Blazing-star blazed out
Do you remember what blazing-star, Liatris mucronata, looks like when it’s flowering? In contrast, here’s what a spike of this plant looks like after it has gone to seed, dried out, and turned fluffy. This photograph is from the Riata Trace Pond on January 7.
UPDATE: It seems that botanists have reclassified Liatris mucronata as Liatris punctata var. mucronata.
© 2016 Steven Schwartzman
I still haven’t seen blazing star in flower, but once I figured out what I was looking at, I found these stalks in several places this fall. What that means, of course, is that this spring, I’ll get to see Liatris blooming.
Weird as it is, my first thought when I saw this photo was, “That looks good enough to eat.” I finally figured it out. It reminds me of wild rice: which is, of course, a grass. One species, Zizania texana, is endemic to the San Marcos River. I think I remember that being mentioned here on your blog in the past.
I do favor blue and brown combinations. This is a lovely one.
shoreacres
January 26, 2016 at 7:38 AM
Ah, not quite, because this is a plant that blooms in the fall (or sometimes late in the summer). I went to see how close to you this species grows and in the process I found that it’s been changed from Liatris mucronata to Liatris punctata var. mucronata. The closest counties to you shown on the USDA map are Colorado and Liberty, but other species of Liatris grow where you are. I remember seeing one at Armand Bayou years ago. You can compare species distributions at:
http://bonap.net/NAPA/TaxonMaps/Genus/County/Liatris
Steve Schwartzman
January 26, 2016 at 8:55 AM
So many species! I’ve seen their remnants at Armand Bayou, at Nash Prairie, and near Goliad. I suppose it’s theoretically possible that each of those stands is a different species. I did enjoy seeing Liatris X frostii listed for Minnesota and Missouri. Can’t you just hear it? “Frostii Liatris was a brave and hardy soul, with a slender stem and color blends that no painter ever rolled…”
shoreacres
January 26, 2016 at 9:15 AM
You’re quick on the uptake with Frosty.
What you saw in Goliad is likely not the same species as at Armand Bayou. I remember being excited to discover a new (for me) species in Bastrop a few years ago:
https://portraitsofwildflowers.wordpress.com/2013/10/13/tall-blazing-star/
Steve Schwartzman
January 26, 2016 at 9:29 AM
I agree that the blue (which came from the sky reflected in the pond) added a balance to what would otherwise have been heavy on the brown.
As for the endemic and endangered wild rice, you’re correct that I mentioned it:
https://portraitsofwildflowers.wordpress.com/?s=ziza
Steve Schwartzman
January 26, 2016 at 9:02 AM
Love the beautiful, delicate detail you captured…Such a wonderful way to start the day.
Charlie@Seattle Trekker
January 26, 2016 at 11:19 AM
It’s not a “pretty” picture in the conventional sense, but it reveals, as you say, the delicacy of the late stage of this plant. It’s the stage that with the dropping of seeds ensures the plant’s continuity.
Steve Schwartzman
January 26, 2016 at 12:23 PM
Your photo is like a painting I could live with everyday. Thank you! And Liatris is one of my favorite plants, in all stages.
Billtye Adams
January 26, 2016 at 1:46 PM
You’re most welcome. I’m happy to find another person who appreciates such a late stage in the life of Liatris.
Steve Schwartzman
January 26, 2016 at 2:44 PM
I do…absolutely and, as well, I have liatris dried in our garden. No picture though.
Steve Gingold
January 26, 2016 at 6:19 PM
Is the Liatris too far gone for you to get pictures of it?
Steve Schwartzman
January 26, 2016 at 11:10 PM
Yeah, the stalks are lying on the ground and not looking too natty right now.
Steve Gingold
January 27, 2016 at 6:02 PM
More ratty than natty?
melissabluefineart
February 18, 2016 at 8:34 AM
I really love this image, Steve. I don’t usually see blazing stars looking like this. I suppose the stalks get flattened by snow. Or something.
melissabluefineart
February 18, 2016 at 8:36 AM
I developed a fondness for backlit Liatris in 1999 when I saw a large colony lit that way. The field is still there but it got heavily mowed in some of the following years and the Liatris has never been as good again.
Snow and ice in your climate must make the remaining Liatris stalks look different from the ones down here (which of course are also a different species). Yet another reason to visit Texas.
Steve Schwartzman
February 18, 2016 at 10:08 AM
My family and I talk about it all the time. I hope we do, one day.
melissabluefineart
February 19, 2016 at 9:28 AM
“…‘tis a consummation / Devoutly to be wished…” as someone else whose name begins with S once said.
Steve Schwartzman
February 19, 2016 at 9:42 AM
The Bard always has le mot juste, n’est-ce pas?
melissabluefineart
February 19, 2016 at 10:20 AM
The Bard made me think of beard and n’est-ce pas made me think of the Nez Perce Indians. I guess those are examples of free-associating.
Steve Schwartzman
February 19, 2016 at 1:05 PM
Ha! I guess so 🙂
melissabluefineart
February 19, 2016 at 5:22 PM