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Substitution

I was planning on doing a nice series on the attractive purple peninsulas of pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata) which occur around the lake, and set off in the canoe to do precisely that on a beautiful, sunny Saturday in the northwoods. Unfortunately, the winds kicked up after I departed, creating not only a bad day for photos of anything from the canoe, but also a bad day to be 66 years old as the breezes tested my mettle. (I'm not sure what a "mettle" is, but I am sure it was tested and hope it's not sore tomorrow.)

 

Thus you will have to make do with this spotted knapweed (Centaurea biebersteinii) which is not only also purple, but has the added peculiar distinction of apparently being named for Justin Bieber. Or perhaps the latter was named for the former. Either way, I would consider both highly invasive in their own right, and tho Justin would no doubt strongly disagree, I find the weed far prettier and recommend a taxonomical redo.

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Uploaded on July 18, 2015