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Wayfaring tree flowers occur in flat-topped cymes about 4" across; they are cream-colored with five petals, five stamens with white filaments and tan anthers, and a green ovary with a short (1 mm) style with a large, lobed stigma. The fruit is an oval, flattened drupe, initially red, turning black with maturity, and containing a single seed. They are not toxic but can induce vomiting it eaten when unripe. Wayfaring tree is said to be so named because it grows close to paths (and presumably other natural edges).

Viburnum

Viburnum lantana

wayfaring tree [Blooms: Apr-May]

Nannyberry flowers occur in 2-5" wide, dome-shaped panicles at the tips of young shoots. Individual flowers are 1/4" across, consisting of a light green calyx with five triangular teeth; a creamy white corolla with five oval lobes; five stamens with white filaments and yellow anthers that protrude well past the edges of the corolla lobes; and a light green or yellow pistil with a short style. The fruit is a 6-10 mm long drupe, initially green but turning dark blue-violet when ripe, containing a single seed. Nannyberry is similar to blackhaw (Viburnum prunifolium, also present in Jackson Park) — both have white flowers and blue-black fruits that are drupes — but nannyberry leaves have a long, narrow tip on their leaves in contrast to the rather blunt tips on blackhaw leaves.

Viburnum

Viburnum lentago

nannyberry [Blooms: Apr-May]

In the spring, American cranberry shrubs produce flattened panicles of flowers 2-5" across that bear two types of flowers — around the edges are five-petaled, white flowers about 1" across that are sterile (lacking both pistils and stamens), while in the center of the cluster are five-petaled, cream-colored flowers 1/4" across that are fertile (with both a pistil and five long stamens). By late summer, the flowers are replaced by bright red "cranberries" (actually drupes with a single seed) 1/4-1/2" across that prove very popular with birds (which distribute the seeds) and our local coyotes (whose scat is full of the seeds). After removing the seed, the tart flesh (high in vitamin C) can be eaten raw or cooked. In the fall, the leaves also turn red. Viburnum opulus var. americanum is said to be distinct from Viburnum trilobum (aka, highbush cranberry) by Illinois Wildflowers (www.illinoiswildflowers.info) and Minnesota Wildflowers (www.minnesotawildflowers.info), but plants.usda.gov insists that the latter is a synonym of the former. Worldfloraonline.org only adds to the confusion by insisting that the two names are BOTH junior synonyms of Viburnum opulus. ITIS.gov says that V. opulus is the correct name for the European species (now introduced to the U.S.) and Viburnum opulus var. americanum is the correct name for the American species. The easiest way to distinguish the two forms (if you care to) is to carefully inspect the nectary glands (extrafloral nectaries) on the petioles. In V. opulus americanum, the extrafloral nectaries are oval, with a concave top and a distinct rim; in Viburnum trilobum, the extrafloral nectaries are round in plan view with a convex top and no rim. Although rare in most of Illinois, guelder-rose (V. opulus americanum) is quite common around the lagoons of Jackson Park.

Viburnum

Viburnum opulus

American cranberry [Blooms: Apr-May]

Cymes of flowers arise from the leaf axils of blackhaw; the cymes are heavily branched but are sessile on the leaf axil. Individual flowers are 1/4" across with a 2 mm long calyx tube with five apical lobes that are shorter than the petals; a tubular corolla with five white, rounded lobes (the "petals"); five stamens with white filaments and yellow anthers extending outside the corolla lobes; and a small (less than 1 mm long), cream-colored pistil. The fruit is a fleshy drupe (like a plum or cherry) about 8 mm long containing a single brown nutlet that is flat on one side; the fruit becomes blue-black as it matures. The fruits are edible and popular with birds. Blackhaw is similar to nannyberry (Viburnum lentago, also found in Jackson Park) — both have white flowers and blue-black fruits that are drupes — but nannyberry leaves have a long, narrow tip on their leaves in contrast to the rather blunt tip and reddish petioles on blackhaw leaves. The stamens in blackhaw flowers are slightly shorter than those in nannyberry flowers but the difference is subtle; leaf form and petiole color are better differentiators.

Viburnum

Viburnum prunifolium

blackhaw [Blooms: May-June]

Many of the upper shoots of downy arrowwood end in 1.5-3" wide, dome-shaped panicles of flowers with slightly fuzzy, light green branches. Individual flowers are 1/4" across with a short, light green calyx with five short, broad teeth; a white tubular corolla with five rounded, spreading lobes; five stamens with white filaments and tan anthers that extend outside the corolla; and a single white style. The flowers have an unpleasant odor described by various sources as "rotting flesh." The fruit is a small (1/4-1/2") drupe (a stone fruit like cherries or a plum) 8 mm long and dark blue-violet to black at maturity. Downy arrowwood can be distinguished from other Viburnum spp. by its (1) its small size (less than six feet tall), (2) the relatively few teeth along the leaf margins (5-10 per side), (3) the short (about 1/4") leaf petioles, (4) the small, narrow stipules at the petiole bases, and (5) its flowers' unpleasant odor. The common name derives from the fact that the straight stems of the various arrowwoods was preferred by indigenous Americans for arrow shafts.

