Found in moist areas, on fences, in trees
Seen blooming in October near Tierra Azul Acequia, Abiquiu

The final blog of the 2020 season is not a bloom, it is the bright leaves of the Thicket Creeper, a woody vine with five toothed leaflets. It spreads across the ground and can climb to the top of a utility pole, up a tree or along a fence using branched tendrils. It actually blooms in June with tiny greenish flowers growing in clusters. The flower stalks turn bright red, the fruit turns dark blue and the leaves turn bright orange-red. It is very similar to the Virginia Creeper, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, which grows in the eastern US. Traditionally the berries were eaten. The Jemez mixed berry juice with white clay to make purple body paint for the summer dance. The Navajo used it as a ceremonial medicine and to create a remedy for swollen arms or legs. Woody stems were used on ramadas for shade. Source.
​
If you trying to identify a different flower then you can check what other flowers bloom this month. If you cannot identify a flower from the website send a photo and where you took it to contact@rockymountainsflora.com. Read online for tips.   

Found on hillsides, by roadsides, sunny areas
Seen blooming in October near Hwy 554

Another of the sunflowers that seem to flourish in our area, the Prairie Sunflower grows to three feet tall with a hairy stem branching near the top. Leaves are bluish-green, rough in texture and usually lance-shaped, with stalks. The showy flower head is over two inches across and has 7 to 15 petals and a reddish-purple center. The bracts under the flower are lance-shaped and hairy. The Prairie Sunflower is very similar to the Common Sunflower but is much smaller and more slender. Traditionally the seeds were saved and eaten, and sometimes ground as meal. The Hopi used the plant as a spider bite medicine and the Navajo sprinkled a flower infusion on clothing for good luck in hunting. Dried flower petals were mixed with corn meal to make a ceremonial face powder for women. Source.
​
If you trying to identify a different flower then you can check what other flowers bloom this month. If you cannot identify a flower from the website send a photo and where you took it to contact@rockymountainsflora.com. Read online for tips.   

Found in waste places
Seen blooming in September near the Rio Chama

Wild Rocket grows to two feet tall with a rosette of basal leaves. The leaves are long and narrow with deep lobes and are edible. Bright yellow flowers with four rounded petals grow in clusters at the end of light green stems. Wild Rocket was introduced from Europe in ship’s ballast in the last century. It is native to Europe and Western Asia but can be found throughout much of the temperate world where it has naturalized or is grown for salads and herbal garnishes. Seeds are sometimes marketed as "wild Italian arugula" or "sylvetta arugula". The leaves tastes peppery, clean, and sharp, quite different from the more familiar cultivated arugula. They make an excellent addition to a mixed salad but are too strong to be used in quantity on their own.

​The plant is very productive, producing leaves from early spring until the autumn.
If you trying to identify a different flower then you can check what other flowers bloom this month. If you cannot identify a flower from the website send a photo and where you took it to contact@rockymountainsflora.com. Read online for tips.