Thursday, September 10, 2009

the indicator

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Goldenrod...there are over 100 perennial species of this plant in North America..this one grows in my garden. I'm not sure which one it is...

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Goldenrod, of the genus Solidago....it often gets the blame for hay fever. The real culprit for hay fever is Rag Weed..a different plant entirely. Rag weed is wind pollinated. Goldenrod depends on the insects for pollination. If you want to meet some interesting and beautiful insects, Goldenrod is good place to look....some of the late season pollinators are sure to be there.

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Goldenrod contains bioflavonoids.. If you cook it, some parts may be eaten. It may be dried for tea or decoration. It makes a beautiful yellow dye for wool. Recently, I spoke with a dyer who said the trick to a vibrant yellow is to pick the flowers just as they are beginning to open.

Sadly, they are considered by many to be weeds.

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For me, Goldenrod is an indicator plant. An indicator of the season...it is a sign to me that frost on the pumpkin is just around the corner...

Don't forget..the Pennsylvania Endless Mountains Fiber festival is this weekend...Stop by the Antique Spinning Wheels booth and say hello! I'll be there, offering my handmade buttons for sale --and doing some flax and Great Wheel demonstrations--and having fun!

13 comments:

judy said...

I need to get back to my apples but I have a little dream that it would be an awful lot more fun to get in the VW and do a road trip to the festival.

Have a great weekend! Hope the weather holds for you.

Elizabeth said...

We just did some dyeing with goldenrod (and cochineal and indigo) this past Monday. The flowers were fresh and bright, and the colors were also.

Manise said...

Mine have been blooming for a while and covered in bees, wasps and butterflies. So is my anise. I found my first rather tiny wooly bear caterpillar of the season yesterday- mostly brown. I forget the rule regarding what kind of winter we'll have based on the distribution of the brown and black bands. Cute pumpkin- is it a sugar pie one?

Valerie said...

Lots of goldenrod at the twp. park where I take my walks. It seems that the finches really like it among the goldenrod too. Wonder if it's for food or for camouflage?

I always remember the "Goldenrod" writing tablets we got at the beginning of elementary school.

Have fun this weekend! Wish I could wander by to visit.

Jody said...

I have Goldenrod all around my backyard fences and I luv it. When I look out my upstairs window I can see the bright yellow flowers everywhere. Yes it feels like Autumn when I see those colours. Have fun at your Fibre Festival this weekend!

elizabeth said...

Good to know that fall is on the way! Have fun at your festival!

Cathy said...

Good luck at the festival. I love golden rod and used to dye with it in the 70s.

Leslie Shelor said...

Great luck with the festival! I didn't know about that one...so many great places and fiber people! I love golden rod and the species you have looks a lot like mine.

Lisa at Greenbow said...

I have a goldenrod 'Fireworks' in my garden. I just love it. It is really living up to its name now.

Have fun at the festival. It sounds like fun.

annmarie said...

When I was driving my son back up to Binghamton the weekend before Labor Day, I was amazed at how lush the goldenrod was all along Route 17. It looked beautiful. The whole drive up everything looked thicker and greener than I've ever remembered seeing it. Must be all that rain we had this summer! :o

thecrazysheeplady said...

Yay for sticking up for the goldenrods :-). Beautiful pictures. Enjoy the festival!

Anonymous said...

I hope you've had a wonderful festival with lots of sales and connecting with people. Fun and exhausting!

Lynn said...

I've been spending some time with a friend watching all sorts of wasps and other insects on goldenrod - fascinating! This post of his isn't about goldenrod, but I think you'll like it anything:
http://bugeric.blogspot.com/2009/08/grape-is-blooming.html

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