Blue vervain (Verbena hastata)
Tall perennial wildflower with opposite rough toothed leaves and thin flower stems containing numerous blue/purple flowers. Common to wet meadows, ditches, and the margins/shorelines of ponds and streams. Seeds mature inside the erect inflorescence and can remain on the stem until the first heavy snow brings the plant to the ground. Sparrows eat the seeds while they remain in the upright seed capsules, while juncos and cardinals eat the seeds after they have dispersed on the ground.
