Texas Flowers in Natural Colors

Dog Fennel. Mayweed. Dog’s Camomile (Anthemis cotulla) is a strong-scented herb widely scattered in America, naturalized from Europe. It is very abundant in sandy soil in the eastern part of the state. The plants are widely branched and bear numerous heads about an inch broad. The rays are broad and wide and the disk flowers are yellow. It begins to bloom in Texas in March, but the plants are at their best in May and June. It is close kin to the European camomile, which is used medicinally, a soothing tea being made from the dried ball-shaped heads of yellow flowers.

Closely related to camomile and yarrow are the artemisias, which include many species known as dusty miller, wormwood, sage-brush, and purple sage. The silvery wormwood or thread-leaved sage-brush (Artemisia filifolius) is very abundant in the sandy areas of West Texas and throughout the Rocky Mountain States and Mexico. It blooms from July to October.

Yarrow. Woods Milfoil (Achillea millefolium) was named in honor of Achilles, to whom is attributed the discovery of its healing properties. It is supposed to stop bleeding, relieve spasms, produce sweating, and act as a tonic. The woods milfoil is widely distributed in woods in the United States, Europe, and Asia. It makes a nice garden plant, for the lacy fern-like leaves remain green all winter. The stems grow one to two feet high and are topped by the flat flower-cluster. The ray flowers are white or sometimes pale pink or lavender, and the disk flowers are pale yellow.

Plains Yarrow. Woolly Milfoil (Achillea lanulosa) grows in moist places on the plains from Texas to Canada, Mexico, and California. It is very much like the woods yarrow but differs in that it has fewer gray-green leaves and round-topped flower clusters. Its blooming season is a little later than that of the woods yarrow, which blooms in April and May.

Texas Squaw-Weed. Clasping-Leaved Groundsel (Senecio ampullaceus) is an annual plant which grows so abundantly on the sandy prairies of Texas that it forms a carpet of gold for miles and miles. It is one of the earliest spring flowers to bloom in such showy profusion. The plants commonly grow 1½-2 feet high, being branched above and forming flat-topped flower-clusters which are often a foot broad. When quite young, the plants are densely white-woolly but become smooth and shining with age. The irregularly toothed leaves are 3-6 inches long and have a broad clasping base. The groundsel belongs to one of our largest groups of plants, some 1200 species being widely distributed over the earth.

Fine-leaved or woolly groundsel (Senecio filifolius) has woolly leaves divided into narrow segments. The large heads are often in bloom throughout the year in West Texas and New Mexico.

American Star Thistle. Basket Flower (Centaurea americana) is often called spineless thistle because the leaves do not bear spines as do the leaves of its close relative, the purple thistle. It is also known as powder puffs, sweet sultan, and “cardo del valle.” It is a hardy annual which is widely cultivated. Basket flower is the name under which it is known in cultivation—a name which refers to the stiff, straw-colored bracts of the flower head. These bracts are not spiny but are divided at the tip into finger-like projections.

Before the flowers are fully opened, the heads resemble a shaving-brush, and this is a common name frequently applied to this and other thistles. All the flowers are tubular and divided into five long narrow lobes. In one variety the fully-opened flower cluster has an outer border of numerous lavender flowers with cream-colored flowers in the center. There is another variety which has outer flowers a deep rose or reddish purple and center flowers pale pink or rose; sometimes there is little difference in shade between the inner and outer flowers.

The stems are usually branched and grow about two feet high. They are marked with wing-like ridges and are covered with the overlapping, ascending leaves. In Texas the flowers begin to bloom in May and continue into June, being at their best the first week in June. After the flowering season, the foliage becomes yellow and dried, and the old stalks remain conspicuous in the fields for several months. The star thistle is found on plains from Missouri to Louisiana, Mexico, and Arizona. The variety which has reddish-purple flowers is very abundant in the vicinity of Waco and Fort Worth.

The scientific name meaning “of the Centaurs” refers to the use by the Centaurs of certain species for healing. The cornflower or bachelor’s button (Centaurea cyanus) is a well-known garden annual.

