Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: Stellaria media

I'm back! :D Boy, did I have a super day today! Steve and I went on a photo walk in a forest along the Rogue River and let me tell you, it was mushroom heaven!! Couldn't BELIEVE all the mushrooms!!! Also lots of flowers, leaves, spiders, water shots, so many cool things to see! Steve and I will be sharing these amazing treasures in the weeks to come, but for tonight, I'd like to share the 34th Flower of Spring, which was found along the edge of our hillside! I was amazed to see the perfect green star shape its sepal (the leaves just below the blossom) makes--isn't that just the coolest thing?! :D And do you see that she has a pretty face with two eyes, a nose and a mouth?! :) Common Chickweed has very tiny flowers, about 1/4" in diameter, and is a native of Europe, but now grows all over North America too. It's considered to be a weed, hence its name, but it's also edible, quite nutritious, and served in salads! :D (Here are many recipes for tasty salads with Chickweed and here it is listed in a fancy restaurant's menu !) Also, Chickweed is served as a symbolic dish in the Japanese spring-time festival, Nanakusa-no-sekku. Finally, chickweed has had many folklore purposes, used for everything from mange to arthritis relief, though no evidence of actual medical value is known. If you would like to know more about this pretty little flower, Wiki has a page here: Wiki: Common Chickweed (Stellaria media) Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :)

Here the pod is opening up with mature seeds inside.

Doesn't this look like an Alien egg that's opening up with a face-hugger inside?! :D But in this case, you'll see the mature seeds inside, ready for dispersal! Isn't that cool?! :D

The other day, Steve and I went out to Daffodil Hill to take pictures, and on the way we stopped for lunch. While we were waiting for our order, I stepped outside to take pictures and found this lovely little Chickweed blossom to share! One of the things I love most about this flower is its defined star-shaped sepal, which is where the petals of the flower grow on top of. The sepal also protects the forming petals before opening and folding back to expose the flower. The story continues! Today I was taking pictures and thought I found a new green flower...but after studying it very closely, I realized that it was the forming seed pod of a Chickweed flower! I took several pictures so you can see what it looks like below! Common Chickweed has very tiny flowers, about 1/4" in diameter, and is a native of Europe, but now grows all over North America too. It's considered to be a weed, hence its name, but it's also edible, quite nutritious, and served in salads! :D (Here are many recipes for tasty salads with Chickweed and here it is listed in a fancy restaurant's menu !) Also, Chickweed is served as a symbolic dish in the Japanese spring-time festival, Nanakusa-no-sekku. Finally, chickweed has had many folklore purposes, used for everything from mange to arthritis relief, though no evidence of actual medical value is known. If you would like to know more about this pretty little flower, Wiki has a page here: Wiki: Common Chickweed (Stellaria media)

Here is the Chickweed pod forming.