Viburnum

Viburnum rafinesquianum

downy arrowwood [Blooms: Aug–Sep]

Wild pansy's flower stalks are long, hairless, and bend like a shepherd's crook just below the base of the flower so the flower axis is approximately horizontal. Individual flowers have five 7-15 mm long, lance-shaped sepals that are longer than the petals and are sharply pointed at their tips; a 4-12 mm long corolla with five white or pale cream-colored petals, a yellow throat with a few dark purple lines, the lateral petals bearded on their upper surface, and a 1-1.5 mm long spur; two stamens not visible externally; and a single style enlarged into a hollow, globose stigma. The fruit is a spherical or ellipsoidal three-valved capsule, 5-10 mm long containing 6-75, 1.5 mm long, brown seeds.

Viola

Viola arvensis

wild pansy [Blooms: Jun-?]

Yellow violet is a native perennial, the only yellow violet species in Jackson Park (indeed, in all of Illinois). One or more stems arise from an axil of a stem leaf; they are up to 6" tall with a single 3/4" long flower at their tips. Each flower consists of five light green sepals, five yellow petals, five stamens, and a single style; the stamens and style cannot be seen from the exterior. On the lower petal, the flowers have purple lines (nectar guides) and a spur reduced to a small pouch. The two lower, lateral petals have small tufts of hair that obscure the throat of the flower and hide the stamens and style; the two upper, lateral petals are beardless and have only faint lines (nectar guides), if any. The fruit of this species is a bullet-shaped (hairless in the Jackson Park forms) capsule nestled in the calyx with the remnant of the style at its tip, initially green but turning brown as it matures; it ultimately splits along three suture lines to fling the seeds away from the plant.

Viola

Viola pubescens

yellow violet [Blooms: Apr-May]

Common blue violet flowers are 3/4-1" across with the calyx formed from five elongate oval, dark green sepals with a pointed tip, five petals (two upper, two lateral petals with white hairs ("beards") that occlude the throat of the flower, and one lower petal with a white patch and superimposed dark blue lines near the throat). The lower petal has a pouch (the "spur") that extends backwards past the base of the sepals; the spur houses the ovary, single style, and stigma (positioned just behind the petal beards) and, more posteriorly, the nectary. The two stamens surround the ovary and can't be seen without dissecting the flower. Flower color may range from deep violet to white with a purple center, all fading to pale yellow in the center. The fruit is a bullet-shaped capsule 1/4-1/2" long that is nestled in the calyx with the remnant of the style at its tip, initially green but turning brown as it matures; it ultimately splits along three suture lines to fling the approximately 75 seeds, beige or bronze in color, 1.5-2.5 mm long, away from the plant. Much of the reproduction occurs from vegetative clones produced from the rhizomes. Common blue violet prefers light sun or partial shade and a rich soil.

Viola

Viola sororia

common blue violet [Blooms: Apr-May]

Riverbank grape's flowers develop in 5" long, drooping, cylindrical or pyramidal panicles opposite the leaves of new branches (but skipping every third leaf). The flowers are greenish-yellow and are best described as skeletal; they may be either unisexual or (rarely) perfect (both male and female reproductive organs functional). The male and female unisexual flowers usually both occur on the same plant, either in separate or mixed clusters; both male and female flowers are 1/8" across or less, with a minute calyx and five green to yellowish petals that quickly fall off. Male flowers have five very long, pale, erect stamens around a button-like center; female flowers have an ovary with a short style and five short, sterile stamens, often contorted. The fruit are .... grapes — a round berry, 1/4-1/2" across containing 1-4 seeds, initially green but turning blue-black as it matures, often with a white bloom on the skin. You know, grapes. The fruit of riverside grape is often sour until after a frost, then becomes more "sweet/tart" to the tongue. Riverside grape is subject to parasitism by the grape filbert gall midge (Ampelomyia vitiscoryloides), an insect whose larvae produce large, very hairy, conical galls at leaf nodes. This gall midge is restricted to the eastern half of North America; it was first described by Alpheus Spring Packard, Jr. in 1869.

