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Solidago spp. in the Asteraceae family.

Solidago spp.

Goldenrod
Asteraceae
Native

Scioto Audubon Metro park on 9/14/2014. Scioto Audubon Metro park is on the Whittier Peninsula (surrounded by the Scioto River) in the middle of downtown Columbus. It is the restored site of an old impound lot and warehouses. This specimen of goldenrod was found in restored prairie in a lowland marshy area. It was about four feet tall and the major species blooming in fields surrounding wetland. Possibly Sweet Goldenrod (Solidago odora) because the edges of its leaf are smooth, you cannot see more than three veins on the backside of the leaf, and the leaf is 2-4 inches long. Its yellow flowers are arranged in clusters at the top of the plant that are curved over to one side.

•  Species name: Hemerocallis lilioasphodelus
• Common name: Yellow Day Lily
• Family: Xanthorrhoeaceae

Field notes: Plant is an introduced species identified 9/17/14 in front of the Kuhn Honors and Scholars House building on 12th Avenue in the soil on a cultivated lawn with planted urban trees and shrubs.

The yellow day lily is recognizable from its long narrow leaves stemming from the base of the plant. Its six distinct yellow petals that are pointed at the ends also help to identify it. Also, the height makes them recognizable, as day lilies are about two to three feet tall.

• Species name: Rosa rugosa
• Common name: Rugosa rose
• Family: Rosaceae

Field notes: Plant identified 9/17/14 outside of Pfahl Hall on 19th Avenue. Overall habitat included scattered planted urban shrubs. Plant found growing in dry soil or mulch. The rugosa rose is an introduced species.

• Family: Geraniaceae
• Common name: Geranium

Field notes: Plant identified 9/17/14 in a planted flower patch outside the Moritz Law Building on 12th Avenue. Plants growing out of dry wood chips surrounded by a cultivated lawn with scattered urban trees. This particular species is cultivated and introduced. Red and white varieties are typically seen around campus.

Ascyrum stans

St. Peterswort

Clusiacea

Native to many states of the East coast including Texas, Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky,  etc.

Field notes: Found in Columbus, Ohio. 09/17/14. Abandoned hill on Henderson Road.

St. Peterswort may be considered a shrub. It has 4  yellow petals, 2 of which are fused together and 4 sepals.  The leaves are opposite, compound, with entire margins. The flowers are arranged in a panicle inflorescence. These characteristics were used to identify the plant.

Melampodium leucanthum

Blackfoot daisy

Asteraceae

Native to Texas.

Field notes: Found in Columbus, Ohio. 09/17/14. Abandoned hill on Henderson road in dry soil.

Genista tinctoria

Dyer’s Greenweed

Fabaceae

Native to Europe in dry soils. Locally from Maine to D.C., West to Michigan.

Field notes: Found in Columbus, Ohio. 09/17/2014. On abandoned hill on Henderson Road in very dry soil.

This is Impatiens pallida also known as pale “touch me not”. This plant is a member of the family balsaminaceae. It is a native species to Ohio and another one listed in Newcombs  is as well which is Impatiens capensis. This plant was found growing along an edge on top of the dam near the footbridge over the Olentangy River south of the OSU wetlands on September 17, 2014.  It was fairly open  where it was found with small shrubs such as Lonicera spp. and some other small trees. Easy ways to determine this plant is by the unique flower. It is zygomorphic or irregular and has a bowl underneath three lobed petals on the flower. It has alternate leaf arrangement along the stem meaning the leaves are staggered on different sides of the stem, but not at the same point, and the leaves are serrate meaning they look like a knife on the leaf edge. Lastly this flower is yellow and has light green seed pods that when touched lightly will explode, hence the name “touch me not”

This is Helenium autumnale also known as sneeze weed. It is a member of the family asteraceae and is native to Ohio.  This plant was found down in the OSU wetland surrounded by young Salix sp. and other members of asteraceae. It was found on September 17, 2014. Another Helenium alutumnale was found further south growing in the bank of the Olentangy River.

This is Aster novae-angliae or New England aster. This plant was found along the edge of the bike trail at the OSU wetlands on September 17, 2014. Like the sneeze weed this a member of the family asteraceae. The other plants surrounding it mostly were Sarix sp. and Lonicera sp. and Toxicodendron radicans.

Ipomoea purpurea

Common morning glory

Convolvulaceae

Native to Mexico and central America

Field notes: Found in Delaware county Ohio, Delaware. 9/15/2014. Cultivated garden.

Morning glory is a climbing vine. The stem is often hairy, the leaves are cordate and the flowers are trumpet shaped and can be a variety of colors.

Aster shortii

Short’s aster

Asteraceae

Native

Field notes: Found in Delaware county Ohio, Delaware. 9/15/2014. Cultivated garden.

Impatiens capensis

Spotted jewelweed

Balsaminaceae

Native

Field notes: Found in Delaware county Ohio, Delaware. 9/15/2014. Mesic forest

My backyard has a wide variety of plant life. Let’s take a look and see what I found!

Primula laurentiana

Common Name: Bird’s-eye Primrose

Plant Family: Primulaceae

Introduced to Ohio, native to the  Northeastern United States

Field Notes: The pink Bird’s-eye Primrose depicted below was identified on September 14, 2014 in Hudson, Ohio. The habitat was a cultivated lawn with scattered, planted trees. The soil was rich with nutrients to encourage the flowering of this plant. The yellow eye within the flower along with the umbel arrangement helped to identify this plant.

Nodding Wild Onion collected in Hudson, OH

Allium cernuum

Common Name: Nodding Wild Onion

Family: Liliaceae

Native to Ohio

Field Notes: This white Nodding Wild Onion was identified near a rock retaining wall in a cultivated lawn in Hudson, Ohio on September 14, 2014. The soil was rich, moist, and provided excellent drainage for this plant. Helpful characteristics used to identify this plant include the small, white (or purple) flowers that grow in an umbel, or originating from one central point of growth. The smell of onion might be the most crucial piece of information in identifying this plant, the raw onion smell will be the most intense within the leaves. The leaves have a parallel venation pattern, meaning that the veins of the leaves are running in straight lines from the bottom of the leaf to its apex. Lastly, the “nodding” is a result of the curvature of the flower stem near the umbel.

Black-eyed Susan collected in Hudson, OH

Rudbeckia hirta

Common Name: Black-eyed Susan

Family: Asteraceae

Native to Ohio

Field Notes: This Black-eyed Susan was found near the bottom of a man-made hill in an overgrown, cultivated lawn in Hudson, Ohio on September 14, 2014. The soil was moist to moderately wet. This flower is distinguished by its large black head and yellow petals.