Thursday, May 10, 2007

Flowers Along the Minuteman Bikeway

By Rich Spencer

In many ways the verges of the Minuteman Trail are ideal for wildflowers. Sunlight, poor soil and open areas as found along the trail are conducive to the growth and propagation of wildflowers. These wildflowers prosper without fertilizer, without weeding, and love benign neglect.


Early spring brings such blossoms as Glory-of-the-Snow and Violets while autumn shows a wide variety of Asters. In between an ever changing scene of colorful flowers can be seen.
More than 100 different wildflowers grow along the trail. Some of these are called weeds, some are invasives, and some are escapees from cultivated gardens. All of them add color and texture to the trail.

  1. Asiatic Day flower
  2. Beggarweed
  3. Blue Vervain
  4. Bouncing Bet
  5. Cuckoo Flower
  6. Celandine
  7. Crown Vetch
  8. Dame's Rocket
  9. Evening Primrose
  10. Goatsbeard
  11. Hawkweed (many varieties)
  12. Harebell
  13. Jewelweed
  14. Lily-of-the-Valley
  15. Morning Glory
  16. New England Aster
  17. Ragged Robin
  18. Spiderwort
  19. Tansy Wild Geranium
  20. Yarrow


This list represents less than one-fourth of the wildflowers that can be found along the trail and does not include the many flowering trees, shrubs and bushes also found along the trail.
My favorites include Beggarweed, Ragged Robin, and Spiderwort. If you have a favorite New England wildflower it is quite likely you could find it growing somewhere along the trail.

No comments: