Let’s Change the Indiana State Flower!
Look Who’s Supporting Our Effort
Photo by Gillian Harris
We now have 46 active partners, and the number of organizations grows weekly!
- ACRES Land Trust
- Amos Butler Audubon
- Blue Heron Ministries
- Boone County Invasives Cooperative
- Carmel Green Initiative
- Central Indiana Land Trust
- Environmental Education Association of Indiana (EEAI)
- Evansville’s Mesker Park Zoo & Botanical Gardens
- Friends of the Sands
- Friends of the White River
- Hartman Arboretum
- Hendrick’s County Invasives Management Cooperative
- Hoosier Environmental Council
- Hoosier Herpetological Society
- Indiana Academy of Science, Biodiversity & Natural Areas Committee
- Indiana Association of Soil and Water Districts
- Indiana Audubon Society
- Indiana Chapter American Society of Landscape Architects
- Indiana Friends Committee on Legislation
- Indianapolis Garden Club
- Indiana Land Protection Alliance
- Indiana Park and Recreation Association
- Indiana Parks Alliance
- Indiana Wildlife Federation
- Indianapolis Zoo
- Izaak Walton League of America, Indiana Division
- Keep Indianapolis Beautiful
- Little River Wetlands
- Monroe County-Identify and Reduce Invasive Species
- Mud Creek Conservancy
- Newfields
- NICHES Land Trust
- Parks Foundation of Hendricks County
- Red Tail Land Conservancy
- Save the Dunes
- Shirley Heinze Land Trust
- South Bend-Elkhart Bird Alliance
- State of Indiana Cooperative Invasives Management
- Sycamore Land Trust
- The Nature Conservancy
- Tri-State Creation Care of Evansville
- Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve
- Westfield Green Together
- White River Alliance
- Wild Ones Gibson Woods
- Wild Ones South Bend
It’s High Time!
Webster’s Dictionary defines an emblem as “a symbolic object or image that represents something else, such as a nation, an idea, or a group.” Indiana has 15 official state emblems, almost all of which have some obvious connection to Indiana. The one exception is the officially designated state flower of Indiana, the peony.
Although the peony is a beautiful perennial flower, it does not occur naturally in Indiana and has no true natural or historical significance to the state. There is no logical reason that it should be officially recognized as the state flower of Indiana.
Twenty-four years ago, in the 2001 legislative session, a bill was introduced to designate the fire pink as the official state flower, replacing the peony. Unfortunately, the bill did not receive a hearing, and the initiative was eventually dropped.
The Indiana Native Plant Society and partner conservation groups believe that it is long overdue for the state to adopt a flower native to Indiana as the state flower.
INPS Is Leading the Way
Early this year we established a project team to look at potential state flower candidates. We knew this would be a difficult call, as Indiana boasts so many excellent choices for this honor. The plan was to include the selected flower in a bill to be developed and presented to the state legislature for potential passage.
With Tom Hohman at the helm, the team developed specific criteria to judge which plants could be considered for the state flower and picked eight candidates. They solicited feedback from other conservation organizations and the short list was pared down to five plants. They then invited the entire membership of the Indiana Native Plant Society to vote on which of the five candidates best represents Indiana.
Photo by Das Siddharth
The People’s Choice: Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa)
Butterfly milkweed was the clear winner, and the comments members added with their votes reveal why:
- Showy, vibrant, blossoms are abundant, increases in size each year, wind spreads seed and new plants pop up each year.
- Butterfly milkweed is of such special value to invertebrates. Also, it has the visual “bling factor” that might help attract politicians to adopting it.
- Indiana is the way station for the monarch butterfly which adds to the interest of this particular flower.
- The monarch/butterfly weed connection will make excellent programs for schools, parks, nature centers.
- Great native prairie plant and beautiful unique color!
- I like that the name has “weed” because people need to understand many “weeds” are really beautiful native flowers.
- I love the strong color that can be seen across the distance. Butterflies are often on the blooms. Hardy. Simple. Common. Easy to grow from seed.
- It’s that orange…!
Next Steps
Photo by Athena Goulet
With the votes counted and the winner selected, the INPS project team and collaborators will now enlist legislators to be sponsors of a bill to be developed and presented to the state legislature for potential passage.
If you can suggest sponsors or wish to participate in the project, please contact Tom Hohman at stateflower@indiananativeplants.org. The Indiana Native Plant Society is committed to following through with this initiative, and your participation will help propel us to success.
In the News…