Wildflowers

A bouquet of wildflowers is the perfect centerpiece. I get happiness from picking them, arranging them, and then enjoying and sharing their simple, unextravagant beauty.

A “wild” flower is technically any flower that grows in the wild, meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted. Uncultivated. Free. Some people just call them weeds, but that term is really not an apt description of the variety and potential of these blooms. Wild, instead, denotes a flower that is untamed, perfect as is, and growing where it grows naturally.

Roadside wildflowers are a common sight in the Upper Peninsula, starting with the dainty forget-me-nots and blue violets in May, closely followed by the daisies and the fiery devil’s paintbrush in June. Stunning wild lupines spring up, seemingly overnight, on roadsides in dazzling shades of purples, pinks and whites. July brings the black-eyes susans, the Queen Anne’s lace (wild carrot) and, my personal favorite, the brilliant pink perennial peavine, or everlasting sweet pea.

Sometimes wildflowers burst forth in unexpected places, like through a crack in a sidewalk or on a rocky ledge. These specimens are determined to show off their blooms even in the most trying of environments through sheer force of determination and fortitude.

Bright arrangements of in-season wildflowers always adorn the tables at the cabins. I hope they offer a pleasant welcome and some lasting joy for guests throughout their stay.