April 29: Nine beauties, some good & some bad

Today was a beautiful day to look for wildflowers. I set out biking on the Rivertrail between Mt. Hope and Scott Woods.

I saw a flower I hadn't noticed before. It's invasive, so isn't listed in any Michigan wildflower book. It's Fig Buttercup.

Fig Buttercup

There was a ton of this all along the river and dotted in the grass. If you see Fig Buttercups, pick them! This plant is rapidly becoming a serious exotic invasive pest species in moist forests along creeks and floodplains. NOTE: Buttercups are toxic, and they tend to bother cows most, then horses, sheep, and pigs.  They lose their toxicity once boiled or dried though. Here's a website all about them. http://www.eattheweeds.com/buttercups/

A plant that is much rarer is the Yellow Trout Lily. These are native to Michigan, but each plant will blossom only once every seven years. So you tend to see a lot of leaves but not very many flowers. They are called "trout lilies" because the leaves have a mottled, trout-like look.

Yellow Trout Lily

It's best not to pick Trout Lilies. The root of the trout lily is edible and tastes like cucumber, but it's very small, and really not worth killing the flower for unless you're starving!

Then there is the dandelion.  This plant is both abundant and edible, nutritious, and delicious! They are best picked when young and tender, so now would be a good time.

Dandelion

The tenderest, sweetest part of the dandelion is the crown, the unopened bud sitting above the taproot. You can eat dandelions raw, steamed, or sauteed. You can grind up the root and use it as a substitute for coffee. If you find the greens too bitter, you can blanche them, which will remove much of the bitter flavor. Here's a recipe for Cream of Dandelion Soup (popular in France) as well as Dandelion Syrup.

 Also along the river trail I spotted some Bloodroot flowers.

Bloodroot

 

Bloodroot root

They are called "bloodroot" because the roots have a blood-red juice. Native americans used to use the juice as a natural dye. However, Bloodroot is poisonous, and the juice can be caustic to skin.





Every once in a while you see flowers so small that it's hard to recognize them as flowers. So it is with Common Chickweed. The flowers look like little white stars on the ground.

Common Chickweed, much magnified

Like dandelions, common chickweed is considered a lawn pest, but is also edible, delicious and nutritious. It is an ingredient in a Japanese springtime dish, Nanakusa-no-sekku. Some people also use it as a skin treatment.

Another beautiful little lawn pest is Ground Ivy, also called Creeping Charlie. The picture below is an extreme close-up.

Ground Ivy, a.k.a. Creeping Charlie

Ground Ivy is a member of the mint family -- you can identify mint family members by the square stems. Some people like to eat it as a salad green...European settlers carried it with them and brought it here. You can also steep it in hot water to make tea, or as a substitute for rennet when making cheese. However, this plant is considered poisonous to cattle and horses.

Here's another little flower I haven't seen before -- the Thyme-Leaved Speedwell. It's so small at first I thought it was a Forget-Me-Not. But it's not.

Thyme-Leaved Speedwell

You won't find this Thyme-Leaved Speedwell in a book on Michigan wildflowers, at least not in the books I've seen. It's considered a weed. It's not considered toxic to animals though.

Another common wildflower not listed in Michigan wildflower books is the English Daisy, or Lawn Daisy. It's called a Lawn Daisy because it doesn't grow very tall, unlike the Ox-Eye Daisy, which IS listed as a Michigan wildflower.

English Daisy / Lawn Daisy

The Latin name for this flower is Bellis perennis, which means "beautiful everlasting." You can eat the flowers and leaves raw or cooked, though they are best when tender and young. Daisy juice is astringent (causing wounds to close faster), and in ancient Rome, surgeons used to soak bandages in daisy juice before using them to bind sword and spear cuts.

This last plant is a marvel to me...I've been walking the same green in Shubel Park for about 20 years and only noticed this flower this year. It's a Canada Violet. I wonder how it got there. Distributed through bird droppings, I suppose...it was in the middle of the grass all by itself, right next to the curb.

Canada Violet / White Violet

The Canada Violet, or White Violet, is one of the few violets that has a scent. I've also seen Common Blue Violets this year -- just haven't posted them yet -- but it was a real pleasure to see this beautiful little variant. Like Common Blue Violets,  Canada Violets are edible, but I wouldn't dream of picking this one til it has a chance to spread.