2025 Plant of the Week #1

Many have already reported seeing this reliable harbinger of spring, the delicate and charming pasqueflower! It is the first Plant of the Week in 2025 and though delicate, it is tough enough to push up through the duff and snow to stand alone among the dreary brown of the prairie in March and April. Its dazzling color heralds the onset of spring and a wondrous show soon to emerge! It is always a joy to see it, but especially fun when it is seen for the first time on one of the restored prairies. And there it was on April 3, seen for the first time on Zoerb Prairie, emerging with color among the black remnants of a recent burn!

Note that this pasqueflower is nestled among some dolostones, a cousin of limestone. Calciphile plants, or lime-loving plants, thrive in calcareous alkaline soils rich in calcium carbonate which is why this plant loves growing on the rocky cliffs of our bluffs.

Here is one from another nearby prairie that is further along:

Pasqueflower is also called "passion flower' because they bloom around Easter. Indeed, "pasque" is a French word for Easter. It is also sometimes called "prairie crocus", though pasqueflowers are in the buttercup family while crocuses are in the lily family.

Just like we were bundled up on April 3rd in our warm jackets to visit and work on the prairie, so the pasqueflower wore its coat of fine silky hairs. These hairs are thought to help conserve heat and moisture while detering some predators. Unfortunately deer love to eat this plant and we all know that there are a lot of deer in Hixon Forest! As this plant is establishing, Friends may render it a little help by putting a cage around it. If not munched down by deer, these plants can live 10-20 years and, if well pollinated, can produce a bevy of seeds. The seeds have a fluffy plume that allows them to be effectively dispersed by the wind. If they are fortunate to land on a favorable spot, the seeds can "drill" themselves into the soil with hairs that point backwards and a twisting action that occurs as it gets wet, then dries. Kind of like needlegrass.

The flowers open on sunny days and close at night and are "heliotropic" meaning they turn to follow the sun. They provide much needed nutrition for early foraging bees, like queen bumblebees, including our beloved rusty patched bumblebee! The flowers last for 4-6 weeks before giving way to an interesting palmately-divided leaf and then the entire plant will die back in mid summer and go into dormancy.

It is very satisfying to see new plants like this emerge on the prairies that Friends of the Blufflands has been restoring. Thanks for the support of all of the volunteers and for donations!