April 17: Crimson clover

On the road this weekend, I got to see the ditches in bloom. They're practically carpeted with crimson clover — it's everywhere. Medians, roadsides, dark red soft-looking tufty balls sticking up. Most places, it's mixed with various things, my favorite being the pink evening primroses. With the small scarlet blossoms and those big, delicate pink ones, it's quite striking. Others are blue-eyed grass, a few ox-eye daisies, and even some phlox in the more wooded areas.





I don't remember seeing this much crimson clover when I was young. I'm not sure exactly why; one thing might be that there hadn't been a big roadside beautification campaign here yet in the 80s, with all the wildflower planting... but I also didn't travel as much, and maybe I just wasn't paying attention, with my head buried in books.