Plants we love (most of the time), Part 1

By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager

Philadelphia fleebane (Erigeron philadelphicus) is a pretty, native wildflower that is also occasionally a bit weedy—but only in our lawns and gardens. It’s a member of the aster family and opens in spring with pinkish ray flowers that fade to white.

I’ve never seen it behave aggressively in the natural areas at Crow’s Nest Preserve, in fact it’s not that common in our native meadows or on the edge of our woods. But it shows up reliably in our turf, around trees and shrubs that are the landscaping, and at the edge of garden beds. It survives any place it escapes the lawnmower, and even though it is weedy I make sure that most of it isn’t nicked by the lawnmower. But I also don’t feel bad about accidentally cutting one—there will be more next year.