#gumweed

If you don't look closely, you can easily miss it.

@sweet-harmony

Gumweed, sea asparagus and the beautiful sea and coast.

I was surprised to see this green metallic bee yesterday. We’ve had a lot of rain in the past month and I haven’t seen a bumble bee in a couple of weeks. Alas, we had our first heavy frost last night and that usually sends these green sweat bees into hibernation for the winter. Pleasant dreams my little friend.

I often find Grindelia integrifolia, called the Puget Sound gumweed or the Willamette Valley gumweed, growing near the shore of the Puget Sound.  It can also be found in salt marshes and wetlands, and pollinators are very attracted to the flowers! I don’t know of any uses for this plant aside from as a hardy native ornamental flower. I found this one on a stormy July day at Marina Beach Park in Edmonds, Washington. 

Dry-Erase Marker on whiteboard. Do not remove caption. GT0182

A member of the Aster family, the Puget Sound Gumweed is a common sight in coastal areas around Vancouver.

A Metallic Bee at Crescent Beach this morning.