Some Country Roadside Flowers in May

     Every May I marvel at the variety and beauty of several kinds of flowers while driving along country roads in southeastern Pennsylvania.  Most of those plants that flower along roadside shoulders in May are aliens from Eurasia where they long ago adapted to disturbed soil in farmland.  All the plant species of this writing have showy blooms that are easily noticed by anyone walking or riding along country roads.  All these plants are more or less common in fields and meadows, as well as along the rural roadsides that pass through those human-made habitats, in much of eastern North America.  And they make lovely bouquets of themselves where two or more species are blooming in the same place at the same time; bouquets that are free to enjoy in the beautiful countryside.
     Buttercups, celandine and goat's-beard, all aliens in that arbitrary order of abundance, have yellow flowers that are cheery to see.  Abundant buttercup blossoms carpet many meadows and roadsides with gold.  That gold is especially delightful to see with its background of green grass and when bathed in sunlight.
     Celandine plants are a couple of feet high and a bit bushy-looking.  They mostly grow in clumps here and there, almost exclusively along rural roadside shoulders where no cultivation is done after the initial disturbance of the soil to create the road.
     And goat's-beard can be up to three feet tall and has grass-like leaves.  This species, too, is found almost nowhere but along rural roads.  Goat's-beard blooms resemble those of dandelions, and like dandelions, their seeds each have a fluffy parachute that carries its seed cargo away on the wind, thus dispersing the species far and wide.   
     Daisy fleabanes are the only native kind of plant in this writing.  This abundant species in meadows and along rural roads can be a few feet high.  And each plant has several small, white to pale-pink blooms that are "fluffy" because of the many soft petals on each flower.
     Evening lynchis is common along country roadside shoulders.  This  species stands a couple of feet tall and has white blossoms.  And under each bloom is an inflated calyx sac.
    Dame's rocket plants can be three feet or more high, and each plant has pink, purple and white flowers.  This is a member of the mustard family.
     Red clover is a hay crop that has colonized roadsides, too.  Each plant has a few leaves, each one with three petals and pretty, pink flower heads.  Those flowers are visited by bees, butterflies and a variety of other insects along roadsides and in fields.
     This array of lovely roadside blooms in May make walks and rides in the country more interesting and enjoyable.  I have always been happy to experience them close to home during that time of every year.