“Rocky Blooms” by Courtney Denning

Plant(s): Bird’s Foot Violet (Viola pedata)
Photo Story: I’ve always loved violets. They look magical in the spring, popping up in the woods or lawns (of people who let them). When I learned of the many different species of violets native to my home state of Ohio, I wanted to invite as many as I could to my gardens. This Bird’s Foot Violet is growing in a garden bed I filled with sand and gravel to improve the drainage of my heavy clay soil. It is doing well, and I look forward to its enchanting spring and fall blooms.
Equipment: iPhone 13 Pro
Photo ID: 33077

“Monarda Macro” by Nan Pokerwinski

Plant(s): Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa)
Photo Story: Seed head from a plant growing wild in the gas pipeline right-of-way that runs across our property. I have planted various other natives in that area, but the ones that come up volunteer are doing best.
Equipment: Nikon Z6 II camera; Nikon 105 mm macro lens
Photo ID: 33083

“Opening” by Nan Pokerwinski

Plant(s): Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
Photo Story: I find the green, opening flowers at least as beautiful as the fully opened, colorful blossoms. Every year I can’t resist photographing a few and marveling at their intricacies.
Equipment: Nikon Z6 II camera; Nikon 105 mm macro lens
Photo ID: 33085

“Poppy Potential” by Nan Pokerwinski

Plant(s): Wood poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum)
Photo Story: Flowers just opening on one of several wood poppies I planted along a path on our property several years ago.
Equipment: Nikon Z6 II camera; Nikon 105 mm macro lens
Photo ID: 33087

“Spring salix discolor” by Catherine McKenzie

Plant(s): Salix discolor
Photo Story: Four years ago we planted most of our small urban lot with native plants, including this pussy willow (Salix discolor). It is always a treat to see it bloom after a long winter. The bees are happy to see it as well!
Equipment: Nikon D850 200-500 f/5.6
Photo ID: 33088

“Wintering” by Nan Pokerwinski

Plant(s): Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa)
Photo Story: I noticed these snow-capped seed heads on my way to the mailbox one wintry morning and appreciated their stark beauty.
Equipment: Nikon Z6 II camera; Sigma 18-300 mm lens
Photo ID: 33089

“Cup plant sunshine” by Catherine McKenzie

Plant(s): Cup plant (Silphium perfoliatum)
Photo Story: Four years ago we planted most of our small urban lot with native plants, including two tiny cup plants. I was not familiar with them, but I saw in the description that they would grow tall so I positioned them in the back of the bed, luckily! They have proudly reigned over the garden ever since! The cup plant brings so much life to our yard – bees, butterflies, birds, and even the chippies love it. They are one of my favorite plants.
Equipment: Nikon D850 70-200 f/2.8
Photo ID: 33090

“Swamp milkweed stages” by Catherine McKenzie

Plant(s): Swamp or Rose Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)
Photo Story: A few years ago we bought some wetland acreage and we have been thrilled to see the amount of swamp milkweed that has emerged out of the seed bank, once the invasive monoculture of reed canary grass was removed. There are always monarchs flitting around the field during the summer.
Equipment: Nikon D850 105 mm f/2.8
Photo ID: 33092

“Prairie at the end of the Driveway” by Alice Kahn

Plant(s): Annual milkweed (foreground), Prairie dock and Cup Plant in the background.
Photo Story: I turned the dry, sunny area at the end of my driveway into a native plant garden. In this photo, the blazing stars have already gone to seed, and the cup plant flowers are on their way out. However the milkweed is holding on, as are wild ageratums and coneflowers, although they are not visible in this photo. This little “prairie” hosts lots of pollinators, as well as many birds, mammals and a few reptiles.
Equipment: iPhone 14 Pro
Photo ID: 33095

“Winecup” by Catherine McKenzie

Plant(s): Purple poppy mallow (Callirhoe involucrata)
Photo Story: I’ve been adding these purple poppy mallow to the fronts of our garden beds and they never fail to delight with their brilliant little winecup flowers! My neighbor requested these when we planted a native garden for her.
Equipment: Nikon D850 200-500 mm f/5.6
Photo ID: 33099

“Icy Golden Alexander” by Richard Hitt

Plant(s): Golden Alexander (Zizia aurea)
Photo Story: A freezing rain in early February 2023 left lots of plants encased in ice. The double umbel inflorescence of Golden Alexander is outlined by the ice in this photo.
Equipment: Nikon Z7
Nikkor Z MC 105mm f/2.8 VR S
Photo ID: 33107

“Native Plants are Beautiful” by Nathalie Shanstrom

Plant(s): Hibiscus laevis, Smooth Rose Mallow (with Viburnum opulus var. americanum, American Highbush Cranberry, in the background)
Photo Story: Hibiscus laevis, Smooth Rose Mallow (with Viburnum opulus var. americanum, American Highbush Cranberry, in the background) in my back yard
Equipment: Samsung Galaxy 22
Photo ID: 33193

“Solomon’s Seal” by Kari Carter

Plant(s): Solomon’s seal, Polygonatum biflorum
Photo Story: I saw the morning sun shining through the only Solomon’s Seal on our property and snapped this photo.
Equipment: Google Pixel 6 Pro
Photo ID: 33314

