click on images to enlargethis is the feather dalea
I think the plant I am most excited to identify is a small scrub with little tiny fuscia blooms. A common name for it is feather dalea or feather indigo bush. It's on our property and all around this area and I've been wondering how to identify it. The blooms are not very big. Mr Dunmire told us it is very common and related to the Pea family. And sure enough when one looks very close - the blooms are very much like a bloom on a pea plant. It's Latin name is Dalea formosa
gilia with bladderpodThe other plant I am excited to have an identification for is this little sweet blue wildflower. It's a gilia. I had a little trouble remembering that at first. It's not very big so it might not be the first wildflower one would notice, but it's very common here and I really wanted to know what to call it. It's Latin name is Gilia rigidula
If you could drive up to my house, park your car and walk up to my door the wildflower you would notice right now is the bladderpod. Funny name for this bright yellow flowering plant. If one looks closely at the the way the seeds pods form its name makes more sense. When this plant first appears I get fooled and I doubt it is bladderpod - once it grows bigger it's easy to identify. Thanks to my neighbor I've known it's name since the time we moved here. But I've learned its Latin name Lesquerella fendleri.
The picture below is one I took this morning looking down at the ground. At the bottom of the frame is the feather dalea, then all the bladderpod, and amongst that you'll see the gilia. Click on the photo to enlarge.
I swear once you learn something's name it becomes a friend at least I feel that way about these wildflowers. You'll meet more friends on future posts.