Wavy-Leaved Thistle (Carduus undulatus) is the common prairie thistle and is particularly abundant in the vicinity of Fort Worth. It grows only 1-2 feet high, and the upper leaf-surfaces are yellow-green. The heads are nearly twice as large as those of the purple thistle, and the flowers are a lovely lavender color. It ranges from Southern Canada to Texas and Arizona and blooms in Texas from April to June.

Purple Thistle (Carduus austrinus) is the common thistle in the south-central part of the state. It is a tall, much branched plant, 3-4 feet high, with long-stalked heads of purple flowers. The stems are white-woolly, and the leaves are white-felty beneath and dark-green above, wavy-margined, lobed or divided, the segments being tipped with spines. The heads are about 1½ inches high and broad. The numerous light purple flowers are all tubular with narrow lobes. The thistles belong to a large group, its most renowned representative being the Scotch thistle.

Nodding Thistle. Silver Puffs. Sunbonnet Babies (Thrysanthema nutans) lacks the spines of the true thistles, but other characters show that this interesting little plant is closely related to the thistle group. The leaves form a basal rosette from which grows the slender, leafless flowering stalk bearing the nodding flower head. The lyre-shaped leaves are wavy-margined, dark-green above and white-felty below, 2-4 inches long. The stalk is sometimes 15 inches long but is commonly about 8 inches high. The creamy-white flowers are rather inconspicuous, but as the seeds mature, the soft white bristles spread into a showy whorl. The plants are found in scattered places in rich soil from Central Texas to Mexico.

Closely kin to the nodding thistle is the desert holly (Perezia nana), which has salmon-pink flowers and holly-like leaves. It is a low plant seeking the shelter of creosote bush, yucca, and other shrubs in West Texas.

CHICORY FAMILY (Cichoriaceae)

Plants with milky juice; all flowers strap-shaped, in dense heads, surrounded by involucral bracts; corolla 5-lobed; stamens 5; ovary inferior.

Purple Dandelion. Flowering Straw (Lygodesmia texana) can nearly always be found in the prairie sections of the state from spring to fall, but the lovely flowers seldom make a showy display along the roadsides. Only one head blooms at a time on the slender forking stems, and that remains open only in the mornings. The heads are made up of 8-12 pale purple strap-shaped corollas, with the lavender styles conspicuously erect in the center. The tip of the corolla is divided into five minute lobes. The stems are almost leafless but have a cluster of short-lobed, narrow gray-green leaves at the base.

Small-Flowered Straw (Ptiloria pauciflora) is a white-flowered chicory with low spreading stems. It is abundant in West Texas and New Mexico.

Many-Stemmed False Dandelion (Sitilias multicaulis) has lemon-yellow flower heads which closely resemble those of the true dandelion, but the plants grow much taller and are often widely branched. From early spring through June, the false dandelion is very abundant on the coastal and western prairies. The heads are made up of several rows of strap-shaped corollas. The fruits are narrow and have attached a spreading tuft of bristles which makes the head in fruit look like a puff ball of lace. This tuft is a parachute device for scattering the seeds far and wide.

White Dandelion (Pinaropappus roseus) has flower heads very much like those of the yellow dandelions, but the flowers vary in color from white to pale pink, and the heads are larger. It is very abundant in March and April in Southwest-Central Texas.

Several garden plants belong to the chicory family, among them being lettuce, salsify, and chicory. The orange hawkweed is often cultivated for ornament.

FINDING LISTS

The following lists are given to assist the reader in identifying plants. Several special groupings are first given according to conditions and habit of growth. If the plant sought does not qualify for these lists, then the longer seasonal and color lists should be consulted. Several wide-spread plants which the author had to omit because of lack of space have been mentioned in the lists; these may be recognized by the absence of a page reference. Several related species, not mentioned in the text and which may be recognized as close relatives of those illustrated although they may differ in color and season of growth, have been included in the lists.

Opposite each name is given the number of the page on which the plant is described and a symbol which designates the place of growth. The section of the state is not given in the lists, as prairie plants are much the same throughout the state as are the plants in the sandy soil of post oak woods. However, climatic conditions of moisture and temperature limit the range of many plants, and the text should be consulted for the distributional range.

