The Ridge Historical Society
Little Blue Flowers – An Annual Event
By Carol Flynn
This topic is posted every spring because the subject always comes up.
Springtime is here on the Ridge, and many lawns are covered with a little blue flower. This is Siberian squill (Scilla sibirica), which is not native to the USA but was introduced by European settlers.
This flowering plant is mentioned in many horticulture materials from the 1870s and on, although surely it was in the "New World" long before that. Siberian squill was commonly recommended for and used in gardens by that time. It is a bulbous perennial that spreads underground and is very hardy, withstanding freezing cold winters. This plant is not native to Siberia, however, but it does come from the Caucasus area.
Siberian squill is an invasive species that can replace native wildflowers, but the good news is that bees love this plant. The bees are just coming out of their winter phase and will be looking for food sources. Siberian squill, clover, and dandelions are all early plants that offer food for the bees.
There’s no way to tell when the first Siberian squill bulb was introduced on the Ridge. Some of the fine houses in the community date back to the 1870s, and they likely used the plant in landscaping and gardens.
There is a beautiful display of Siberian squill on an oak-wooded lot at the northwest corner of 99th Street and Longwood Drive that reminds everyone just how lucky the folks in the Ridge communities are to have the abundance of “nature” we have here. (Photo by C. Flynn.)