#Chelone
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jwbfat16.bsky.social
If you REALLY want to keep those ladies happy in to the fall, snag some "turtle heads"

Continuous flowering for weeks, right through a couple frosts.
They are indigenous to about half of the US and are not invasive.

And best of all,
bumblebees fit right inside.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelone...
Chelone glabra - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
October 3, 2026 at 9:49 PM
ultimatefrizt.bsky.social
A bumblebee entering his space pod (Turtleheads/Chelone)
Turtleheads are a great native plant!
September 29, 2026 at 9:15 PM
bumblebeelandscape.bsky.social
This plant is the host to Maryland's state butterfly, the endangered Baltimore Checkerspot. They mostly live in the lower elevations of the MD panhandle these days, but the more people plant Chelone (and stop using pesticides), the more likely they are to spread!
toxicoradica.northsky.social toxicojendron radicans @toxicoradica.northsky.social · 7d
🌸 white turtlehead 🌿
Chelone glabra

despite the common name, is not actually related to turtles

#nativeplants #ecoregion71
a terminal flowerspike of large, tubular, bilabiate flowers, subtended by four green, lance-shaped leaf bracts. the flowers and buds in this spike have two green sepal-like bracts tucked up tight around their calyces, obscuring some of the actual sepals, which are sightly lighter green & oval. three flowers are in bloom: two facing away, one in best focus facing partially forward but mostly to the right. there is also a large bud nearly ready to open on the left. the corollas are mostly white, but at the tips they have patches of a deep purplish pink particularly on the inside surfaces. the upper lip is helmet-shaped and composed of two shallow lobes separated by a ridge running along the middle of the helmet and a small notch at the tip of the upper lip. the lower lip has three lobes: two lobes on the sides and an elevated, tongue-like lobe in the middle. long white hairs grow on the inner surface of the lower lip. looking directly into the face of a turtlehead flower. a twig has been used to press down on the tubular, bilabiate flower's lower lip, revealing the reproductive structures usually hidden within the tubular portion of the corolla. the lower lip has two lateral lobes as well as a slightly elevated middle lobe with more pronounced dark pink coloration. long white hairs grow on the inner surface of all three lobes on the lower lip. the helmet-like upper lip is mostly white, only turning pink at its tip. arching just below the upper lip from the back of the flower are four stamens and a single style. two stamens on each side curve like ribs towards the tip of the upper lip. their thick white filaments have dense hairs by the base, but turn smooth further up. the anthers are covered in white fuzzy hairs. the smooth white style runs up the middle, along the top ridge formed where the two upper lobes meet. the stigma barely pokes out above the fuzzy anthers, and is difficult to discern. turtlehead flowers face left & right in the background. white turtlehead growing at the edge and indeed within a shallow creek running on shale bedrock. short, flat shale and chert rocks sit loose in the water, nowhere near inundation. brown, freshly fallen tree leaves float on the creek or are trapped on the rocks. a fallen tree trunk runs across the photo left to right just behind the prone stem of the turtlehead. the stem would likely stand over waist high if it were upright instead of running just above & frequently resting on slight prominences in the bedrock. the turtlehead's leaves are large, green, and lance-shaped, occuring alternate & at intervals along the stem. the stems of flowerspikes branch by the leaf nodes. half a dozen spikes of large, tubular flowers can be seen in this photo, though some are largely hidden behind leaves. the flowers are mostly white but turn pink at their tips. angled slightly ascending from the spike, their helmet-like upper lips and tongue-like lower lips seem to resemble the outstretched head of a turtle. up to around four or five flowers are blooming from each spike.
September 29, 2026 at 6:30 PM
toxicoradica.northsky.social
🌸 white turtlehead 🌿
Chelone glabra

