Field Guide

There are 3 species of Aureolaria in Missouri. Only combleaf yellow false foxglove is annual, has fernlike, delicately dissected leaves, and glandular hairs. It occurs in the Ozarks.

Water primrose is a common shoreline plant with bright yellow flowers and long, trailing stems. It grows in dense mats in the shallow areas of ponds, lakes, and streams.

Yellow lady’s slipper is found statewide. It is among our showiest native orchids, and suffers from its popularity. Although orchids rarely survive transplanting, people try digging them up anyway.

Our two Missouri jewelweeds occur in the same habitats, often side by side, and even botanists can’t tell them apart without the flowers. Pale touch-me-not is the one with the lemon-yellow flowers!

Anyone who’s seen what purple loosestrife has done to New England and the Northeast can tell you how invasive this plant is. Learn how to identify it, so you can report any findings to the Missouri Department of Conservation.

Running buffalo clover spreads by sending out long, creeping runners. Now endangered, this native perennial once flourished along streams and buffalo trails throughout the grasslands of the eastern and central United States.

The showy, bright yellow flowers of celandine poppy really stand out in the shady woods and valleys where this plant grows. You should consider this species when you are planting a shade garden!

In early spring, henbit carpets entire fields with the pinkish-purple of its small flowers. This nonnative mint spreads abundantly but causes few problems. It has shallow roots and fades before crops begin to grow.

A big river floodplain species, decurrent false aster has declined as wetlands have been drained and converted to agricultural crop production.

The smooth, finely divided, fernlike foliage of pale corydalis is similar to that of the related wildflower Dutchman’s breeches. But in pale corydalis, the small yellow flowers appear tubelike and lipped.