases of the opposite leaves. Part of the sunflower family, leaf cup has about 8 white ray florets surrounding yellow disk florets.
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Polytaenia nuttallii
Description
Found mainly in the southern half of the state, in prairies and glades, prairie parsley is an upright, stout-stemmed perennial with small yellow flowers in umbrella-shaped clusters. It blooms April through June.
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Thaspium trifoliatum
Description
One of our more challenging plants to identify, meadow parsnip looks an awful lot like golden Alexanders. But you can do it! Look closely at the flower clusters and at the edges of the leaves, and then check the seeds.
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Scientific Name
Zizia aurea
Description
Named for its resemblance to a European herb that was popular in Medieval times, golden Alexanders is a native Missouri wildflower with bright yellow flowers arranged in umbrella-like clusters.
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Scientific Name
Tephrosia virginiana
Description
Two-colored flowers of pink and light yellow make goat's rue easy to identify. Look for this legume in rocky, open woods, savannas, prairies, glades, and fields.
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Mimosa quadrivalvis (also Schrankia nuttallii)
Description
Sensitive briar is a dainty-looking legume with delicate, twice-compound leaves and flower heads resembling magenta pom-poms. The long, tough stems are covered with tiny thorns that snag your feet as you walk.
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Achillea millefolium
Description
Native to North America, Europe, and Asia, yarrow has been used for medicine and magic for millennia. This aromatic plant has fine, hairy, fernlike leaves and flat-topped clusters of little white flowers.
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Packera spp. (formerly Senecio spp.)
Description
Ragworts, or groundsels, have several common names, and separating the different species can be a little tricky. But members of genus Packera, with their bright yellow daisy-like flowers, are distinctive as a group. Seven species have been recorded in Missouri.
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Packera plattensis (formerly Senecio plattensis)
Description
Prairie ragwort is one of seven Packera species in our state. It grows in sunny, open habitats. Look for its clusters of bright yellow, daisylike flowers in May and June.
See Also
About Wildflowers, Grasses and Other Nonwoody Plants in Missouri
A very simple way of thinking about the green world is to divide the vascular plants into two groups: woody and nonwoody (or herbaceous). But this is an artificial division; many plant families include some species that are woody and some that are not. The diversity of nonwoody vascular plants is staggering! Think of all the ferns, grasses, sedges, lilies, peas, sunflowers, nightshades, milkweeds, mustards, mints, and mallows — weeds and wildflowers — and many more!