The time of flowering in Central Texas has been taken as the basis for listing the plants according to seasonal distribution. Quite frequently the season in North Texas will be a month later than that of Central Texas, and in South Texas it will be a month earlier. Hence it may be necessary to consult the lists for adjoining seasons if the desired plant is not found in the first list to be checked. Some plants, especially many herbaceous perennials on the western plains, have flowering seasons in both spring and fall; others bloom throughout the warmer months after heavy rains. If a plant cannot be located in the fall list, the spring list should be consulted.

The month of April shows the greatest profusion of flowers in nearly all parts of the state. At some of the wild flower exhibits held at the University of Texas, nearly 500 species from Central and Southeast Texas have been shown at one time. Therefore the reader is warned not to expect to find every flower he picks up among the 257 illustrations given in these pages.

The plants are listed in the following color groups: red and orange, pink and rose, blue, white, yellow, purple, and green. Under white flowers are grouped those delicately tinted with green, yellow, blue, pink, or lavender. Blue flowers are seldom a true blue but are usually a combination of blue and purple which may be interpreted by some people as blue and by others as purple. Hence if a plant considered as blue-flowered cannot be found in the blue list, then the purple list should be consulted.

FINDING LISTS

The reader may find the following distribution of pages and symbols helpful in identifying plants:

(See map p. xvi)

AIR PLANTS

Spanish moss

Ball moss

WATER PLANTS

RED

Iris, 15

PINK

Pogonia, 16

Smartweed, 18

BLUE

Iris, 15

Water lily, 24

Nama, 111

WHITE

Arrowhead, 2

Spider lily, 12

Water lily, 24

Violet, 74

Water pimpernel, 93

Water pennywort

Water mist-flower

Bur-head

YELLOW

Spatterdock, 24

Water lily, 24

Buttercups, 27

Pitcher-plant, 39

Sedum, 40

Water primrose, 79

Bur-marigold

Bladderwort

Yellow-eyed grass

PURPLE

Water hyacinth, 6

Pickerel-weed, 6

Iris, 15

Bladderwort

Mud-plantain

SHRUBS OR SMALL TREES

RED

Buckeye, 68

Indigo plant, 54

Coral bean, 58

Flame acanthus, 139

Bouvardia, 144

Coral honeysuckle, 145

Mexican apple, 71

PINK

Prairie rose, 42

Redbud, 47

Dalea, 55

Pavonia, 73

Mexican buckeye

BLUE

Texas mountain laurel, 51

WHITE[2]

