mexican hat
After the record-setting weekend temperatures we got some much-needed rain which cooled things down a bit. Perfect timing too. Our A/C went out Wednesday night and we had to open the windows and turn on the fans. Luckily it was not a big deal. Only the cooling fan on the outside condenser unit.
The garden is starting to fade from the heat. Luckily we have some native plants that just love the heat. Like these Mexican hats, for instance. They are an annual and fairly invasive. They can also look somewhat weedy, especially later in the summer.
May 27th, 2005 @ 7:34 am
That is a really interesting flower - I can see where the common name comes from. Do you know what the latin name of this plant is? It looks like it may be a southern relative of coneflowers (echinacea).
May 27th, 2005 @ 8:00 am
I have been remiss in not printing the Latin names of plants recently. It is really the only sure way to identify something.
This one is Ratifida columnaris. They are part of the aster family. There is a variety that is all yellow called “prairie coneflower.” They are smaller flowers than Echinacea and the leaves are much different.
More information here where the seed came from:
http://www.seedsource.com/catalog/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=1004
May 27th, 2005 @ 9:33 am
After reading again the blurb at the website I mentioned above I see that it says it is a perennial. It does seed out extensively however, which is probably why I had it in my mind that it was an annual.
May 27th, 2005 @ 9:56 am
What an interesting looking plant. I’ve never seen them before. It’s hard to imagine that there are people (and gardens) suffering from intense heat already when we’re just starting our spring up here. The forecast calls for a chance of frost tonight. : (
May 27th, 2005 @ 10:17 am
When I look at these flowers I am reminded of Josephine Baker.
http://images.amazon.com/images/G/covers/0/81/092/772/0810927721.l.gif
May 27th, 2005 @ 2:10 pm
I remember these from your post last year. They are so pretty. We are having record breaking heat here. Last week it was still cold, and wet and WINDY, now it is hot and dry and still. UGH> Cant we please have a happy medium? I dont do heat. Especially with a rash!!
June 3rd, 2005 @ 12:30 pm
Love those Mexican Hats, Bill. I just ordered a dwarf variety from Bluestone Perennials called Ratibida Columnifera ‘Red Midget’. Nearly everything in my garden but the loosestrife and lavender took a real spanking from the recent heat too…