Blooming right now in the Catskills region is the Trout Lily. This little woodland wildflower is so-named because its leaves are mottled with maroon or brown like the skin of a trout and because its yellow flower is shaped like a lily flower (which makes sense, since it is in…
Skunk cabbage is a native northeastern wildflower, and a conspicuous plant at this time of year here in the Catskills. It is especially common in wooded bottomland which is seasonally flooded. Its bright green clusters of leaves are developed and obvious at a time when most other plants have barely…
Coltsfoot is a very common sight here in the Catskills, flowering at this time of year. It prefers to grow along the wooded sides of back roads, as it does well in the damper, gravelly ground found there. It has bright yellow dandelion-like flowers growing on grayish green stalks that…
One of the earliest blooming flowers in the Catskills region is the Marsh Marigold. It’s not really a marigold but it does grow in wet places that are at least seasonally flooded. This habitat preference is reflected in its scientific name, Caltha palustris. The name Caltha comes from a Greek…
Watercress is a tasty, nutritious spring vegetable that grows very well in the Catskills. During the summer, it forms dense mats along the edges of flowing water, and after overwintering, when spring comes, it is ready to harvest almost as soon as the ice covering it melts. Once established, watercress…
Here in the Catskills, many folks were anticipating the possibility of an early spring. The winter was pretty mild until this month, when the recent blizzard plunged us back into a real winter. Underneath the insulating blanket of snow, many plants have been exercising strategies to combat the cold. During…
Phlox is perhaps one of the most common garden flowers in the Catskills. We are most familiar with tall garden phlox, Phlox paniculata, and it is in its glory blooming right now in our area. It is loved, despite its susceptibility to deer and powdery mildew, for its often fragrant,…
Black-eyed Susans are blooming throughout the Catskills right now. Many of the wildflowers I have posted on recently are originally from Europe but have naturalized to become a significant component of the local Catskills vegetation. Not Black-Eyed Susans! Black-Eyed Susans are North American natives with about 24 good species.…
Beloved for its bright red flowers, the Bee Balm, known to botanists as Monarda didyma, has been blooming for several weeks in the Catskills region. This perennial species of Monarda is often found growing wild, and is also popular in the garden. It is a truly native wildflower and is…
This week, Yarrow, a common wildflower that is also popular in the garden is blooming throughout the Catskills region. Most of our woods wildflowers are native, part of the local vegetation before European settlement. Many of the wildflowers of Catskills fields and roadsides, however, were introduced to the region by…
