I was mowing the dense growth of wildflowers that have burst forth on the property during mid-March to mid-April 2017. We have received about 4 inches of much needed rain and the warm temperatures have kicked the plant life into high gear. After all, it is springtime.

I spotted Yellow Clover, Slender Yellow Wood Sorrel, Engelmann’s Daisy, Yellow Spiny Daisy, Redstem Stork’s Bill, Goat’s Beard and this little beauty, Prairie Spiderwort. While the rest of the wildflowers went under the blade to mulch land, I mowed around this tiny plant with care so I could take these photographs. This is the first time the I have seen Tradescantia occidentalis in the yard.

Spiderworts belong to Commelinaceae or Spiderwort family. There are at least 14 species in Texas. If you look at the sepals on the unopened flowers and they are fuzzy or hairy, you are looking at T. occidentalis. T. ohionensis, or Bluejacket can also be found within the same area and they have hairless sepals except for their tips.

In the second image, you can see a tiny copper-colored Halictid bee that was feeding on this tiny flower. These bees come in copper, metallic green, and plain black colors. They are the reason I let so many wildflower populate my yard; besides, I like to see more colors than just grass green.

You can read another one of my posts about another Prairie Spiderwort I found in an interesting place in Fort Worth.

The post Prairie Spiderwort In My Frontyard appeared first on GJM Nature Media.

Pictured here is a Prairie Spiderwort, Tradescantia occidentalis. It belongs to the Spiderwort family, Commelinaceae. There are 14 different species of spiderworts found in Texas, six of them are found only in Texas.

I took this picture because I don’t regularly find spiderworts in sandy open situations like you see here. They are usually part of a grassland ecosystem and they are surrounded by many other plant that make a photograph like this impossible.

The grass like leaves and the three petal flowers are useful characters for distinguishing these plants from others. I love their blue color and I have seen other spiderworts with purple or lavender flowers. This picture was taken in the Fort Worth area and I have seen only one other kind of spiderwort in that area. Tradescantia ohioensis, known as the Bluejacket Spiderwort, is easily distinguished from T. occidentalis by looking at the sepals covering the unopened flower. If the sepals look fuzzy all over, you are looking at T. occidentalis. Conversely, T. ohioensis will have smooth sepals with tufts of hair at their tips.

The post Prairie Spiderwort In A Tough Spot appeared first on GJM Nature Media.