By Dan Zarlenga, Missouri Department of Conservation
Photo caption: A stand of winged sumac invades an autumn woodland with a carpet of red.
Photo by Dan Zarlenga
H.G. Well’s 1898 novel, War of the Worlds, told an enduring tale of Earth being invaded by aliens from Mars. One memorable aspect of the story was the red weed, a botanical transplant from the red planet. It was a crimson vine that threaded itself through Earth’s fields and waterways, overtaking the landscape and transforming it into a deep Martian red.
Starting in September, we’ll be seeing our own invasion of crimson. Unlike Well’s red weed, this invasion is one we look forward to. These are Missouri native plants that convey beauty to our landscape. They are the earliest harbingers of the autumn glory to come. Sassafras, sumacs, and Virginia creeper bring a welcome invasion of eye-popping color!
“(The red weed) spread up the hills and down the valleys, branching and receding with the watercourses.”
Sassafras is one of the Show-Me-State’s most striking and fragrant trees. Just like Well’s red weed, it can make its mark everywhere from dry woods, to glades, prairies, and valleys. Adventurous members even reach ridges and upland slopes.
Sassafras gives Missouri’s varied landscapes a vibrant display of fall colors; its leaves turning from yellow to orange, then shades of red and burgundy. The color change tends to peak in mid-October, but it begins to spread its reddish hues as early as mid-September. Crush its leaves and experience the unique spicy aroma. Sassafras roots are renown for making delicious tea and the tree provides the source flavoring of root beer.
“The red creeper was beginning to festoon the ruins, almost like a decorative covering…”
Sumacs often lace fencerows, roadsides, and railroad beds with decorative red autumn accents. There are four species of sumac that occur in Missouri; fragrant, winged, smooth, and staghorn (the latter was introduced from other states). These shrubby plants grow anywhere from glades, bluff tops, upland prairies and forests, to savannahs. Sumacs lure onlookers with clusters of bright red foliage in early autumn. Usually, sumacs drop their leaves before the climax of fall color in October.
The name sumac ultimately traces its roots back to a word from a dialect of ancient Aramaic meaning red.
“It grew with astonishing vigour … a red blanket creeping over banks and walls.”
Virginia creeper is a popular vine for covering fences, exterior walls, and trellises with its spectacular fall display of bright crimson and purple. Part of the grape family, Virginia creeper is a climbing vine; its roots can reach as much as 75 feet high.
In nature, we see Virginia creeper in varied habitats, including open and moist woods, fence rows, rocky wooded hillsides, ravines, and bluffs. The plant provides not only autumn beauty, but nutrition for a wide variety of wildlife. Virginia creeper fruits feed many birds, as well as deer, who also eat its stems. Squirrels feast on its bark in winter, and wild turkeys enjoy its tendrils. Numerous moth caterpillars are sustained by Virginia creeper leaves.
As this influx of red begins to invade Missouri’s landscape, there’s no need to fear. The visual impact may be evocative of Wells’ imaginary plant. This benevolent and beautiful invasion comes not from the stars, but from our own soil.