despite the common name, is not actually related to turtles

#nativeplants #ecoregion71
a terminal flowerspike of large, tubular, bilabiate flowers, subtended by four green, lance-shaped leaf bracts. the flowers and buds in this spike have two green sepal-like bracts tucked up tight around their calyces, obscuring some of the actual sepals, which are sightly lighter green & oval. three flowers are in bloom: two facing away, one in best focus facing partially forward but mostly to the right. there is also a large bud nearly ready to open on the left. the corollas are mostly white, but at the tips they have patches of a deep purplish pink particularly on the inside surfaces. the upper lip is helmet-shaped and composed of two shallow lobes separated by a ridge running along the middle of the helmet and a small notch at the tip of the upper lip. the lower lip has three lobes: two lobes on the sides and an elevated, tongue-like lobe in the middle. long white hairs grow on the inner surface of the lower lip. looking directly into the face of a turtlehead flower. a twig has been used to press down on the tubular, bilabiate flower's lower lip, revealing the reproductive structures usually hidden within the tubular portion of the corolla. the lower lip has two lateral lobes as well as a slightly elevated middle lobe with more pronounced dark pink coloration. long white hairs grow on the inner surface of all three lobes on the lower lip. the helmet-like upper lip is mostly white, only turning pink at its tip. arching just below the upper lip from the back of the flower are four stamens and a single style. two stamens on each side curve like ribs towards the tip of the upper lip. their thick white filaments have dense hairs by the base, but turn smooth further up. the anthers are covered in white fuzzy hairs. the smooth white style runs up the middle, along the top ridge formed where the two upper lobes meet. the stigma barely pokes out above the fuzzy anthers, and is difficult to discern. turtlehead flowers face left & right in the background. white turtlehead growing at the edge and indeed within a shallow creek running on shale bedrock. short, flat shale and chert rocks sit loose in the water, nowhere near inundation. brown, freshly fallen tree leaves float on the creek or are trapped on the rocks. a fallen tree trunk runs across the photo left to right just behind the prone stem of the turtlehead. the stem would likely stand over waist high if it were upright instead of running just above & frequently resting on slight prominences in the bedrock. the turtlehead's leaves are large, green, and lance-shaped, occuring alternate & at intervals along the stem. the stems of flowerspikes branch by the leaf nodes. half a dozen spikes of large, tubular flowers can be seen in this photo, though some are largely hidden behind leaves. the flowers are mostly white but turn pink at their tips. angled slightly ascending from the spike, their helmet-like upper lips and tongue-like lower lips seem to resemble the outstretched head of a turtle. up to around four or five flowers are blooming from each spike.
September 29, 2026 at 1:19 AM
mary-walcott.bsky.social
Your daily dose of botanical drawings by Mary Vaux Walcott.

Turtlehead (Chelone glabra), 1926

17.8 × 25.4 cm

#woman #artist #plants #walcott #botany
Turtlehead (Chelone glabra) by Mary Vaux Walcott, 1926
September 28, 2026 at 10:06 AM
ianpaulsieren.bsky.social
Red Turtlehead (Chelone obliqua)
#Summer #flowers #bloomscrolling
September 20, 2026 at 6:26 PM
edinacoyote.bsky.social
Make way, boys of summer. It's time for the queens of autumn to take the stage.
A tall sedum with blue-green foliage and a large cluster of star-shaped, pale pink blooms (possibly Hylotelephium spectabile 'Crystal Pink'). A closeup of a hot pink bloom on a turtlehead plant (likely Chelone lyonii 'Hot Lips'). A bee perches on a tall sedum's cluster of tiny, white, star-shaped flowers (possibly Hylotelephium spectabile 'Stardust'). Closeup of a cluster of lavender-blue blooms on a smooth blue aster.
September 16, 2026 at 11:31 PM
ladivine.bsky.social
Les drôles de petites fleurs de la chélone, petites beautés de septembre.
September 15, 2026 at 8:07 PM
stefanhageman.bsky.social
Verder nog Chelone obliqua, Mahonia 'Soft Caress', Impatiens bicolor en Strobilanthes penstemonoides #tuinieren
September 15, 2026 at 4:16 PM
lpconservancy.bsky.social
🪴It's wildflower Friday! This week's wildflower is the White Turtlehead or Chelone glabra. Here are some fun facts:
📏The White Turtlehead can grow up to four feet tall!
🗺️The flowers are native to Eastern and Central North America.

