We went to one of the older corridor sites yesterday to monitor the Fringed Gentian, one of my favorite wildflowers. The site is named the Jordan Tract, but we re-named it Gentian Meadow about eight years ago after counting well over a hundred plants.
This year we found only ten.
Buckthorn has long since invaded this wet meadow and the park system began fighting back this past spring with close mowing. We wondered if this might have been the reason for the drop in numbers, but in researching this post I discovered a reliable site stating that populations of this biennial are erratic.
Apparently, I am not the only one who looks(ed) forward to this beautiful flower each fall.
Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteYour pictures.
Those poems.
So glad you shared that link.
To the Fringed Gentian has always been a favorite.