September 27-29
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2024 Native Plants of the Year
Backyard Perennial of the Year (2024)
Lobelia siphilitica, Great Blue Lobelia, is the blue brother of remarkably red cardinal flower, L. cardinalis. They are both part of the very garden-worthy bellflower family, Campanulaceae. In the wild, where it is thrilling to come upon, Great Blue Lobelia is most often seen in part sun to part shade, near streams, sloughs, and other wetlands, telling you that in the garden it prefers moist soil. Where content, it attains a height of two to three feet and colonizes through self-seeding. In most gardens, it persists for years. The summer flowers of Great Blue Lobelia are various shades of violet-blue, lipped, lobed, and arranged on a long stalk. They are an important food source for several native bees, bumblebees, and hummingbirds. Photo by Mary Free, Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia
Rare Plant of the Year (2024)
Seeing Pink Lady’s Slipper on a walk in the woods, sometime in May, a plant lover’s endorphins really kick-in. The pink and tan flower has an unusual moccasin shape and dangles from a stem that rises from a pair of veined basal leaves. It has a unique design feature for pollination by bumblebees, which requires them to follow a one-way path through the flower, forcing insects to take a pre-determined route past its reproductive parts, sort like the way Ikea makes you travel past all their sales displays before you get to the exit. Cypripedium acaule is not common but can readily be seen at various places in New Jersey, such as near Ramapo Lake in Bergen County and at Cheesequake Park near the center of the state.
Some Great Plants from Hubert and Millie Ling’s Awesome Native Plants Site
Pink corydalis
Blooming soon – mainly northern Jersey
These delicate pink flowers finds its home in rocky areas and summits. Its a biennial and so it must successfully reseed to survive. The flower has an unique shape. It is related to dutchman’s breeches with inner and outer petals but with only one spur. Click here to learn more.
Also See our Spring Plant photos & profiles
Wild Calla
Blooming soon – mainly northern Jersey
These striking flowers of wild calla are S3 (Vulnerable) in NJ. Wild calla is part of the Arum family of plants with the unusual flowers of spathes and spadices. Like skunk cabbage they are both bog plants but populations of wild calla are more restricted in distribution to the north east and north central USA. Read more: Wild Calla
RARE in the WILD – WILD in CULTIVATION
Blooming Now
Purple phacelia’s is S1 (Critically Imperiled) in New Jersey but G5(Globally secure) This plant grows well in the garden. It is a biennial but we have found it reseeds itself very well. We once tried to do some restoration for its mostlikly one remaining population but failed to get much support. It probably does not get much attention since it is G5. In other words, look elsewhere for many of our natives. Click here to learn more about purple phacelia.
Blooming Now
These delightful pale blue flowers are blooming in our garden and their delicate leaves will persist through the summer. Polemonium reptans var reptans is S1 (Critically Imperiled) in NJ. However it grows well in the garden. It provides plenty of nectar to its pollinators with a large nectary ring at the base of the ovary. Read more: Greek valerian/Jacob’s Ladder See our ‘Gardener News’ article
Also See our Spring Plant photos & profiles