05/12/2022 dramatic surprise : Cast Iron Garden

I realized today that these funny friends near the dining room window were blooming.

It turns out they are a native Solomon’s seal (Polygonatum biflorum)!!! Thanks to Abby for confirming the identification.

Apparently they do grow in the wild in Cleveland county, so these could be volunteers or they could be planted. Apparently the native species (as well as some non native species in the same genus) used to be more popular as a shade plant. The Chef mentioned seeing them in older people’s gardens in his home town in northeastern Oklahoma. The linked website also says one of the non native species has a strong odor to the flower, and these had no particular smell for either of us.

There is also a clump of them near the compost bin, shaded by the house most of the day.

They do have fun leaves, and have never spread far, so I had never bothered to pull them up before. (Having never seen them in the wild before, I had assumed these leaves were something non native.)

Sure glad I didn’t!!

05/12/2022 dramatic surprise

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