Tenacity
Tenacity is not the same as tennis city or tin acidity. It’s whether or not you’re gonna make it happen regardless of resources or recognition, when you want it done and you keep at it and it might not be easy. I haven’t been there, but I read there’s a moss that grows 3.8 miles above sea level on Mount Everest. Let’s go – where are my mukluks? Plants can get it done, and they don’t ask for much, even at Carroll County altitudes. Respect is in order.
For example, Kenilworth ivy (aka ivy-leaved toadflax) has long, skinny roots perfect for living in cracks on rocks which is its niche in nature. If allowed to live long enough, it will produce a purple flower some pollinators appreciate, but the point is it grows where there ought not be soil or sustenance.
Once sprouted, the stem initially follows sunlight, but once seeds begin to develop, it searches for dark crevices which are more desirable for sprouting seeds. For sprouting to occur, dust or grit somehow finds its way into a crevice, probably absorbs moisture and, at some point, along comes a toadflax seed. This is an example of the serendipitous nature of nature, and the kicker is toadflax seeds might remain viable and unnoticed for a tenacious ten years. That’s impressive, and you also have to appreciate the word toadflax.
Toadflax, toadflax, toadflax.
Also, every day I encounter a cutie-pie plant with two periwinkle-tinted flowers growing between stones of a walkway. My phone told me it’s a Drummond’s Aster and Uncle Google seems to agree. It would be in danger of being stepped on except for its sex appeal. Leaves gather there, so eventually organic matter filters into the crack for sustenance.
If it ever rains again, there will be moisture in the crack also, but how did the seed get there? One source stated Drummond’s Asters are rare in the Ozarks, but here it is, an example of aster tenacity. Good news is they bloom in mid-autumn when other flowers are fading, so pollinators have something to nibble on. Aster seeds last only a couple years, but one of them found that gap between stones, sprouted and flowered which means it might even spread more seeds (if I don’t step on it).
Near the aster are stone steps with a burdock growing there. Burdock is on the noxious plant list in South Dakota, Wyoming and Colorado because it is adaptable and apparently aggressive, but this is not the same as tenacity. It is tenacious because, like the aster, it is growing in a tiny crack and doing well. This might be its second year in that spot, but I don’t remember it flowering, but others in town did.
Reports claim a burdock flower can produce 15,000 seeds. Because of rumors and misinformation challenging the seed count (were some of them dead seeds or seeds from another mother?), we hand counted the seeds from a burdock flowers and came up with 14,947. Each person gets to choose what to believe, and how much simpler it would be if we all had more smiles and fewer beliefs.
Purple cliffbrake (Pillaea atropurpurea if you were wondering) grows on the rock walls of downtown Eureka Springs. Its favorite environment is cracks in limestone cliffs. The word “brake” in its name is an ancient reference to ferns. It’s not uncommon to see ferns growing in the sparsest conditions. I saw ferns growing on the lava flow from Mauna Loa at the south end of Hawai’i, and that’s tenacity. So, if you want to improve your ferns, mulch with lava.
So, let’s show respect where it’s due. To borrow a paraphrase from the Community of Plant Life Everywhere, “If you’re ever on the street sometime, and you spot us growing in the sidewalk crack, pause your step and calmly stare, show you care, say hello down there, hello.”