Poison Hemlock – Conium maculatum

Here you can see the stem has no hairs but a purple mottling on its hollow stem and the pinnately compound leaves are finely divided and lacy like a fern  with the leaf vein running to the tip and the leaflets are alternate

I love these old drawings. Here you can see more closely the characteristics of the Umbel or parsley family also known as the Apiacea family. There are some really great members of this family including: carrots, dill, fennel, celery, caraway, and cilantro. The main characteristic that defines this family is the umbel flowerhead.

 

Close up of foliage and flowers and when picked this plant gives off a mildly unpleasant odor

Here is the compound umbel- notice the stems always radiate from one point

   I have seen it everywhere this time of the year with it’s tall billowing foliage and flowers  along fence lines and the borders of pastures. Since it is so deadly to animals and humans, I wonder why the farmers don’t get rid of it in their pastures and farmyards.

Alstroemeria or the Inca Lily

Native to Chile, this beautiful wildflower is known mostly as a lovely addition to a florist’s arrangement though it has become naturalized in some parts of the US. It is extremely difficult to grow from seed but readily propagates from tubers.

Here is a patch growing in the woods on my farm, Fundo La Campanilla.

 

This flower is a member of the Lily family hence the long leaves with parallel veins (monocot) but on the alstroemeria the leaves are twisted so the underside faces up. It has 3 petals on the inside with markings and 3 sepals on the outside which are solid color- called collectively tepals. I have only seen orange flowers growing on the roadsides here but they also come in many different colors like red, purple, green, and white. Notice the 6 long stamen with pollen.

According to Wikipedia these in Chile are winter growing and those of Brazil are summer growing. Though this picture was taken in January in the height of summer.