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| Click to view larger. |
This is my next set of
pages for The Sketchbook Project. Blue
porterweed is an unusual plant that grows wild among the coastal scrub plants at
Barefoot Beach Park, but it also happens to be a volunteer in my yard. Several species of porterweed are cultivated
in south Florida, with one species debated as a Florida native, Stachytarpheta jamaicensis.
I think my volunteers might
be a hybrid of exotic and native, since they seem to have characteristics of
both. The flowers on this plant are a violet
to violet-blue, but some porterweeds have vivid clear blue blossoms. My sub-shrubs, as they are called, are low in
height and have a spreading habit, a native feature. The leaves however, have a hint of the “quiltiness”
of the exotic and larger shrubs.
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| Flower close-up. |
Butterflies love the
flowers, especially Zebra Longwings, Gulf Fritillaries, and Julias. According to the North American Butterfly
Association (NABA), blue porterweed is the host plant for the Tropical Buckeye
butterfly, although I haven’t seen any visiting. I would love to add another host plant to my
sparse butterfly offerings. It seems
that I notice more butterflies when their larval foods are nearby.
Let me add that
these plants meet my basic criteria of “tolerates neglect,” since my gardening
time is hit-and-miss. Historically, a foaming porter-like tea (porter is beer or ale) has
been made from the plant to treat several medical conditions, giving the plant
its common name of “porterweed.” A
member of the Verbena or Vervain family of plants, porterweed is common
throughout the Caribbean.
I’m happy to report that
with the exception of a few tree branches down, the rain and wind of Tropical
Storm Debby are memories, and the sun has come back out!
For more reading:
NABA Butterfly Gardening
and Habitat Program – Blue porterweed information
The Pinellas Chapter of the
Florida Native Plant Society, Roger Hammer on porterweeds, native vs. exotic
Media:
The
Sketchbook Project sketchbook,
Pitt
Artist pen in black, size XS for the sketch, and S for the text
Kimberly
watercolor pencils,
Niji
Aquabrush, small size.
