Wildflowers are angiosperms, meaning that they are vascular, flowering plants that produce seed. Blooming wildflowers acquaint one's senses with the coming of spring at Manassas National Battlefield. Persisting through the open fields and under the forest canopies, the wildflowers provide breathtaking views and enchanting smells throughout the park.
Please do not pick the wildflowers! Picking wildflowers not only denies others the opportunity to admire their beauty, but it also threatens the existence of the plant and is illegal in all National Park units. It is also illegal to collect seeds from wildflowers.
Common Wildflowers at Manassas
Black-eyed Susan
Rob Routledge, Sault College, Bugwood.org
Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)
Typically found in fields, pastures, roadsides, and clearings.
Blooms from May through September.
Stems are hairy and can be simple (singular) or branch off near the base of the plant. Leaves are typically long and oval-shaped, have varying degrees of jaggedness (serration) on the edges, and are arranged in between each other on opposite sides (alternate).
The center of the flower is usually dark brown to purple. Made up of hundreds of small individual flowers which provide nectar for small wasps, flies, butterflies and more. .
Bee Balm
NPS Photo; C. Buchen
Wild Bergamot/Bee Balm – Monarda fistulosa
Perennial
Found in mesic to more often dry upland forests, rocky woodlands, clearings, old fields, forest edges, meadows, and roadsides.
Blooms from June through September
Leaves are long and thinly triangular with small hairs. They are spaced on opposite sides from each other (opposite arrangement).
Flowers are hairy and typically light pink, lilac, and sometimes deep purple.
Used by native people as a medicinal and cosmetic plant, with uses for colds, skin and mouth infections, and hair pomade.
Partridge Pea
Chris Evans, University of Illinois, Bugwood.org
Common Partridge Pea (Chamaecrista fasciculata)
· This annual is found in dry woodlands, dunes, old fields, clearings, and roadsides. Blooms are present June through September.
· Compond leaves: each leaf is divided into 2 or more small leaflets attached to a middle vein, which is attached to the main stem. Leaflets are long and rounded (oblong) and are arranged in two rows (pinnate).
· Flowers are a striking yellow, clustered around the stem, and have 5 petals, with the lower petal “lip” slightly longer and rounder.
· Legumes are 3-6cm long, straight, and flat. The legumes are a great food source for songbirds, quail, and wild turkeys.
Grey Goldenrod
Grey goldenrod – Solidago nemoralis
· This perennial can be found in open forests, woodlands, barrens, clearings, old fields, and road banks. Very common in dry soils.
· Grey goldenrod blooms in late summer, from August to October.
· Stems have fine grey hairs.
· Leaves are rounded at the tips and get narrower as they approach the stem. The edges of leaves can be smooth or have rounded bumps. Leaves have fine grey hairs.
· Flowers are yellow and clustered in a wand-like shape.
Common Milkweed
Robert Routledge, Sault College, Bugwood.org
Common Milkweed – Asclepias syriaca
· This perennial is found in fields, pastures, roadsides, and open disturbed habitats.
· Blooms are present June through August, and seed pods are present July through September.
· Stems have very fine hairs, especially on the upper half of the plant.
· Leaves are on opposite sides from each other and are oval shaped with greyish undersides.
· Stems and leaves will produce a milky liquid and sap when crushed.
· Flowers are dull purple, rose, greenish-purple, or greenish white. Flowers are arranged in clusters that give off a rounded appearance.
· The soft, hairy floss inside milkweed pods were used for lifejackets in WWII.
· Common milkweed is the host plant for the endangered Monarch Butterfly.
American Bluehearts
NPS photo/Gorsira
American Bluehearts – Buchnera Americana
· This perennial is found in fields seasonally moist to dry soils of barrens, clearings, old fields, meadows, and roadsides. Blooms are present July through September, and seed heads are present August through October. This plant is rare throughout the state.
· Stems are typically simple (not branching) and have fine hairs.
· Leaves are oppositely arranged, rough, narrow, and get increasingly smaller further up the stem. Edges of the leaves have some jaggedness.
· Flowers are purple-pink to deep purple.
· American Bluehearts are hemiparasitic and parasitize other plants. They can subsist without a host plant for a period, but eventually need to find one in order to survive. They don’t typically kill host plants unless another stressor is placed on the host (e.g., drought).
· This perennial is found in wet meadows, seepage swamps, alluvial swamps, marshes, and ditches. Blooms are present June through August.
· Leaves can be oval-shaped or narrower and decrease in size as they ascend the stem. Flowers are greenish or yellowish-white, and each plant has 20-40 flowers. The “lip” of the flower is distinctly separated into three parts and heavily fringed. A club-shaped spur extends from the back of the flower.
· These flowers are fragrant at night and are pollinated by moths active in the twilight period.
Foxglove Beardtongue
NPS photo/Buchen
Foxglove Beardtongue – Penstemon digitalis
· This perennial is commonly found in fields, roadsides, clearings, and other open, disturbed habitats. Blooms are present May through June and seed heads are found from July through August.
· Stems are not branched above the base and are typically smooth.
· Leaves thin out towards the tips and leaf edges are typically smooth.
· Flowers are clustered at the top of the plant and petals are white or violet-tinged, usually with pink or purple lines inside.
Blue Mistflower
Chris Evans, University of Illinois, Bugwood.org
Blue Mistflower | Conoclinium coelestinum
· This colony-forming perennial can be found in moist to wet meadows, old fields, clearings, floodplain forests, alluvial swamps, or other disturbed, open or shaded areas. Blooms are present late July through October.
· Stems are hairy and are branched at the top of the plant.
· Leaves are typically triangular with rounded to jagged edges.
· Flowers are clustered and come in a range of colors, from bright blue, violet, red-purple, or rarely, white. Flowers give off a fuzzy appearance.
· Blue mistflower is an excellent plant for pollinators and very nectar-rich!
