Today’s post is another “lifer” wildflower for me, one I first became acquainted with during the recent tour of nearby Snowball Hill Prairie. New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus americanus) is an interesting wildflower with an interesting story behind it. According to several references, American colonists brewed a black tea from this wildflower’s leaves during the Revolutionary War. And Native American women used the fragrant flowers as a soap. I’ve also learned that this plant was used to make several different colors of dye. As this shrubby wildflower is a host plant to several butterflies, it is a very beneficial plant for the prairie.
Here are a few of the images I captured earlier this week:
Coming up … some more wonderful wildflowers from Snowball Hill Prairie.
Photographic Equipment Used:
- Canon 5D Mark 3 body
- Canon EF 180mm, f/3.5 macro lens
- Bogen 3221 tripod with ballhead
- ISO 400
- Aperture f/3.5 to f/8
- Shutter 1/160 sec. to 1/2500 sec.