Vitis

Vitis riparia

riverbank grape [Blooms: [May-Jun]

American wisteria's flowers occur in showy terminal racemes. The flowers have 1/2" long pedicels that are densely covered with stiff hairs and some club-shaped, stalked glands. Individual flowers consist of a 1/4-3/8"white to pale green, hairy calyx and 15-20 mm long bluish-purple, pea-like, hairless flowers. The expanded portion of the banner (or standard) is bent backwards so it is perpendicular to the axis of the rest of the flower; the two lateral petals cover the keel like a hood. There are 10 stamens with tiny anthers, an ovary encircled by a nectar gland, and a single style hidden within the keel; nine of the 10 stamens are fused to each other, the tenth is free. The fruits are 2.75-4" long pea-like, hairless green pods containing 4-8 kidney-shaped or oval seeds, each about 8 mm wide; the pods are brown and the seeds are black when mature. The seeds contain an alpha-amino acid called canavanine which is structurally similar to L-arginine and the pods contain a saponin called wisterin; neither is a good thing to ingest. I've only seen American wisteria growing on the fence west of Japanese Garden. Periodically, the Park District cuts it down, I suspect because they fear for the fence's structural integrity (it's a heavy plant), but I wish a better solution could be found given American wisteria's rarity.

Wisteria

Wisteria frutescens

American wisteria [Blooms: May-Oct]

Common cocklebur produces a spike-like raceme of compound flowerheads, shorter than the leaf petioles, that arises from the axils of each upper leaf and from the tip of the central stem. Each raceme produces exclusively male flowerheads in its upper parts and exclusively female flowerheads in the lower regions. The male flowerheads are about 1/4-3/4" across, elevated on a short pedicel on top of 1-3 series of white floral bracts. Each of the approximately 20 tiny, brownish-green staminate florets (nominally disk florets) consist of a tubular 1-2 mm long corolla; a minute, non-functional ovary; and five stamens with fused filaments (like a tree trunk) but with their white anthers free, positioned in a ring like a little palm tree or, possibly, a hand. The staminate florets quickly shed their pollen and drop off. The female flowerheads (also nominally disk florets) are 3/4-1.5" long and two-thirds as wide, stalkless, each (usually) containing two female florets nearly enclosed by floral bracts covered with curly white hairs that have a bur-like appearance from the dense, hooked prickles covering their surface. At the tip of the flowerhead are two spines, longer and much stouter than the prickles, each with a hole from which protrudes the divided style of a female floret. There is no corolla in the female florets. The florets are wind pollinated, and their styles quickly wither away after fertilization. Each female floret produces a single, oblong, dark gray to black seed 3/8-1/2" long, tapering to a point at each end and covered by dark membranes, all buried in the bur-like bract. The female flowerhead stiffens through the autumn, turns brown, and overwinters. The seeds are highly poisonous, containing toxic diterpene glycosides. One of the contained seeds germinates the following year; the other delays germination for two years. Common cocklebur prefers wet, sandy soils.

Xanthium

Xanthium strumarium

common cocklebur [Blooms: Sep-?]

The tips of the upper stems of heartleaf alexanders produce 2-3" wide compound umbels of 7-15 umbellets, each with 10-20 tiny yellow flowers. The central flower of each umbellet is sessile; the rest have short pedicels (a diagnostic character of the genus). Each 1/8" wide flower consists of five yellow petals that remain curled, five stamens with yellow anthers projecting through the spaces between the petals, and two styles. The fruits are a ribbed capsule with a flat top from which the remnants of the styles project. Heartleaf alexanders is restricted to northeastern Illinois, where it is uncommon; it is usually found in drier habitats than its much more common relative, golden alexanders (Zizia aurea).

Zizia

Zizia aptera

heartleaf alexanders [Blooms: Apr/May–?]

The tips of the upper stems of golden alexanders produce flat to slightly rounded compound umbels 2-3" across with about a dozen umbellets of tiny, golden-yellow flowers. Each umbellet has about 20 flowers; the central flower is sessile (or nearly sessile) while all the other blooms in the umbellet are on short stalks (pedicels), a character of the genus. Each 1/8" wide flower consists of an insignificant calyx, five yellow petals that are persistently incurled, five stamens with yellow anthers projecting through the spaces between the petals, and two styles. The fruits are a ribbed (not winged) 2 mm long capsule with a flat top from which the remnants of the two styles project. Golden alexanders prefers full to partial sun and is tolerant of a range of habitat quality. The yellow-flowered variety of meadow parsnip (Thaspium trifoliatum var. aureum) is very similar to golden alexanders but has basal leaves that are simple rather than trifoliate compound, but I have not seen meadow parsnip in Jackson Park. John Hilty (www.illinoiswildflowers.info) warns that "Golden Alexanders should not be confused with Pastinaca sativa (Wild Parsnip), which is a weedy Eurasian biennial. The latter is taller, blooms later, and has more leaflets in each compound leaf." Wild parsnip DOES occur in Jackson Park, but it is relatively rare, twice the size of golden alexanders, has robust, strongly ribbed stems, and a large, flattened, winged fruit. Heartleaf alexanders (Zizia aptera) is also very similar, but only the uppermost leaves are compound; all the lower and middle leaves are simple and heart-shaped.

Zizia

Zizia aurea

golden alexanders [Blooms: Apr/May–?]