Field Guide

Wildflowers, Grasses and Other Nonwoody Plants

Showing 51 - 60 of 191 results
Photo of a huge mass of kudzu vines covering trees and ground
Kudzu
Pueraria montana
Of the many invasive nonnative plants that were originally introduced to stop soil erosion and improve soils, kudzu is one of the worst. This “vine that ate the South” is often the first plant that comes to mind when we think of “invasive plants.”
Bird's-foot trefoil, close-up of flower cluster
Bird's-Foot Trefoil
Lotus corniculatus
Bird’s-foot trefoil forms low patches of bright yellow flowers along roadsides, having been planted to stabilize soil after road construction. Up close, it clearly has pea flowers. The leaves are cloverlike, with two leafy stipules at the base of each.
Photo of slender bush clover flowers
Slender Bush Clover
Lespedeza virginica
A bushy native perennial legume with small clusters of pink flowers, slender bush clover provides nectar for numerous insects. Several types of birds eat the seeds, and many mammals eat the foliage.
Thunberg's Lespedeza (Pink Bush Clover)
Lespedeza thunbergii
Thunberg’s lespedeza is a large, nonwoody perennial shrub often cultivated as a showy, flowering ornamental. It sometimes escapes from cultivation and naturalizes in Missouri landscapes.
Photo of tall goldenrod plant with flowers
Goldenrods
Solidago spp. (23 species in Missouri)
There are 23 species of goldenrods in Missouri. They can be hard to identify to species, but as a group, the goldenrods are common and nearly unmistakable.
Photo of southern wild senna showing a flower cluster and a few leaflets.
Southern Wild Senna
Senna marilandica (formerly Cassia marilandica)
The flowers of southern wild senna don’t look much like typical pea-family flowers, but its leaves and bean pods show the family resemblance. Look for it in moist situations, mostly south of the Missouri River.
Photo of a cornflower, closeup of a flowerhead.
Cornflower (Bachelor's Button)
Centaurea cyanus
A native of Europe, cornflower is a popular garden flower that often escapes to nearby areas. It’s used in bridal bouquets and men’s boutonnieres. Its intense blue color appears in boxes of crayons!
Common dandelion flower head viewed from above
Common Dandelion
Taraxacum officinale
The common dandelion is a well-known common weed of lawns, roadsides, and other disturbed places. Originally from Europe, it occurs nearly worldwide.
Photo of Chinese yam showing leaves and bulbils
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!
Photo of swamp milkweed, three plants with flower clusters.
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
Swamp milkweed has pink flower clusters at the tips of its tall stalks. The leaves are opposite, narrow, and up to 6 inches long. It grows in moist bottomland soils.
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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!