We usually don’t think of the downtown area of a large city as a place where wildflowers thrive. You certainly won’t find favorites like Jack-in-the pulpit, Lady Slippers and Trillium growing next to buildings or cracks in a sidewalk. But there are dozens of plants that call these places home.

Dandelion Image source: bcmom

Chicory Image source: Carl E. Lewis

Most people call them weeds, but I prefer to think of them as wildflowers. Like their forest and pasture cousins, urban wildflowers display gorgeous foliage and flowers of various shapes, textures and colors. Some are tall and some creep along the ground. Some you could eat; others you don’t want to touch. Some have striking flowers, others have flowers that you can barely see.

The secret to appreciating urban wildflowers is simply to look for them. I find that discovering plants amid concrete, asphalt, gutters and streets to be quite exhilarating. Urban wildflowers are quite tenacious, clinging to a tad of sand and dirt next to a parking meter or crack in a sidewalk. And vacant lots provide a larger space for many types of plants to flourish.

All that these urban invaders need is a place to put down a seed, sunshine and an occasional drop of rain. They don’t need to be trimmed, pruned, dead headed, watered fertilized or weeded- after all, they’re weeds! If left alone, urban wildflowers will grow and multiple like mad.

So the next time you’re downtown, take a minute and look around and in no time you will discover the world of the urban wildflower.

Partial List of Urban Wildflowers Found in Downtown Worcester, MA

You will find many of these urban wildflowers in cities across the United States.

Black Snakeroot Cinquefoil Queen Anne’s lace Evening Primrose Peppergrass Celandine Goatsbeard Yarrow Goldenrods Asters Hawkweed Asiatic Dayflower St. Johnswort Cheeses Tansy Horseweed Dandelion

Ragweed Wild Cucumber Bittersweet Nightshade Mouse-ear Chickweed Chickweed Yellow Sweet Clover Bastard Toadflax White Sweet Clover Smartweed Lady’s Thumb Chicory Carpetweed Red Clover White Clover Purslane Rabbit-foot Clover