Yucca, 9

Rose, 41

Dewberry, 43

Mesquite, 45

Yaupon, 67

Dogwood, 85, 86

Tree-huckleberry, 92

Mexican persimmon, 94

French mulberry, 118

Honeysuckle, 146

Mist-flower, 153

False willow, 166

YELLOW

Agarita, 30

Buckeye, 68

Huisache, 44

Retama, 50

Porophyllum

Sea ox-eye

Flourensia

Gymnolomia

Damiana

Creosote bush

Yellow elder, 138

PURPLE

Texas mountain laurel, 52

Walking-stick cactus, 81

Cenizo, 131

Desert willow, 138

Dalea, 55

Eve’s necklace

EARLY SPRING

RED AND ORANGE-RED

Buckeye, 68-W

Poppy mallow, 72-P

Copper mallow, 70-Pb

PINK AND ROSE

Mexican buckeye, L, T

Redbud, 47-W, L

Pink prairie star, 98-Ps, M

Least bluet, 143-Ps

BLUE

Anemone, 25-W, P

Mountain laurel, 52-L

Small bluet, 143-Ps, M

Lobelia, 151-Ps

WHITE

Anemone, 25-W, P

Acacia, C

Blackfoot daisy, 169-L, P

Dwarf white aster, 163-W, Ps

Spanish bayonet, 9-CT

Peppergrass, 36-P

Crow-poison, 8-P

Whitlow-grass, 36-P

Chickweed, Ps, W

Violet, 74-M, Pc

YELLOW

Agarita, 30-LC

Scrambled eggs, 35-P

Huisache, 44-C

Buckeye, 68-W, L

Small squaw-weed, P

Tansy mustard, 37-P

Dwarf flax, 61-Ps

Golden puccoon, 114-Pb

Bladderpod, 37-P

Four-nerved daisy, 181-P, L

Big squaw-weed, 187-Ps

Lindheimer’s daisy, 170-Pb

Huisache daisy, 182-Ps

PURPLE

Anemone, 25-W, P

Mountain laurel, 52-LC

Ground plum, 56-Pb

Purple wood-sorrel, 62-W

Poppy mallow, 72-Pb

Violet, 74-Wp, M

Small bluet, 143-Ps

Venus’ looking-glass, 150-P

SPRING

RED AND ORANGE-RED

Buckeye, 68-W

Poppy mallow, 72-Pb

Copper mallow, 70-Ps

Red star-mallow, 70-P

Cross-vine, 138-Wp

Coral bean, 58-W

Leather flower, 29-W

Standing cypress, 104-Wo

Paint brush, 132-Ps

Red sage, 126-W

Gaura, Ps

Beard-tongue, 137-Wo

Indian blanket, 183-Pb

Sand-bur, 51-Pb

Red-brown iris, 15-M

Coral honeysuckle, W

Butterfly weed, 100-Wo, Ps

Scarlet pimpernel, 93-Ps

PINK AND ROSE

Sensitive briar, 46-Pb

Purple paint-brush, 131-Pb, L

Wild onion, 8-Pb

Pogonia, 16-M

Prickly poppy, 32-Ps

Pink milkwort, 164-W

Pink buttercup, 81-Pb

Pink prairie star, 98-Pc, M

Prairie phlox, 110-W

Lemon mint, 121-M

Baby’s breath, 144-Pb

Purple coneflower, 175-W, L

Sand verbena, 19-Ps

BLUE

Carolina larkspur, 25-W

Celestial, 13-P, Wo

Bluebonnet, 53-P, L

Blue gilia, 105-P, L

Spiderwort, 4-Pb, W

Dayflower, 5-P, W

Psoralea, P

Blue-eyed grass, 14-P, W

Blue Beard-tongue, 137-P

WHITE

Larkspur, 25-Pb

Wild rose, 41-Pb, W

Dewberry, 43-W

Blackberry, 43-W

Poppy mallow, 72-Pb

Beggar’s ticks, 90-Pb

Camomile, 185-W, Ps

Prairie lace, 87-Pb

Death camass, 7-Pb

Beargrass, 9-P, T

Spanish bayonet, 9-CL

Arrowhead, 2-M

Chickweed, 23-Ps

Peppergrass, 36-P, W

Violet, 74-W, M, Pc

Dogwood, 85-W

Cornel, 86-W

Rain-lily, 10-W, P

Spider-lily, 11-M

Ladies’-tresses, 16-M, W

Angel trumpet, 20-P

Prickly poppy, 32-33-P

Greggia, 38-T

White milkwort, 64-Pb, L

Plantain, 142-P

Baby’s breath, 144-L, Pb

Honeysuckle, 146-L, T

Blackfoot daisy, 169-L, Pb

Dwarf white aster, 169-P, W

Lazy daisy, 162-Ps

Fleabane daisy, 162-W, Pc

Lamb’s lettuce, 147-Pb, L

Lobelia, 151-Pc

Rabbit tobacco, 167-P

