16 local wildflowers you can spot on your next hike

Keep your eye out for these colorful blooms along the Potomac River!

butterflyweed. photo by virginia state parks via flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Locally evolved plants do wonders for the Potomac River. They help bolster the river’s defense against polluted runoff, provide food and habitat for wildlife, and make the outdoors more beautiful!

Now that spring is almost here, you might be wondering what native wildflowers you’ll be able spot around the river, and when? Well, the answer isn’t so simple. 

There are hundreds of types of wildflowers that have evolved in the Potomac River region, but the rapidly warming climate is complicating their growing cycles. This makes it difficult to know when they are in bloom. 

Climbing temperatures cause many species to bloom earlier and longer, including DC’s cherry blossoms, which can negatively impact pollinators and puts entire ecosystems under stress.

While disconcerting, this changing reality reminds us just how vital these delicate, free-spirited flowers are to our ecosystem, and why it’s more important than ever to keep an eye on them. 

Get to know the rainbow bounty that’s about to explode beside the Potomac River, and amaze your hiking buddies with your expert wildflower trivia! 

Click through the photos below to see our favorite local flowers—and find out when they’ll start popping up! 🌷

Potomac River Wildflower Calendar:

Common Blue Violet

Viola sororia

Blooms: March - May

Native habitat: Rich, moist woods; swamps

These cute little blooms look so good you could eat them… oh wait, you can! Both the leaves and petals are edible and packed with Vitamins A and C.

Mayapple

Podophyllum peltatum

Blooms: March - May

Native babitat: Mixed deciduous forest, shaded fields, shaded moist road banks, shaded riverbanks.

Another name for these plants is Mandrake, which stems from the name of an Old World plant with similar vertical roots as the Mayapple that sometimes resembles a person!

Virginia Bluebell

Mertensia virginica

Blooms: March - June

Native habitat: Moist woods & clearings; river bottoms. 

These beautiful trumpet-shaped blooms always grow in clusters, but you can spot the oldest flower in the group by looking for the one attached to the main stem.

Wild Pink/Sticky Catchfly

Silene caroliniana

Blooms: April - June

Native habitat: Dry, open, gravelly woods

These cheerful pink blooms will be sure to brighten up your day—just one plant can boast up to 100 flowers for your eyes to behold!

Azure Bluets

Houstonia caerulea

Blooms: April - June

Native habitat: Deciduous woods, moist meadows, clearings

Pastels look good on this flower! Featuring baby blue or light purple petals, you can incorporate these flowers into your own lawn to make your backyard more appealing to pollinators.

Purple Passionflower

Passiflora incarnata

Blooms: April - September

Native habitat: Roadsides, meadows, pastures, woodland edges and opening, streams, riverbanks

The spindly petals on this unusual-looking flower make it visually appealing. Another name for this plant, Maypop, comes from the fact that its fruit makes a loud popping noise when crushed.

Carolina Rose

Rosa carolina

Blooms: May - June

Native Habitat: Sandy, open woods; thickets; roadsides

Thankfully we don’t have to live in the Carolinas to see this beautiful rose! Today it is an excellent source of food and habitat for native critters, but in the past this plant was also used by Native Americans for medicinal purposes.

Butterflyweed

Asclepias tuberosa

Blooms: May - September

Native habitat: Open woods, canyons, and hillsides

This plant may have “weed” in its name, but don’t treat it like one! Butterflies love these bright orange flowers, and they can make a great addition to your own garden.

Common Spatterdock

Nuphar lutea

Blooms: May - September

Native habitat: Grow in shallow water and are rooted in the mud

This bright yellow flower blooms in shallow water, held aloft by a thick stem. Spatterdock can grow in water up to 16 inches deep.

Mountain Laurel

Kalmia latifolia

Blooms: June - July

Native habitat: Wet to dry woods and pastures, cool meadows and slopes

With beautiful white and pink-spotted petals, Mountain Laurel is a showstopper! Its flowers aren’t the only prize though, the shrub’s wood has been used to make tool handles and tobacco pipes.

Orange milkwort

Polygala lutea

Blooms: June - October

Native Habitat: Damp sandy or peaty soil

These pinecone-like flowers are bright orange when fresh. Once the blooms dry out, however, they’ll turn into a brilliant yellow!

Marshmallow Hibiscus

Hibiscus moscheutos

Blooms: July - September

Native habitat: Swampy forests, wet meadows, marshes

These soft pink and white flowers thrive in wetlands, and they’re especially attractive to hummingbirds!

Blackeyed Susan

Rudbeckia hirta

Blooms: July - October

Native habitat: Meadows and fields

If you’re looking for some sunshine, why not grow some Blackeyed Susans in your yard? This bright and cheery plant will attract birds and other pollinators to your garden.

Common Sneezeweed

Helenium autumnale

Blooms: July - October

Native habitat: Moist, open areas along streams and ponds; wet meadows

Sneezeweed is definitely not the most flattering name for these cute yellow flowers, but legend has it that they caused people to sneeze in order to cleanse evil spirits from their bodies. Regardless of the name, these flowers sure do add a lovely splash of color wherever they grow!

Orange Jewelweed

Impatiens capensis

Blooms: July - October

Native habitat: Shaded wetlands

This gem of a plant has been scientifically proven to have fungicidal properties, and the juice from its stem has been used to treat athlete’s foot and relieve itching from poison ivy!

Wreath Goldenrod

Blooms: August - October

Native habitat: Rich, deciduous or open woods; wood borders; clearings

Branching into golden yellow buds, this plant is often a misplaced scapegoat for seasonal allergies. The more likely culprit behind your sneezing is the airborne pollen of Ragweed.

Source: Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Plant Database.
Photos courtesy of Matthew Beziat via Flickr. Wreath Goldenrod photo courtesy of Fritz Flohr Reynolds via Flickr.

Now that you know a snowdrop from a spatterdrock,
it’s time to show us your favorite wildflower finds!

As you head outside for spring hikes, snap the coolest flowers
you spot and tag us in your photos with:

🌼We can’t wait to see your best blooms!🌻

(P.S. Spot a flower not on this list? Use the iNaturalist app
to help identify it and contribute to community science!)

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