“Sweet Joe Pye Weed” by Lawrence Miller

Plant(s): Sweet Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum)
Photo Story: Our native plant landscaping includes a few species of tall flowering plants. The Sweet Joe Pye Weed attracts many pollinators and also hummingbirds. Lawrence Miller
Equipment: iPhone 13 Pro Max
Photo ID: 33325

“Soft As A Prickly Pear” by Eric Manges

Plant(s): Eastern Prickly Pear
Photo Story: Eastern Prickly Pear makes you question a lot about what was here before settlement. Cactus life can thrive even in Wisconsin with one of the most stunning flowers I know of in the state other than orchids. This plant does well on a rocky windowsill at my friend’s home.
Equipment: Nikon D3400 with a 18-55mm lens
Photo ID: 33338

“Evening Primrose” by Sheila Walters

Plant(s): Evening Primrose
Photo Story: Taken at my Wildlife Habitat by the Pond in my yard.
Equipment: iPhone 14 Pro Max
Photo ID: 33356

“Tallest One” by Laura Weir

Plant(s): Goldenrod, Genus Solidago unknown species
Photo Story: In the lovely Pheasant Branch Conservancy, where people, pollinators, and sandhill cranes all interact peacefully, vast fields of the keystone species goldenrod may be seen.
Equipment: Sony A6000
Photo ID: 33361

“Keep Looking Up” by Laura Weir

Plant(s): Yucca (yucca filamentosa), unknown insect
Photo Story: In Huntsville’s historic Maple Hill Cemetery this Yucca flourishes. As horticulturalist Felder Rushing says, “this is a plant that even dead people can grow.”
Equipment: Sony Alpha a6000
Photo ID: 33365

“Compass Plant” by Jake Cseke

Plant(s): Compass Plant
Photo Story: None
Equipment: Cannon SX720 HS
Photo ID: 33371

“Ironweed” by Jake Cseke

Plant(s): Ironweed
Photo Story: None
Equipment: Cannon SX720 HS
Photo ID: 33372

“Wood Betony” by Jake Cseke

Plant(s): Wood Betony
Photo Story: None
Equipment: Cannon SX720 HS
Photo ID: 33374

“Bloodroot Bloom” by Jake Cseke

Plant(s): Bloodroot Bloom
Photo Story: None
Equipment: Cannon SX720 HS
Photo ID: 33376

“Plum-Believable!” by Kate Trnka

Plant(s): American Plum (Prunus Americana); also known as Wild Plum, Goose Plum, River Plum
Photo Story: I was checking on the quaking aspen I had found the year before while I was clearing bramble when I noticed a flowering tree right next to it. I could tell it wasn’t bearing the same flowers that I saw on the pin cherry, the chokecherry or the black cherry trees. I used my plant ID app on my phone to determine that it was a wild plum tree! I was so excited to see it here. Having only been the steward of this land since October of 2020 (I don’t live there…yet) it’s been so much fun discovering all the various flora growing on this delightful piece of land!
Equipment: I took this shot with my iPhone 13
Photo ID: 33384

“A Prickly Pair” by Louise DeCesare

Plant(s): Eastern Prickly-Pear cactus (Opuntia humifusa).
Photo Story: This photo was taken at the Tackapausha Museum Native Plant Demonstration Garden in Seaford, New York.
Equipment: iPhone SE first genera
Photo ID: 33390

“Evening Primrose on the Pond” by Sheila Walters

Plant(s): Evening Primrose.
Photo Story: Taken 8/30/2023 in my yard.
Equipment: iPhone 15 Pro Max
Photo ID: 33393

“Wake-up You Sleepy Head” by Louise DeCesare

Plant(s): Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia Hirta)
Photo Story: Photographed at the Tackapausha Museum Native Demonstration Garden in Seaford, New York.
Equipment: iPhone SE first generation
Photo ID: 33398

“Bloom’n Milkweed” by Louise DeCesare

Plant(s): Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca).
Photo Story: Photographed at the Tackapausha Museum Native Demonstration Garden in Seaford, New York.
Equipment: iPhone 8 plus
Photo ID: 33399

“Emergence” by Kate Trnka

Plant(s): Black oak (Quercus Velutina) plus a visitor insect and a seed
Photo Story: It’s always fun to see new life emerging and this little black oak is no exception. I didn’t notice until I looked at the picture that there was a seed deposited on the upper right and a small insect on the underside (right).
Equipment: iPhone 13 Pro Max
Photo ID: 33400

“New York Ironweed” by Louise DeCesare

Plant(s): New York Ironweed (Veronia noveboracensis).
Photo Story: Photographed at the Tackapausha Museum Native Demonstration Garden in Seaford, New York.
Equipment: iPhone 8 plus
Photo ID: 33402

“The Pink Lady” by Kate Trnka

Plant(s): Pink Lady Slipper (Cypripedium Acaule) also known as Moccasin Flower.
Photo Story: This beauty is growing right beside my little 200 sq. ft. cabin. She’s all by herself. I made sure she was protected when the cabin was getting a new roof put on. This year she had an additional bloom which was very thrilling!
Equipment: iPhone 13 Pro Max
Photo ID: 33404