Showy Tick Trefoil (left), Illinois Tick Trefoil (right)
Nodding Wild Onion
Showy tick trefoil has been flowering for a couple of weeks and is starting to form seed pods while the Illinois tick trefoil has just started blooming. We originally scattered seeds for the Illinois tick trefoil, but we’re not sure where the showy tick trefoil came from. It started flowering a year or two ago, but some prairie plants have to grow for several years before they start flowering. Like the prairie dock seeds we planted; the plants were about 5 years old before they started to flower. Also, the nodding wild onion has made an appearance in the prairie. It started out in our perennial garden. (We use this garden as a seed source for the prairie, as well as landscaping.) We have been scattering seeds for a few years and now nodding wild onion has a foothold in several locations in the prairie.
Reflections from the Prairie 