Partial Plant List for Horseshoe Cove at Sandy Hook

White Campion, June and September

This is an initial list of plants at Horseshoe Cove, Sandy Hook NJ.

These pictures – and over 6 million observations worldwide - have been geolocated and posted at iNaturalist.org. You can zoom-in to Horseshoe Cove to see a map of icons representing groups of species, like plants, birds, fish, shells, etc.

All the plant names in this post are linked to a great website for identifying plants in maritime habitats like Sandy Hook, “Cape May Plants – An Identification Guide” by CapeMayWildlife.

TREES/SHRUBS

Autumn Olive, Hackberry (winter), Groundsel

Autumn Olive (Elaeagnus umbellata)

Eastern Redcedar (Juniperus virginiana) Pictures at previous blog A Dune Garden at Sandy Hook .

Common Hackberry (Celtis occidentalis)

Groundsel Tree (Baccharis halimifolia)

Marsh Elder (Iva frutescens) Picture below.

Northern Bayberry (Morella pensylvanica) Pictures at previous blog A Dune Garden at Sandy Hook .

GRASS

Salt Marsh Cord Grass, Marsh Elder, Salt-meadow Cord-grass at HSC

Salt Marsh Cord Grass (Spartina alterniflora)

Salt-meadow Cord-grass (Spartina patens)

Bitter panic grass, Little bluestem, Purpletop

Bitter Panic-grass (Panicum amarum var. amarulum)

Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) Pictures at previous blog A Dune Garden at Sandy Hook .

Purpletop (Tridens flavus)

IVY

Poison ivy, honeysuckle, fuzzy-bean

Eastern Poison-ivy (Toxicodendron radicans)

Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)

Trailing fuzzy-bean (Strophostyles helvola)

FLOWERS

White

5 petals

Soapwort. Multiflora rose (fruit only) in April, and May flowers

Common soapwort (Saponaria officinalis) (also pink)

Multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora)

White campion (Silene latifolia) Picture at the beginning of this post.

Many-flowered Heads

Queen Ann's lace, pepperweed, sweetclover

Queen Anne's lace (Daucus carota)

Virginia pepperweed (Lepidium virginicum)

White sweetclover (Melilotus albus)

Yellow

4 Petals

Common Evening-Primrose (Oenothera biennis) Pictures in a previous blog, A Dune Garden at Sandy Hook .

Great mullein (before flowered stalk), Land cress, Black medick

5 Petals

Great mullein (Verbascum thapsus)

Many-flowered Heads

Black medick (Medicago lupulina)

Land cress (Barbarea verna)

Seaside Goldenrod (Solidago sempervirens) Pictures in a previous blog, A Dune Garden at Sandy Hook .

More Than 6 Petals

Eastern Prickly-pear (Opuntia humifusa) Pictures in a previous blog, A Dune Garden at Sandy Hook .

Red/Pink

5 Petals

Stork's-bill and Herb Robert

Common stork's-bill (Erodium cicutarium)

Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum)

Rugosa (flowers & unripened fruit, June), Swamp Rose (fruit only, Apr), & Sp. Knapweed (June)

Rugosa rose (Rosa rugosa) (also white)

Swamp rose (Rosa palustris)

Many-flowered Heads

Spotted knapweed (Centaurea stoebe)

Purple

Alfalfa (without flower), Scorpion Grass

Many-flowered Heads

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa)

Blue

5 Petals

Blue scorpion grass (Myosotis stricta)

Green

Mugwort (Aug.), Dock (Sept.), wild garlic (with flower, June)

Many-flowered Heads

Common mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris)

Curled Dock (Rumex crispus)

Wild garlic (Allium vineale)

The Amaranths and related species with green flowers at Horseshoe Cove (and Plum Island) are discussed in a previous blog, Salt Marsh Scrub At Sandy Hook NJ .

Followup

Common names vary, so use the Latin scientific name to Google more images.

NY-NJ-CT Botany Online has biota lists for many of the parks in our area, including a plant list for Sandy Hook.