Nodding thistle, 191-W

Water pimpernel, 93-M

Farkleberry, 92-W

Gaura, 84-P

Evening primrose, 81-P

Mexican persimmon, 94-L

Yaupon, 67-W

YELLOW

Wild dill, 91-Pb

Two-leaved senna, 48-Pb, L

Retama, 50-M

Bush pea, 53-Wo, P

Niggerhead, 173-Pb

Englemann’s daisy, 171-Pb

Tansy mustard, 37-P

Coreopsis, 178-Ps, Pc

False coreopsis, 179-Pb

Buttercups, 27-M

Evening primroses, 79-P

Square-bud primrose, 83-Pb, L

Flutter-mill, 82-L

Coneflower, 174-P

Blackeyed Susan, 174-Ps

Flax, 61-P, L

Yellow star grass, 11-Wp

Pitcher-plant, 39-M

Mexican poppy, 34-P

Bladderpod, 37-P

Stonecrop, 40-L, P

Dwarf blue-eyed grass, 14-M

Squaw-weed, 187-Ps

Ground cherry, 130-W, P

Wild balsam, 148-W, Pb

Huisache daisy, 182-Ps

Indian blanket, 183-Ps

False dandelion, 193-Pb

PURPLE

Leather flower, 29-W

Marsh leather flower, 29-Pc

Milk vetch, 57-Pb

Climbing vetch, 57-Ps

Poppy mallow, 72-Pb

Wood-sorrel, 62-W

Purple paint-brush, 131-Pb, L

Blue sage, 127-Pb, L

Texas sage, 127-Pb, L

Ground cherry, 130-Pb

Large beard-tongue, 135-P, L

Small beard-tongue, 134-W, Pc

Toadflax, 134-P, W

Venus’ looking-glass, 150-P

Lobelia, 151-Pc, Ps

Purple coneflower, 175-W, L

Purple thistle, 190-P, M

Purple dandelion, 192-Pb, L

Spiderwort, 4-P, W

Dayflower, 5-L, M

Wild hyacinth, 6-M

Pickerel-weed, 6-M

Wild onion, 8-P

Blue-eyed grass, 14-P, W

Virginia iris, 15-M

Rose poppy, 32-P

Stork’s bill, 59-L, Pb

GREEN

Milkweed, 100-P

LATE SPRING AND SUMMER

RED AND ORANGE-RED

Copper mallow, 70-Pb

Leather flower, 29-W

Standing cypress, 105-Wo

Paint-brush, 133-Ps

Red sage, 126-W

Gaura, 84-Ps

Beard-tongue, 137-Wo, T

Indian blanket, 183-Pb

Sand-bur, 51-Pb

Coral honeysuckle, 146-W

Devil’s bouquet, 20-P, L

Bouvardia, 144-T

Anisacanthus, 139-T, L

PINK AND ROSE

Sensitive briar, 46-P

Pink prairie rose, 42-W

Pogonia, 16-M

Grass pink, 16-M

Rouge plant, 21-W, L

Prickly poppy, 32-P

Pavonia, 73-L

Pink buttercup, 81-P

Mountain pink, 95-L

Phlox, 107-110-L, P, W

Baby’s breath, 144-Pb

Purple coneflower, 175-W, L

Star thistle, 189-Pb

BLUE

Giant iris, 15-M

Water lily, 24-M

Blue flax, 60-Pb

Prairie sage, 126-Pb

Blue gilia, 105-L

Harebell, 151-T

Dwarf blue aster, 163-W

WHITE

Wild rose, 41-W, Pb

Milfoil, 186-W, P

Poppy mallow, 72-Pb

White gilia, 105-Ps

Camomile, 185-W, Ps

Prairie lace, 87-Pb

Mesquite, 45-P, W, C

Parthenium, 176-P

Soapweed, 9-P

Yucca, 9-P, L, T

Arrowhead, 2-M

Peppergrass, 36-P

Heliotrope, 113-P

Cornel, 86-W

Rain-lily, 10-W, P

Spider-lily, 10-M

Angel trumpet, 20-P

Prickly poppy, 32-P

Greggia, 38-T

Spectacle-pod, 38-Ps

Bull nettle, 65-Ps

Moonseed, 31-W

Nuttallia, 75-Ps

Milkwort, 64-Pb, L

Dodder, 102-P

Tie-vine, 103-P

Baby’s breath, 144-Pb, L

Honeysuckle, 146-L

Blackfoot daisy, 169-Pb, L

Dwarf white aster, 169-W, Ps

Lazy daisy, 162-Pb

Fleabane daisy, 162-Pb

Milfoil, 186-W, Pb

Ragweed, 176-P

Water pimpernel, M, L

French mulberry, 118-W

Horsemint, 125-Ps

Gaura, 84-P

Evening primrose, 81-P

PURPLE

Leather flower, 29-W

Prairie clover, 55-P, L

Milk vetch, 57-P

Climbing vetch, 57-P

