New England Public Radio

Getting Outside And Identifying Wildflowers

Odds are that you’ve noticed, and probably appreciated, the return of warm weather, green grass — and flowers. According to the newly released book “Wildflowers of New England” there are over 1,100 kinds of wildflowers out there.  To see how this new guide worked in the real-world, we headed outside on a sunny and blustery day with author Ted Elliman, who says first, determine the color of the flower.

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To hear author and plant ecologist Ted Elliman and New England Public Radio’s Carrie Healy use the new “Wildflowers of New England” guide to identify a birds-foot violet, click on the audio player above.

A Closer Look at Why New England Native Plants Are Threatened

Some dire news this week about plants that’re native to New England.  Many — 1 in 5 – are endangered. That’s according to a report from the New England Wild Flower Society. Its author is ecologist Elizabeth Farnsworth. On a sunny day overlooking Paradise Pond, at Smith College in Northampton, Farnsworth talks with New England Public Radio’s Carrie Healy. Farnsworth used the Mill River, that both flows into and from the pond, to explain how plants, animals and people are interconnected.

 

Listen to the audio player above to hear Carrie Healy’s conversation with Elizabeth Farnsworth.

To read the “State of the Plants” report, click: New England Wild Flower Society.