You can tell it is fall...you can find one of my favorite showy wildflowers in all our parks and in the garden, yes Paintbrush, Carphephorus corymbosus, is blooming.
Its purplish, pink flowers are clustered at the end of a long stem growing from a basal rosette of leaves. Jack Lyons suggests the common name comes from its resemblance to a loaded paintbrush. The plant grows up to 3 feet when in flower. It can be found on sand ridges, roadsides, flats, pine flatwoods and oak scrubs; in other words, in most of our local natural areas. This nectar plant for butterflies is a great addition to a native landscape area. It grows in nutrient poor soils and does best in moist, well-drained sandy soils, but does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water.
The genus name Carphephorus (kar-FEFF-ur-us ) comes from the Greek "carph(us)" meaning "straw, dry twigs, chaff" and "phor(o)" meaning "bear, carry, movement" referring to the chaff on the bracts at the base of the flowers. A general common name for the genus is Florida Chaffhead. Five species of this genus are found in Florida; three of them (Paintbrush; Vanillaleaf, C. odoratissimus; and Deertongue, C. paniculatus) grow in this area and in the garden.
REFERENCES:
Institute for Regional Conservation, Carphephorus corymbosus
http://regionalconservation.org/beta/nfyn/plantdetail.asp?tx=Carpcory
Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants, Carphephorus corymbosus
http://www.florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/Plant.aspx?id=2091
Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Wetland Evaluation and Delineation Program, Carphephorus spp.
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/WATER/wetlands/delineation/featuredplants/carpheph.htm
Rainy Side Gardeners Plant Pronunciation Guide C-D http://www.rainyside.com/resources/reference/PronunciationGuideCD.html
Photo by Denny Girard