Star Island Grasses and Flowers

Sea milkwort is an unpretentious plant with very small delicate flowers. However, when it blossoms in the spring, the thousands of mini plants turn large surfaces into a pinkish carpet. Sea milkwort grows in saline soils. Although you find it mostly in coastal regions, as long as there is salt in the ground or air it can also grow far inland, such as the salt deserts in Asia. The range of salt necessary to grow can vary from occasional flooding to just salt spray. Above ground, sea milkwort dies off entirely in the winter, however the plant is not dead. It makes buds under the surface, appearing again in the spring. This makes sea milkwort a perennial. less ↑

Scarlet pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis; also known as red pimpernel, red chickweed, poorman's barometer, poor man's weather-glass,shepherd's weather glass or shepherd's clock) is a low-growing annual plant. The native range of the species is Europe and Western and North Africa. The species has been distributed widely by humans, either deliberately as an ornamental flower or accidentally.A. arvensis is now naturalised almost worldwide, with a range that encompasses The Americas, Central and East Asia, the Indian Subcontinent, Malesia,... less ↑

Solanum nigrum (European black nightshade or locally just "black nightshade", duscle, garden nightshade, hound's berry, petty morel, wonder berry, small-fruited black nightshade or popolo) is a species in the Solanum genus, native to Eurasia and introduced in the Americas, Australasia and South Africa. Parts of this plant can be highly toxic to livestock and humans, and it's considered a weed. Nonetheless, ripe berries and cooked leaves of edible strains are used as food in some locales;... less ↑

Trifolium hybridum, alsike clover, is a plant species of the genus Trifolium in the pea family Fabaceae. The stalked, pale pink or whitish flower head grows from the leaf axils, and the trifoliate leaves are unmarked. The plant is 1–2 feet (30–60 cm) tall, and is found in fields and on roadsides – it is also grown as fodder (hay or silage). The plant blooms from spring to autumn (April to October in the northern hemisphere). Originating... less ↑

Achillea millefolium, known commonly as yarrow /ˈjæroʊ/ or common yarrow, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere in Asia, Europe, and North America. In New Mexico and southern Colorado, it is called plumajillo (Spanish for 'little feather') from its leaf shape and texture. In antiquity, yarrow was known as herbal militaris, for its use in stanching the flow of blood from wounds. Other common names... less ↑

Sagina procumbens is a species of flowering plant in the pink family known by the common name birdeye pearlwort. It can be found throughout the Northern Hemisphere and parts of South America. It is a common weed of many environments. It can be found in wild and disturbed habitat, especially moist areas. It can sometimes be seen growing in lawns or in cracks in the sidewalk. This is a perennial herb forming clumps or mats of... less ↑

Argentina anserina, also known as common silverweed, silverweed cinquefoil or just "silverweed", is a flowering perennial plant in the rose family Rosaceae. It is native throughout the temperate Northern Hemisphere, often on river shores and in grassy habitats such as meadows and road-sides. The plant was formerly classified in the genus Potentilla but was reclassified into the resurrected genus Argentina by research in the 1990s. less ↑

Sedum acre, commonly known as the Goldmoss Stonecrop, Mossy Stonecrop,Goldmoss Sedum, Biting Stonecrop, and Wallpepper, is a perennial plant native to Europe, but also naturalised in North America. This plant grows as a creeping ground cover, often in dry sandy soil, but also in the cracks of masonry. It grows well in poor soils, sand, rock gardens, and rich garden soil, under a variety of light levels. However, it does not thrive in dense shade with... less ↑

Spergularia rubra, the red sand spurrey or red sandspurry, is a plant species in the pink family. It is native to Europe and Asia, and it is present on other continents, including North and South America and Australia, as an introduced species and in many areas a common weed. It grows in a wide variety of habitat types. It is an annual or perennial herb producing a slender, glandular stem up to about 25 centimeters long.... less ↑

Ipomoea purpurea, the Purple, Tall, or Common Morning Glory, is a species in the genus Ipomoea, native to Mexico and Central America. Like all morning glories the plant entwines itself around structures, growing to a height of 2–3 m tall. The leaves are heart-shaped and the stems are covered with brown hairs. The flowers are trumpet-shaped, predominantly blue to purple or white, 3–6 cm diameter.... less ↑

Asclepias syriaca, commonly called common milkweed, butterfly flower, silkweed, silky swallow-wort, and Virginia silkweed, is a species of flowering plant. It is in the genus Asclepias, the milkweeds. This species is native to most of North America east of the Rocky Mountains, excluding the drier parts of the Prairies. It grows in sandy soils and sunny areas. It was one of the earliest North American species described in Cornut's 1635 work Canadensium Plantarum Historia. The specific... less ↑

The parsnip (Pastinaca sativa) is a root vegetable closely related to the carrot. It is a biennial plant usually grown as an annual. Its long tuberous root has cream-colored skin and flesh and can be left in the ground when mature as it becomes sweeter in flavor after winter frosts. In its first growing season, the plant has a rosette of pinnate, mid-green leaves. If unharvested, it produces its flowering stem, topped by an umbel of... less ↑

Daucus carota (common names include wild carrot, (UK) bird's nest, bishop's lace, and Queen Anne's lace (North America)) is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate regions of Europe, southwest Asia and naturalised to North America and Australia. Domesticated carrots are cultivars of a subspecies, Daucus carota subsp. sativus. less ↑

Garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) is a biennial flowering plant in the Mustard family, Brassicaceae. It is native to Europe, western and central Asia, and northwestern Africa, from Morocco, Iberia and the British Isles, north to northern Scandinavia, and east to northern India and western China (Xinjiang). In the first year of growth, plants form clumps of round shaped, slightly wrinkled leaves, that when crushed smell like garlic. The next year plants flower in spring, producing cross... less ↑

Celastrus orbiculatus is a woody vine of the Celastraceae family. It is commonly called Oriental bittersweet. Other common names include Chinese bittersweet,Asian bittersweet,Round-leaved bittersweet, and Asiatic bittersweet. Celastrus orbiculatus was introduced into North America in 1879, and is considered to be an invasive species in eastern North America. It closely resembles the native North American species, Celastrus scandens, with which it will readily hybridize. less ↑

Cerastium tomentosum (Snow-in-Summer) is a herbaceous flowering plant and a member of the carnation family. It is generally distinguished from other species of its genus by "tomentose" or felty foliage. It is a low, spreading perrenial native to alpine regions of Europe. The stems & leaves are silvery-grey, whilst the flowers are star-like, white & about 15mm across. Not surprisingly, C. tomentosum flowers in summer, but may also bloom at other times of the year. It... less ↑