Toadflax is another spring-blooming wildflower. It has lavender-blue flowers on top of wispy stalks up to two foot tall, with a few erect string-like leaves. Blooms appear from April to September. They prefer to grow in dry sandy soils in a sunny location. Toadflax is native to most of the Eastern U.S. and California (USDA Zones 4-10).When grown in masses, the blooming plants create a field of lavender-blue flowers. They are pollinated by bumblebees and may be visited by butterflies for nectar. It is also a larval food plant for the Buckeye butterfly. When not in bloom, they are nearly inconspicuous.
They are typically annual or biennial plants and reseed readily along roadsides or in disturbed soils where they have little competition.
Good morning, Grower Jim! Aren't these flowers making the empty fields and medians so beautiful right now?!! I recently did a post on blue toadflax called "Winsome Weeds." I have such a hard time pulling them in the garden! They are so beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThis wildflower is making a big statement this year. I have it growing all along the edge of a flower bed. My daughter thought I had planted it on purpose. I am leaving it for now. I love the bouquets I get from the grands.
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