Common Jewelweed

Here's a Common Jewelweed from last spring. Besides what I've said in the previous post/link, there's a fair amount to like about these wildflowers. They are basically natives [1], they generally produce a high-sugar nectar that powers our pollinator friends, and they're actually pretty good at competing against aggressive invasive plants like Garlic Mustard. It makes me wonder whether we should be trying to plant jewelweeds wherever Garlic Mustard is dominating the ecosystem; maybe we could restore a native ecosystem with the help of these guys. (Of course, nothing is stopping the jewelweeds from growing where the Garlic Mustard is, so maybe their ability to compete against Garlic Mustard is overrated.)

June 20, 2023 at Washington Valley Reservoir
Photo 301113330, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

[1] It's been said that the jewelweeds are fairly good at hybridizing amongst themselves, so it's possible that some of the jewelweeds you see might have non-native ancestry. 

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