Besa talks about the Solomon’s seal we found at St. Francois Park
by Brenda Adams, Board Member and Chairperson of the Program Committee
Want to take a walk and see the beautiful wildflowers that are native to Missouri in their natural habitat? Looking for someone to go with?
In 2024, our chapter began offering outings to parks and natural areas around St. Louis, on the Missouri and Illinois sides of the river, to observe plants in their natural habitat and throughout their growing season.
Our very first walk was led by Besa Schweitzer at St. Francois State Park in March to see the abundance of Virginia bluebells in addition to trillium, other woodland plants and spring ephemerals.
Virginia bluebells at St. Francois Park on a chilly March morning
Other areas we visited over the year included St. Francois Park, Zombie Trail, Salt Lick Point, Victoria Glade, Cuivre River State Park, Engelmann Woods, and Shaw Nature Reserve.
At Cuivre River we found a plant that we didn’t know. Inaturalist says it’s Field milkwort, Polygala sanguinea
Seeing plants in their natural habitat can help gardeners to better understand where it would grow best in their garden or even help explain why it didn’t survive where planted. Along the way we get to discover plants not offered by nurseries, butterflies, beetles, and many other fun things!
Miami Mist at Englemann Woods
These walks also provide opportunities for attendees to get to know each other better, furthering our goal of building a strong community of native plant enthusiasts.
Dutchman’s Breeches at Salt Lick Point
We are planning to do more walks in 2025!
Editor’s note: Thanks to Brenda and Laura Yates for organizing these walks!
