There's a beautiful wildflower that is growing in our woodlands in spring.
That's a real fooler.
It looks like garden flax, but it's not.
It's called Dame's rocket.
It's not native.
It was brought over from Europe because of its beauty in gardens there, but also because in some cases, people choose to eat the flower blossoms.
They are edible If you take a look at dames rocket coming in these beautiful shades of white and pink and deep fuchsia, you could think that it is garden flax.
But here's how you tell the difference.
Garden phlox doesn't flower until much later in the season.
And the leaves on garden phlox actually are opposite each other on Dames Rocket.
They are alternate to each other along the stem.
So that's one way.
Another way is to take a look at the petals.
That's probably the easiest way.
Dame's rocket being in the mustard family has four petals and Garden Phlox has five petals.
To add to the confusion, there's actually a native woodland phlox that blooms the same time as dames rocket in shades of white and lavender.
But it has five petals and that makes it a flux.
Instead of Dame's rocket, you'll find dames rocket along woodland trails or even along roadsides.
However, many land managers do try to remove it when the stands get dense because it will crowd out our native wildflowers.
It's also a biennial, meaning that it flowers in alternate years.
So in the second year, it shoots up a big flower spike like these, and then the next year it's just a cluster of leaves.
So that's another thing that's common with some of the mustard plants, like its counterpart, garlic mustard, an invasive plant that is in many of our woodlands and roadsides as well.
So if you're out hiking in the spring and you see this beautiful stand of pink and white blossoms, count the petals, and then you'll know if it's phlox or more likely dames rocket Remember, you can find your own outdoor elements when you visit area parks and natural areas.
We'll see you soon.