When Nature Takes Over Your Wildflowers
Part 2
by Lin Ennis
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I
followed their gaze to its object. Still in the shade of the
carport, a fourth of the front yard was a full-blown riot of
green and purple. The painters told us when we moved in to
leave those straw-colored plants alone, because they were beautiful
when blooming.
The
rosy-purple Desert Four O’clocks (Mirabilis multiflora)
are unstoppable, even in
the driest conditions. And the heart-shaped leaves are a lush
green all season. Desert Four O’clocks are native wildflowers
of the desert southwest—New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado and Utah,
and are also abundant in California and Texas.
The
Mirabilis multiflora has no petals, even though it is
considered a wildflower. The “flower” is actually part of the
sepal. There are 5-7 buds in each star-shaped green cup, contributing
to its long-term blooming. It’s sticky, leaf-covered
stems array themselves outward from a central location,
and can be easily lifted to pull weeds or photograph a hiding
tarantula.
 This
is a wildflower that is fragrant, yet not appetizing to deer,
rabbits or javelina, except as the youngest of shoots! They
do, however, attract humming birds and butterflies. They self-propagate
both by tubers and multitudinous seeds. I’ve had better luck
raising them from seed than by transplanting the young sprouts,
probably because of our desert conditions.
Though
I do my best to keep home maintenance people away from them,
they rebound well when trampled.
What
about the name? These wildflowers, Desert Four O’clocks, bloom
not according to the clock, but rather according to sun or
shade and a temperature that approximates 4:00 in some locations.
In my hometown, they may be seen blooming both morning and
evening in the spring and fall. They contain many curative
phytochemicals, which I have yet to explore.
And
the best part about them is giving them a squirt from the hose
every week or two is so much less work than building and keeping
a wildflower garden from scratch!
~~~~~~~~~~
Lin Ennis is a writer and amateur naturalist living in Sedona,
Arizona. Her love of wildflowers, and indeed all of nature,
is evident in her prolific contribution to several nature-related
websites, including, most notably, www.naturedomainsindex.com.
This article courtesy of http://getwildflowers.com.
You may freely reprint this article on your website or in your
newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author
name and URL remain intact.
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