They say you never forget your first love. The first wildflower I knew and loved was Dodecatheon media album. Not that I knew it by that name, my siblings and I knew nothing about wildflowers or Latin, so we called them "the bee plants" because of their resemblance to a bee's stinger.
They grew around the house where I grew up, under the Burr Oak trees.
Dodecatheon media (commonly known as Shooting Star) is a forb of the Oak savanna, meaning that it likes open shade. It's also an ephemeral, disappearing rather quickly after flowering. Flower color is variable from pale pink to white. The base of the leaves gives a hint of the color of the flowers. This one will have pale pink flowers.
This one has white flowers and blooms a bit earlier.
I like the white because that's what was growing around my childhood home, and it will always hold a special place in my heart and my garden. From the foliage, it's clear that it belongs to the Primulaceae family.
This one has white flowers and blooms a bit earlier.
I like the white because that's what was growing around my childhood home, and it will always hold a special place in my heart and my garden. From the foliage, it's clear that it belongs to the Primulaceae family.
Dodecatheon media blooms in April and May in the Chicago area, and the foliage is usually gone by July. It is best planted with Hostas, Brunnera or ferns to cover the fading leaves.
If you're looking for a big, flashy flower or a plant that has a long season of interest, Dodecatheons aren't for you. But if you have room for a graceful little charmer, you might want to include a few Dodecatheons.
If you're looking for a big, flashy flower or a plant that has a long season of interest, Dodecatheons aren't for you. But if you have room for a graceful little charmer, you might want to include a few Dodecatheons.
Dodecatheon media
Zone 4 to 8
Height 1.5 feet
Spread 1 foot
Shade or part shade
Well drained to moist soils
14 comments:
Lovely little blossom. I wonder if it would do well here in the hot, humid part of zone 8B.
A most unusual (to me) plant! I can see how you thought it resembled a bee with it's 'stinger'. I love the way flowers are so intricately designed. This one looks like something I'd like to add to my shade collection. Wow--thanks for sharing;-)
Oh this is a beauty, MMD, and your images of it are astounding! Well done! I have planted this a couple of times without success. It is worth giving another go for the unusual flower shape. Thanks for bringing it to our attention. :-)
Frances
Very lovely. I also have lovely childhood memories of shooting stars, although the ones around where I lived (8400 feet in the Rocky Mountains) were exclusively pink. I have tried planting them at The Havens a couple of times with no luck. I suspect that it just may be too hot and clayey here, but I don't really know.
Thanks for sharing your great photos!
One of my favorites MMD~It bloomed longer this spring with the cool rainy weather and it was more then welcome...I am tempted by the pink, but the white is what we have naturally occurring here. Your photos are delightful~gail
I am a sucker for a shy little white blossom. Since shade is quickly taking over my garden, "The Bee Plant" is for me. I wonder if zone 8B will be stretching it's roots a little?
it is charming, quite worthy of a first love!
My Dodecatheons are just starting to bloom, and I'm so excited! It's great you have such good memories and connections with them.
I'm learning so much from all these wildflower posts--there's a whole new world out there I need to explore! I've never seen these little charmers before, but I'll be on the lookout for them now. They seem like a very polite wildflower if their foliage fades away in the summer and they don't disturb their neighbors. Your attachment to these Dodecatheon is the same as mine to hollyhocks; it's nice to have something growing that evokes happy memories of our childhood.
I planted a few of these in fall and haven't seen them come up. Yours are wonderful!
Nice MMD. I've never grown those ephemerals. Wonder if I could find a place for them.~~Dee
What a charmer indeed! I love small flowers like that.
It is lovely and so nice that you can grow this in your garden. The first time I saw this flower was in Idaho growing at over 7000' by the side of a lake. However, it was purple- Also called Mountain shooting star Dodecatheon jeffreyi.
Much has been written about the wild flowers of the East, the Magnolias and Poincianas of the South and the Pacific Coast flowers, but seldom is anything mentioned of the beauties of the Southwest, with perhaps the exception of Texas Bluebonnets and Kansas Sunflowers. Most dictionaries and encyclopedias fail even to mention some of the less common and often the most beautiful ones.
No orchid is more beautiful or exotic than the rosy blossoms of the Nipple Cactus, Coryphantha neomexicana, or the tree Cacti, Opuntia davisii with its large yellow flowers or the 0puntia imbricate with rosy-purple blooms.
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