Similar to Lady’s Thumb but a more extravagant outsized version. 1 to 6 feet tall. A big patch of them at the Dover Farm. Buckwheat family. Can be pink, white or purple.
Nodding Smartweed, Pale Smartweed, Dock-leaved Smartweed (Polygonum lapathifolium)
There is a little weed charmingly called Lady’s Thumb, which is very common and looks a lot like this. It took me a while to notice that all these varieties of smartweeds and knotweeds are NOT Lady’s Thumb. There are about 35 varieties in this area. This one is a paler pink. Also, Lady’s Thumb has a dark smudge on the leaves. Buckwheat family. Native.
Pink Knotweed (Polygonum pensylvanicum)
Came up uninvited with a potted tomato plant. Beautiful form. Contains a toxic white sap, so mostly avoided by mammals, but visited by insects. Native perennial. Bellflower family.
Pale-spiked Lobelia (Lobelia spicata)
Big shrubs (4-8 feet tall) with great arching branches with spikes of white flowers at every axil. Native to Asia, introduced to the U.S. as an ornamental. Considered a noxious weed in some west coast states. Young shoots can be eaten like asparagus. Seeds are eaten by birds.
Japanese Bamboo, Japanese Knotweed, Rice Cane (Polygonum cuspidatum)
This is at the edge of the Charles. White blossoms, nodding. The stem has prominent joints. Buckwheat family. Native.
Pale Smartweed, Dock-leaved Smartweed (Persicaria lapathifolia)
A.F. Irit was wondering what these feel like so we tried it. I expected it would feel velvety, dry, and hard. But actually it was not velvety dry, it was more like velvety damp, cold and kind of rubbery, like feeling a diving wet suit. Reputedly edible and absolutely choice if cooked (and very upsetting if eaten raw)! (No thanks!)
White-pored Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus cincinnatus)
With new wildflowers scarce, I do find other things catch my eye, like these small yellow fingers of fungus. I hope this is the correct identification.
Yellow Coral Fungus (Clavaria amoena)
The only non-golden goldenrod! White flowers, and look how they grow in the axils all the way up. Blooms through October. Another gift from the meadow of wonder, while most of the flowers there are wilting down and going to seed. Aster family. Native.
Silver-Rod (Solidago bicolor)
The procession of new flowers has slowed, but a little rain has brought out lots of fungus. Today we noticed this ruffly specimen. It’s edible, and not the same as another edible mushroom I posted, Hen-of-the-woods. Can be prepared like chicken, but only eat young fresh ones! And start with just a little! Psh.
Sulphur Shelf, Chicken-of-the-woods (Laetiporus sulphureus)
Autumn can’t take you by surprise if you’re paying attention to the wildflowers; the passage of time is well-measured by their progress. They’re moving into fruiting and seeding overdrive… at Charles River Peninsula, the milkweeds have developed their giant seedpods, and the horse nettle has set on its tomato-like fruits. These are toxic to humans, but many other creatures eat them. Nightshade family. Native.
Horse Nettle (Solanum carolinense)