Field Guide

Blackberry lily has leaves like an iris, flowers like an Asian lily, and seeds that look like blackberries! Introduced as an ornamental, this self-seeding member of the iris family occurs on bluffs, roadsides, and old homesites.

Smooth spiderwort is the most common and widely distributed of Missouri's spiderworts. It has slender, straight or zigzag stems. The long, narrow leaves are folded lengthwise and attach to the stem in a thick node. The 3 petals of the triangular flower are blue, rose, purple, lavender, or white.

The flowers of dayflower are truly blue, and they have only two conspicuous petals. A fast-growing, sprawling, but shallow-rooted weed, this introduced species commonly annoys gardeners.

Three species of yucca grow wild in Missouri. Spanish bayonet was introduced from the Southwest and has escaped from cultivation, but our two soapweeds are native.

White crownbeard is a tall native perennial wildflower with clusters of white flowerheads. It's called “wingstem” for the narrow green wings running along the stem. It’s called “frostweed” because it forms "frost flowers": strange and beautiful formations at the stem bases after a sudden hard frost.

Compass plant grows to 8 feet tall and has foot-long, deeply cleft leaves at its base. It got its common name because its leaves turn so that the surfaces face east and west to take full advantage of the sun’s rays.

Of Missouri’s six rosinweeds, prairie dock is identified by its large, leathery, unlobed leaves, which are nearly all in a basal whorl. Only a few small leaves grow on the stem.

Yellow passion flower is the smaller of Missouri’s two Passiflora species. Both are vines that climb via tendrils. This one has yellowish-green flowers about an inch wide. Look for it along and south of the Missouri River.

Large stands of wind-pollinated giant ragweed commonly form in disturbed areas, causing late-summer misery in the form of hay fever for many Missourians.

The purplish or brownish disk florets of purple-headed sneezeweed set it apart from our other sneezeweeds, whose centers are yellow. Look for it in moist, open areas, mostly in the southern half of the state.