Top 20 Fruits to Plant During Spring in Champaign

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Top 20 Fruits to Plant During Spring in Champaign

In Champaign, Illinois, the Spring breeze weaves through the cityscape, inviting a medley of urban fruit plants to awaken. Here, Virginia springbeauty unfurls its blossoms to the applause of city-dwellers, while Silver maple begins its juicy journey, ripe with local appetite. The humble Common blue violet, a beacon of Spring's bounty, threads the community together, its fruit cherished in neighborhood kitchens. These city-harvested protagonists signal Spring's sweet, vivacious embrace on the streets of Champaign.

Best Fruits to Plant During Spring

Virginia springbeauty

1. Virginia springbeauty

Virginia springbeauty (Claytonia virginica) has tiny underground tubers (kind of like potatoes) that taste like chestnuts and are utterly delicious. Early American colonists consumed them, but only when they were desperate because it took a lot of time to collect enough for a meal. Its genus name is in honor of John Clayton, who made essential contributions to the study of plants.

Silver maple

2. Silver maple

Silver maple (Acer saccharinum) is one of the most common deciduous trees in the United States and southeast Canada. It is a 15 to 25 m tall, fast-growing, sun-loving tree. Its leaves have deeper angular notches between the five lobes than many other maple species. Silver maple is often found along waterways and wetlands, earning it an alternative name 'Water maple'.

Mid spring, Late spring, Early summer

Butterweed

Butterweed (Packera glabella) is a plant species native to the central and eastern United States. Packera glabella is commonly known as butterweed, cressleaf groundsel and yellowtop. It commonly grows in prairies and floodplains. This plant is toxic to humans.

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Common blue violet

4. Common blue violet

The common blue violet is an attractive wildflower known for its blue to purplish white hues. It is common in North America, where it is sometimes associated with a weed. The plant is popular as an ornamental, and it is a state flower in several states in the US. Its flowers and leaves are edible and safe to be planted near pets.

Common chicory

5. Common chicory

Common chicory is used in a variety of culinary applications around the world, most commonly with coffee. It is occasionally also added during the beer-brewing process to inject a coffee-like flavor. The leaves can be boiled or eaten raw in salad or with pasta. Common chicory is also a simple livestock fodder. In European folklore, the small blue flowers could be used to magically open locked doors.

Early spring, Mid summer, Late summer, Fall, Winter

Wild carrot

The wild carrot is a common flowering plant with light, delicate flowers. Originally native to Europe and Asia, it has also spread to North America and Australia. Studies of historical paintings suggest that the wild carrot was cultivated in Turkey, Spain, and North Africa for centuries.

Late spring, Summer, Fall, Early winter

Wild blue phlox

7. Wild blue phlox

Wild blue phlox (Phlox divaricata) also goes by the names of woodland phlox or Louisiana phlox, and it’s indigenous to eastern North America. The flowers sit atop hairy, sticky stems. In the wild, it loves to grow along stream banks. “Phlox” is Greek for “flame” because some flowers of this species have intensely vibrant colors.

Spring, Mid summer

Bloodroot

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis) is a plant species native to eastern North America. In the wild its early spring blooms can be seen spreading across the forest floor or along riverbanks. Its common name comes from its reddish orange-sap, which can be made into a dye. Bloodroot seeds are often spread by ants who take them back to their nests.

Common dandelion

9. Common dandelion

*Taraxacum officinale*, widely known as common dandelion, is a herbaceous perennial that can be found in temperate regions all over the world, in habitats with moist soils. The most popular feature of this plant is its fruits, furry spheres that are easily carried by the wind. Although it is generally considered a weed, common dandelion is actually edible and very nutritious.

Late spring, Early summer

Wild ginger

10. Wild ginger

Wild ginger (Asarum canadense) is a ginger species that is not related to commercially available true ginger. The two may smell similar, but people should use caution because wild ginger contains a toxic compound.

Bradford pear

11. Bradford pear

The bradford pear is native to China but is considered invasive in the U.S. and Australia. Although it does not self-pollinate, it can become invasive by hybridizing with other plants to create fertile fruits that may seed in natural areas. The bradford pear creates large populations of fruits that are spread by birds and animals, readily rooting in disturbed areas. It also forms thick colonies that may compete with other native species for natural resources. Alternative plants include the Trident Maple and the Serviceberry. The bradford pear can be controlled by manually pulling young plants, and a range of herbicides such as oil-based herbicides, foliar herbicides, and both basal bark and stump treatments. It is important to remove seed sources as the weed can reinvade areas where it has been previously removed.

Dutchman's breeches

12. Dutchman's breeches

Dutchman's breeches gets its name from the shape of its flower petals. The petals form an upside-down “V” which resembles a pair of pants, or "britches." dutchman's breeches is found in the woods and blooms in early spring, making it some of the first food for bees and pollinators. It goes dormant towards the end of summer.

Wild geranium

13. Wild geranium

The wild geranium is a perennial woodland plant native to eastern North America. It has been historically used in ritual ceremonies by Native Americans. Many cultivars have been selected for horticulture usage due to their unique flowers and beaklike seed pods. Among the geraniums, wild geranium has the largest flowers.

Purple dead-nettle

14. Purple dead-nettle

Purple dead-nettle (Lamium purpureum) is an herbaceous annual weed, commonly found in meadows, wastes, gardens, and at the edges of roads and woodlands. Though it appears similar to true nettles, purple dead-nettle gets its name because it does not have "live" nettle poison that harms the skin. It originated in Asia and prefers environments with full sun.

Ditch lily

The ditch lily is a perennial plant known for its captivating lily-like blooms. Its natural habitats are meadows and forests, but it is also a common garden plant in temperate regions around the world. Each individual flower lasts only a day, but the plant will bloom new ones for weeks. Ditch lily's young buds and flowers are edible either raw or cooked. As a bonus to vegetarians, the flowers contain more fats than most vegetables.

Rattlesnake master

16. Rattlesnake master

Rattlesnake master (Eryngium yuccifolium) is a herbaceous perennial plant species that grows best in full sunlight and dry soil. Rattlesnake master is drought tolerant and erosion resistant. The leaves of this coarse plant have been used by Native Americans to create both baskets and sandals. Monarch butterflies love the nectar from this flower, giving them nutrients to complete their yearly migration south.

Mid winter, Late winter, Spring, Summer, Early fall, Mid fall

Carolina horsenettle

17. Carolina horsenettle

Carolina horsenettle (Solanum carolinense) is a perennial herb native to the southeastern United States that is related to nightshade. Carolina horsenettle is a nettle in name, but it is not taxonomically a true nettle. All the parts of the plant are poisonous.

Common lilac

18. Common lilac

Common lilac is a shrub native to the Balkan Peninsula that blooms with a fragrant blossom. It grows on rocky terrain and has a suckering habit. The blossoms are used to flavor honey, sugars, food, and other delights and farmed for its fragrant flowers in the spring.

Mid spring, Late spring

Poison hemlock

19. Poison hemlock

As the name infers, the poison hemlock is a highly poisonous plant and has been known to intoxicate a variety of livestock. The leaves are similar to carrots and parsley, fooling most herbivores into consuming it. Poison hemlock can be lethal when ingested.

Garden petunia

20. Garden petunia

Garden petunia (Petunia atkinsiana) is a hybrid species of garden plant that describes all hybrids between the two petunia species P. axillaris and P. integrifolia. When grown for gardening, these flowers are relatively easy to grow, can survive in hot climates. Garden petunia require hours of sunlight each day.

Mid winter, Late winter, Spring, Summer, Fall, Early winter

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