Goddard Wildflowers
FROG members tend several beds of wildflowers in the marina area of the park. And there are, of course many others that plant themselves! Here are just a few of the blooms that have been photographed in the park and its environs:
Asclepias syriaca, or common milkweed,is almost more popular for its seed silk than for its flowers. That airy fluff has been used to stuff life jackets as well as papoose cradles and buffalo robes, and is supposed to insulate better than down does.
Kids have always loved milkweed for another reason, though, besides the fun of watching that fluff float away. The plant also known as butterfly weed, hosts the larvae of monarch, queen, and soldier butterflies.
Gaillardia aristata, AKA Indian blanket, is native to the plains and was named for the bright handwoven Native American coverlets that it supposedly resembles. The gaillardia moth, schinia masoni, seems especially painted to blend in with its host plant.
Although native to the sunny plains, rudbeckia hirta---AKA black-eyed Susan--moved east in hay seed, and now grows wild over most of North America. Hirta means "hairy" and refers to the rough down on the plant's stems and leaves.