Another verbena
Over the past five years here you’ve seen two native verbenas that are common in central Texas, prairie verbena and slender vervain, as well as one that I only occasionally come across. Making its debut here today is yet another: gray vervain, Verbena canescens. While it’s fairly common, it’s also diminutive and somewhat nondescript, so I expect not many people pay attention to it.
The background halo in this view from April 4 along Bluegrass Dr. was a prairie fleabane daisy, Erigeron modestus, a species you last saw acting as a perch for a katydid nymph.
© 2016 Steven Schwartzman
Portraits of Wildflowers 
A creative way to feature this wee flower.
Sally
June 19, 2016 at 8:36 AM
Hooray for creativity, Sally.
Steve Schwartzman
June 19, 2016 at 9:50 AM
Great shot, Steve – love the well-placed halo!
composerinthegarden
June 19, 2016 at 8:39 AM
Just as long as you don’t take the halo to mean I’ve got a saintly nature.
Steve Schwartzman
June 19, 2016 at 9:53 AM
Thanks for the warning 😊
composerinthegarden
June 19, 2016 at 1:53 PM
You’re welcome. I wouldn’t want to be accused of misrepresentation.
Steve Schwartzman
June 19, 2016 at 9:10 PM
excellent framing ! 😀
Yoshimi-Paris Photographie
June 19, 2016 at 10:43 AM
Merci. Je suis content que l’encadrement t’ait plu.
Steve Schwartzman
June 19, 2016 at 9:13 PM
Prairie verbena I know for certain, as well as Brazilian vervain — that hugely invasive plant that’s everywhere just now. But I’d been assuming I was seeing lots of Verbena xutha. Now, I’m thinking a portion of it may have been Verbena halei. I think I remember seeing something in the hill country that I assumed was a stunted vervain. It’s just possible it was this gray vervain.
I’ll say this — they all have verve!
shoreacres
June 19, 2016 at 6:24 PM
A verve for vervain’s not a bad verve to have. Brazilian verbena has made its way to Austin (including Great Hills Park in my neighborhood) as well, but I’ll never show it here because it’s not native. I think I originally confused V. canescens with V. halei. I find the latter more attractive.
Steve Schwartzman
June 19, 2016 at 9:21 PM
We might even say that the plants are vervacious.
shoreacres
June 19, 2016 at 9:25 PM
That’s a good coinage. Vervacious complements curvaceous to describe these plants.
Steve Schwartzman
June 19, 2016 at 10:28 PM
The katydid nymph do they resemble their parents Steve? The adults sure can take a big chomp out of greenery. I like your verbena very much btw 😃
Julie@frogpondfarm
June 20, 2016 at 1:12 AM
Happy verbena to you, Julie.
Here’s what I found about the life stages of katydids:
http://animals.mom.me/life-span-katydids-5169.html
Steve Schwartzman
June 20, 2016 at 7:08 AM
What a delightful portrait of a blooming verbena, set off by a halo of white from the plant behind it. I have always loved the colour of the verbena – so richly purple.
Mary Mageau
June 20, 2016 at 7:44 PM
In central Texas we have four or five native species of verbena, so I rarely go out without seeing at least one of them. Lucky us.
Steve Schwartzman
June 20, 2016 at 10:42 PM
What an interesting lineup you’ve created.
Steve Gingold
June 22, 2016 at 3:14 AM
Does that lineup make me the Ed Sullivan of nature photography shows in central Texas?
Steve Schwartzman
June 22, 2016 at 7:25 AM
When it comes to wildflowers, Texas is “A really big ‘shew'”.
Steve Gingold
June 22, 2016 at 2:46 PM
That’s just the way I hoped you’d think of it.
Steve Schwartzman
June 22, 2016 at 9:16 PM