Phlox, 107-110-P, W

Giant iris, 15-M

Water hyacinth, 6-M

Prickly poppy, 32-P

Loosestrife, 78-P, M

Bluebell, 97-P

Phacelia, 111-112-L, P

Skullcap, 119-W, P, L

Verbena, 117-W, P

False dragon-head, 120-M

Nightshade, 128-P

Ground cherry, 127-P

Paint-brush, 131

Desert willow, 138-T

Tansy aster, 165-P

Purple thistle, 190-P

Star thistle, 189-P

Purple dandelion, 192-P

Pennyroyal, 121-P, L

YELLOW

Two-leaved senna, 48-Pb, L

Partridge pea, 49-Ps

Wild dill, 91-Pb

Retama, 50-M

Golden parosela, 55-L

Bush pea, 53-W, P

Yellow-elder, 138-T

Engelmann’s daisy, 171-Pb

Spiny-leaved aster, 161-P, T

Thyme-leaf, 184-Ps, T, L

Niggerhead, 173-Pb

Coreopsis, 178-Pb

False coreopsis, 179-Pb

Yellow nightshade, 129-P

Ground cherry, 130-W

Yellow sleepy daisy, 160-Ps

Bitterweed, 182-P

Indian blanket, 183-Ps

Squaw-weed, 187-T

Zinnia, 170-P

Berlandier’s aster, 161-Pb, L

False dandelion, 193-P

Coneflower, 174-P

Blackeyed Susan, 174-Ps

Sunflower, 177-Pb

Orange sunflower, 177-Ps

Paper flower, 180-P, T

Bahia, 181-T

Four-nerved daisy, 180-P, T, L

SUMMER

RED AND ORANGE-RED

Copper mallow, 70-P, T

Standing cypress, 105-Wo, T

Trumpet creeper, 138-W

Leather flower, 29-W

Red sage, 133-W

Gaura, 84-Ps

Indian blanket, 183-P, Wo

Devil’s bouquet, 20-P

Bouvardia, 144-T

Anisacanthus, 139-L, T

Butterfly weed, 100-Wo

Turk’s cap, 71-W

PINK AND ROSE

Dwarf four o’clock, 19-P, T

Rouge plant, 21-L, W

Talinum, 22-P, L

Pavonia, 73-L

Mountain pink, 95-L

Baby’s breath, 144-P, L

Marsh fleabane, 168-M

Rose aster (Polypteris), P, W

Loosestrife, 78-M

Smartweed, 18-M

BLUE

Water lily, 24-M

Prairie sage, 126-Pb

Blue sage, 127-Pb, L

Harebell, 151-T

Bluebell, 97-P, M

Nama, M

WHITE

Grandfather’s beard, 28-L, T

White gilia, 105-Ps

Mesquite, 45-P

Parthenium, 176-P

Stenosiphon, P, L

Yucca, 9-T

Arrowhead, 2-M

Heliotrope, 113-Ps, L

Rain-lily, 10-P, W

Spider-lily, 11-W, M

Prickly poppy, 32-P

Bull nettle, 65-Ps

Moonseed, 31-W

Spectacle-pod, 38-Ps

Nuttallia, 75-T, Ps

Dodder, 102-P, M

Tie-vine, 103-P

Snow-on-the-mountain, 66-P, L

Baby’s breath, 144-Pb, L

Parthenium, 176-P

YELLOW

Retama, 50-M

Golden parosela, 55-L

Niggerhead, 173-Pb

Yellow elder, 138-T

Spiny-leaved aster, 161-Pb, T

Thyme-leaf, 184-P, T

Coreopsis, 178-P

False coreopsis, 178-Pb, L

Evening primrose, 79-Ps

Wild gourd, 149-Pb

Broomweed, 157-P

Indian blanket, 183-P

Sleepy daisy, 160-Ps

Camphor daisy, 158-P

Bitterweed, 182-P

Squaw-weed, 187-T

Berlandier’s aster, 161-Pb, L

Zinnia, 170-P

Sunflower, 177-Pb

Paper flower, 180-P, T

Bahia, 181-T

Four-nerved daisy, 181-T

Nuttallia, 75-P, T

Horsemint, 123-Ps

Purslane, 22-P

Copper lily, 11-L, Pb

PURPLE

Leather flower, 29-W

Prairie clover, 55-P

Wood sorrel, 62-Pb, L

Water hyacinth, 6-M

Blazing star, 155-P, W

Eryngo, 89-Pb

Horsemint, 125-Pb

Bluebell, 97-P, M

Morning-glory, 103-P

Verbena, 117-P

Tansy aster, 165-P, T

Blue sage, 127-Pb, L

Nightshade, 128-P

Ground cherry, 130-P

Desert willow, 138-T

Wild petunia, 141

Ironweed, 152-P, W, L

Polypteris, P, W

Diapedium, L