July Bloomers

July is the time of year that the mid-height forbs tend to dominate the Blue Jay Barrens prairies. They’ve been racing ahead of the tall grasses in an effort to open their flowers to pollinators before being hidden by taller growth. In general, as the season progresses, the height at which a plants flower tends to increase. The spring flowering plants can be short because they have little in the way of competition. Each successive wave of flowering plants reaches a little higher in an effort to overtop those that came before.

There are many factors that determine how successful a plant is in any given season. One of the most influential is the weather. Rainfall, this year and last, has been above normal. The result is a population explosion among the showy bloomers. Bluehearts, Buchnera americana, one of Ohio’s rare species, is blooming in record numbers this year. It’s a small bloom that expresses itself in the landscape much better than it does in a photograph.

If we find a dark background and lower our line of sight, it’s much easier to see the density of blooming stalks. It’s fun to have a couple of wet years bring out the best in dryland plants. As bountiful as the flowers are now, it wouldn’t do to have too many wet years in a row. While these flowers are busting with blooms, moisture loving plants are trying to get a foothold. We need the dry years to keep the prairie invaders at bay.

Bluehearts may not be noticeable at great distances, but they are sure beauties up close.

Rose Pink, Sabatia angularis, always colors the landscape after two consecutive wet years. This is a biennial that needs a little more moisture than is usually found here. These plants are just beginning to bloom. As the number of blooming plants increases, the strong scent will permeate the field.

A few Rose Pinks bloom every year, so the range of genetic adaptability must include the ability to create a more drought tolerant plant. I wonder if these wet years work against the plant developing a strain with more tolerance to dry weather. In a year like this, the gene pool is once again flooded with genetic material favoring a more moisture rich environment. Continuous dry years might eventually result in a landscape thick with drought loving Rose Pinks.

Not all areas produce the same species, but the effect is the same everywhere. Multiple species are producing bumper crops. It’s years like this that are likely to produce new species for the Blue Jay Barrens list. Species that are uncommon here could be exhibiting the same exuberance and pushing up blooms where they have never been before. I’m being particularly watchful while on my walks.

Here’s yet another species of St. Johnswort showing off its tiny yellow blossoms. This is Spotted St. Johnswort, Hypericum punctatum. It’s not hard to figure out how they came up with that name.

From a distance, the leaves of the Narrow-Leaved Mountain Mint, Pycnanthemum tenuifolium, resemble spruce needles. I just don’t think mint flowers lend themselves to being crowded together in this manner. The irregularly shaped petals just seem to come out every which way.

The Wild Petunias, Ruellia humilis, are just beginning to put on their show. These are a slightly shorter plant than the rest, but they tend to grow in drier areas where the competing vegetation is correspondingly short.

The Wild Potato Vine, Ipomoea pandurata, is one of the few plants that actually does better in the dry years. The small plant is supported by a massive tuber that stores plenty of moisture to carry the plant through the driest of years. Frequent rains seem to batter the delicate flowers and leave the center cup full of water. This type of treatment can’t be good for pollination efforts.