Last Flowers

Common tansy is the latest blooming flower in this area. It also happens to be on the noxious weeds list. It was brought over from Europe by the pioneers for medicinal purposes, but it has been found to be somewhat toxic, so it is no longer recommended as a medicine.

Tansy shoots up from ground level to three feet tall in the space of a week or so at the beginning of fall. It is only found in one spot in my yard, so I am not too perturbed about the possibility of it spreading and displacing my native flowers. I will probably just clip the blooms for indoor display every year, and that will keep it in check.

Not quite as late as the tansy but overlapping in bloom time and also a noxious weed is the beautiful musk thistle. I do not have this one on my property, but there are a few plants on the neighbors properties. It also makes a beautiful indoor display, and the flower stalks are free of thorns for several inches, making them easy to handle.

The worst noxious weed of all is the Canada Thistle, which spreads by its roots, making it especially hard to eradicate. Here is a lush patch on the neighboring Arctic Cat property. The blooms are very pale and uninspiring.