Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Lesser celandine, Ranunculus ficaria

Isn't it pretty? This is an "enthusiastic" non-native that rampantly colonizes bottomland sites. Like so many of our early spring wildflowers, it is a "spring ephemeral". That means it's genetically programmed to flower, set seed, and then go dormant. Unfortunately it outgrows the natives that used to occupy this site. On the radio today, I overheard discussions as to who was going to dispatch this colony and when, so I drove over to get a look. It is beautiful even if it does have to go.

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