📷Photo credits: abyssal & christopher-g-harris from iNaturalist
September 11, 2026 at 2:01 PM
dereklowe.bsky.social
The turtlehead flowers (Chelone) are good enough to offer the bees a pull-through pickup lane for pollen.
September 9, 2026 at 9:37 PM
nurgeist.bsky.social
White turtlehead (Chelone glabra), still finding new things in the forest.
White flowers blushing pink in a small mossy area. I hope you are well. I have been in the woods a bit.
September 8, 2026 at 12:31 AM
ganativeplants.bsky.social
It’s a larval host plant for the Baltimore Checkerspot butterfly. It’s also very popular with bees. You can occasionally find it for sale at native plant sales that offer unusual perennials. The one in this photograph is Chelone glabra, usually white but sometimes with a little pink blush. (2/2)
September 7, 2026 at 10:00 AM
ganativeplants.bsky.social
The turtleheads (Chelone spp.) are blooming now and the pink ones always seem to be first. Turtleheads are native perennials that love moisture. In the wild you might find it in rich woodlands that open up to a bit of sun; you might even find it on the edges of streams and seeps. (1/2)
White flower with dark green leaves in front of blurred yellow flowers.
September 7, 2026 at 10:00 AM
horticulturalart.bsky.social
66966.01 Chelone lyonii
September 5, 2026 at 12:15 AM
es-yoasobi.bsky.social
Aroma Chelone（アロマケローネ）は、葛西駅から徒歩3分のところにあるリラックスできるメンズエステです。落ち着いた個室で、経験豊富なセラピストが心地よいひとときを提供してくれます。新規のお客様や新人セラピストの施術を受けると、30

#メンズエステ #リラクゼーション #東京 #葛西・江戸川
🔗 詳細・予約はこちら
Aroma Chelone（アロマケローネ） Aroma Chelone（アロマケローネ） Aroma Chelone（アロマケローネ） Aroma Chelone（アロマケローネ）
September 2, 2026 at 12:06 PM
ianpaulsieren.bsky.social
Red Turtlehead (Chelone obliqua)
#Summer #flowers #bloomscrolling
August 30, 2026 at 9:15 AM
cattybog.bsky.social
m m m my chelone
a pink turtlehead/chelone flower growing in the weeds and dried black eyed susans a pink turtlehead/chelone flower growing in the weeds and dried black eyed susans
August 29, 2026 at 10:35 PM
chanceofrain.bsky.social
Today in Baltimore. A late summer seasonal wonder. A bee working turtlehead #nativegardening #gardening
A bee emerges from inside the pink flower of Chelone glabra, or turtlehead, a late-blooming Eastern US native perennial wildflower
August 28, 2026 at 11:55 PM
horticulturalart.bsky.social
66968.02 Chelone lyonii
August 27, 2026 at 11:27 PM
housedigest.bsky.social
Turtleheads (Chelone spp.) are shade-tolerant plants that require moist soil. Turtlehead blooms in white, pink, or lavender appear from July to October.
The Late-Blooming Perennial That Enjoys Shade And Moisture As Much As Hostas And Astilbes - House Digest
www.housedigest.com
August 27, 2026 at 2:58 PM
housedigest.bsky.social
Turtleheads (Chelone spp.) are shade-tolerant plants that require moist soil. Turtlehead blooms in white, pink, or lavender appear from July to October.
The Late-Blooming Perennial That Enjoys Shade And Moisture As Much As Hostas And Astilbes - House Digest
www.housedigest.com
August 26, 2026 at 2:24 PM
grammalou.bsky.social
2/2
northernwoodlands.org/outside_stor...
Turtlehead Tests Bumblebees’ Mettle by Colby Galliher
Among the blooming perennials of late summer is one that guards its secrets closely. The lockbox blossoms of white turtlehead (Chelone glabra), a…
northernwoodlands.org
August 24, 2026 at 10:49 PM
geoffwisner.bsky.social
Chelone glabra [turtlehead]. I have seen the small mulleins as big as a ninepence in the fields for a day or two. [Photo Prairie Moon Nursery]
August 24, 2026 at 10:16 AM
moodogpress.com
"...derives from the Greek word for tortoise and references a story in Greek mythology: The nymph Chelone refused to attend the marriage of Zeus and Hera. Zeus tossed her and her house into a river and transformed her into a tortoise, destined to always carry her house on her back."

#etymology
WHAT'S BLOOMING
mailchi.mp
August 21, 2026 at 3:30 PM