In every ‘around the world’ article we visit a different part of the world and tell you more about the local vegetation that is from that continent or area. In this article we explore the vast North American continent.
EUSTOMA
At first glance, this adorable flower, looks a lot like a rose. But eustoma is definitely a different flower entirely! Characteristics of the eustoma are its multiple flower buds and its long stem. Making this flower a perfect pick for usage in a tall bouquet. Not that long ago eustoma was discovered in the Texas (United States), by Thomas Drummond. But also in other states, such as Nebraska, Nevada and Colorado and in northern Mexico you’ll be able to find this flower growing alongside rivers and on prairies. Originally, the colours varied from dark blue to purple. But trough human innovation, this graceful and elegant flower is available in just about any colour you can think of.
CLARKIA
The nickname for clarkia is ‘satin flower’, which is a perfect fit! The flower petals are so thin an soft, that it almost seems like they are made of satin. Most of the clarkia varieties, there are about 40 in total, originate from North America and only one can be found in South America.
Clarkia is named after American explorer William Clark. In the 18th century William Clark and Meriwether Lewis, were the first ones to cross and research the North American mainland. These expeditions are known as the Lewis & Clark expeditions (this might ring a bell somewhere). The clarkia is not the only thing that was named after William Clark, the Clarks River in Kentucky was also named after this gentleman.
BEAR GRASS
‘Xerophyllum tenax’ is the scientific name of bear grass, quite the mouthful don’t you think? Here at Coloríginz we value bear grass for its great decorative value: you can bend and shape it anyway you want it. But the Native inhabitants of North America also had their way with bear grass: they would fold baskets, make jewelry out of it, weave it into clothing, etc. And when you dry bear grass, it becomes even more though and durable. They are also excellent when you want to waterproof objects. So all in all: bear grass is quite the multifunctional little plant!
HELIANTHUS
When a sunflower is growing, it looks like the head turns with sun, so the sunflower can soak up every bit of sunlight during the day. But in fact, the growth of the stem varies depending on the time of day. By day time, the part of the stem that faces east grows faster, and from night fall the west side of the stem grows faster. This varying stem growth makes it looks like the flower turns with the sun.
There are about 70 species within the genus, most of which are from North America. Around the sixteenth century the sunflower was taken to Europe by Spanish explorers. In Europe the flower was mainly used as decoration, but this changed during the eighteenth century. At this point people found out that oil could be made from the sunflower seeds. Especially Russia went crazy for sunflower oil. Currently they are, together with neighbouring country Ukraine, the biggest sunflower producers of the world.
PHLOX
Phlox is the Greek word for ‘flame’, probably given due to the bright and vivid colours of this flower. Originally from North America, where the full genus contains about 70 species. Phlox is a very popular garden plant that nowadays grows in gardens all over the world and not just in North America, because they doesn’t require much care. Just water them regularly and make sure they can enjoy some sunlight every day. Phlox will do the rest, including multiplying. When phlox blossoms it has large and bright clusters of flowers, filled with delicious, sweet nectars that will work like a magnet for butterflies, hummingbirds and bees. If you don’t enjoy all of these critters, and you want to have phlox all for yourself indoors, we have good news because phlox is a very suitable cut flower.
SALAL
Salal is another plant discovered by the Lewis and Clark expedition, salal was first found between 1804 and 1806. Not long after that, the plant was brought to Europe.
Salal is an evergreen plant with beautiful glossy leaves. In the spring salal produces berries. Bonus: if you ever become lost in the North American woodland, you can eat the young leaves and berries to survive. But make sure you don’t upset the local wildlife: bears, beavers and hummingbirds also love to snack on the salal berries. If you do survive a bear attack while you are on your salal berry heist and manage to bring some berries home, you could make a delicious jam out of it. wonder what they taste like? Well if we could describe it, the taste of the berries are slightly more earthy in comparison to blueberries for example.
SOLIDAGO
You might recognize solidago under its common name: ‘goldenrod’, this nickname is of course due to the beautiful, sunny golden colour of the flowers. But the meaning of its botanical name is also quite beautiful and a very fitting one, when you take a deeper look into the actual qualities of the plant. Solidago means ‘to make whole’. This is because solidago has numerous health benefits: it can help with kidney, skin and bladder problems for example. But also, and surprisingly enough, may ease the symptoms of hay fever.
