Pleasantly surprised a few days ago at finding these two beauties had finally showed up. I had forgotten how late in the Fall they appear and unfortunately how short their return is.
You can just see in the top picture the buds on the lower stem that will be in bloom in the next few days. Hopefully, I will be able to find a few more plants near them in the wet meadows along the Western Trail towards the Mitchell Field Bridge at the very end of the Park. I will try to get out this weekend to explore some more.
As they bloom so late in Fall, they are only sharing the meadowlands with New England Asters, Snake Root and a few straggler of sunflowers.
Photo by Stewart V. Nelson, 2018, ©️ some rights reserved
According to WebMD, Closed Bottle Gentian has proven somewhat effective when used with other herbs such as verbena in treating sinus infections and it might lower blood pressure. You have to admit it is pretty amazing that the little chemical factories in the plant kingdom are pretty good at finding complex molecules that we can use to treat common maladies.
Photo by Stewart V. Nelson, 2018, ©️ some rights reserved