The Daily Bucket is a regular feature of the Backyard Science group. It is a place to note of any observations you have made of the world around you. Insects, weather, meteorites, climate, birds and/or flowers. All are worthy additions to the bucket. Please let us know what is going on around you in a comment. Include, as close as is comfortable for you, where you are located. Each note is a record that we can refer to in the future as we try to understand the patterns that are quietly unwinding around us.
Here in the Pacific Northwest, there is a profusion of wildflowers to enjoy. Just this spring, we had a bucket about the pink wild
Pacific Rhododendrons and
OceanDiver's bucket on the pink wild roses (Baldhip and Nootka). Next comes the pink Foxgloves, to continue the pink theme. While these are non-native, they are now common along the roadsides of the Olympic Peninsula, WA.
Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea)
While the common foxglove is often grown as an ornamental plant, my first exposure to it was as a wild plant, growing along the roadsides during my first visit to the Olympic Peninsula over 35 years ago. I was quite surprised to learn that it wasn't native. Colors vary from pink, lavender, or white, with deep pink to purple spots inside.
The stalks can reach to 6 ft high.
Foxglove stalk
The heart medicine known as digitalis is derived from this plant. All parts of the plant can be highly poisonous when ingested by humans and livestock.
Foxglove is a biennial plant. The first year of growth produces only a stem with basal leaves. During the second year of the plant's life, a tall, leafy, flower stalk grows atop the roots of healthy plants.
Foxglove rosette (1st year)
Foxglove is a garden escapee originally from eastern Europe and Turkey. While it is not a native plant, it has established itself over a wide range. Here's a map from the
USDA Plants database.
Later in the summer, another pink wildflower will grace our roadsides, namely Fireweed.
Fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium)
Fireweed is a native plant in the Pacific Northwest. It gets its name because it often grows in open or disturbed sites, especially recent burns in meadows, clearcuts, and mixed forests, from sea level to subalpine. When my son was growing up, we called it the "school plant" because when the flowers at the very top of the stalk open, it's time to go back to school. But we won't speak about back-to-school again until late August.
What are you seeing, smelling, and hearing in your area? The bucket is open and ready for your observations. One thing you won't observe is me any time before 8am PDT.