Slender racemes of this species
are found blooming in dry or rocky woods from the Mississippi
eastward, from May to July, by which time the ground cherry is
ready to provide for the bee's wants. The similar Philadelphia
species was formerly cultivated for its "strawberry tomato." Many
birds which feast on all this highly attractive fruit disperse
the numerous kidney-shaped seeds.
GREAT MULLEIN; VELVET or FLANNEL PLANT; MULLEIN DOCK; AARON'S ROD
(Verbascum Thapsus) Figwort family
Flowers - Yellow, 1 in. across or less, seated around a thick,
dense, elongated spike. Calyx 5-parted; corolla of 5 rounded
lobes; 5 anther-bearing stamens, the 3 upper ones short, woolly;
1 pistil. Stem: Stout, 2 to 7 ft. tall, densely woolly, with
branched hairs. Leaves: Thick, pale green, velvety-hairy, oblong,
in a rosette on the ground; others alternate, strongly clasping
the stem.
Preferred Habitat - Dry fields, banks, stony waste land.
Flowering Season - June-September.
Distribution - Minnesota and Kansas, eastward to Nova Scotia and
Florida.
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