She said that the flowers only open for a very brief period early in the morning (which was why I had never observed that 😉 ). She also said that most of the heads simply shut up and die. Only a very few turn into these large and intricate seed heads which are very similar to dandelions. But these are much larger, about 3″ across. And the stems they are on are between 2 and 3 feet high. I have no idea what they are, but I am really glad that I photographed this specimen as the other day an over enthusiastic village worker went through and mowed down all of the wild flowers and grasses next to the path, including these. So they are all gone.
‘Civilization’ Fights Back
The field that I photographed the other day ((Read it here)) has also been mown completely flat. All of the wild roses, all of the lupins, all of the tiny wild strawberry plants, the milkweed flowers – monarch butterfly nurseries – as well as the wild blackberries have all been cut down and destroyed. I guess the village was threatened by all of this natural beauty. I could have cried. I am only glad that I caught it with my camera before this happened.