Centennial Lake in August 2014 (part 2)

I posted about the lake and wildlife in part 1 of this post. The focus today is plants. At the very end there was a wasp on a flower of Queen Anne’s Lace. I found myself more intrigued by the bundle of blossoms before they opened and wondered how many of them would complete the process to seed before frost.

The Joe Pye Weed was past its best looks. In previous years I’ve managed to catch the large flower heads when they were at their most attractive to butterflies - but it hasn’t happened this year. It seems like none of the butterfly species are as plentiful this year.

The water lilies are not plentiful at Centennial Lake and they too are showing the wear of the summer. Some of the lily pads are already beginning deteriorate and there are few flowers.

This thistle may mature before the first frost but what about the bud beside it?

Some plants have already made seeds. The image below is of an amaranth and was captured with the 10x loupe.

All of the plants I photographed were in areas of the park that are not mowed frequently. They are mowed occasionally to keep them as meadows rather than young forests.