Color Challenge: Sunday Purple -- Daisy Fleabane

I've not done a Color Challenge before, but looking at all the summer and fall colors converging around me here in Appalachia, I see so many opportunities to not only hit the Color Challenge points, but talk about the local flora (and some fauna) that fascinates me to no end. I've posted about some of the edibles and medicinal plants I've found growing on my property due to my failure to mow the grass this year. I didn't talk about daisy fleabane, though. Then, when considering "Sunday Purple," I though this would be a great opportunity to feature it.

"Fleabane" gets its name from an ancient belief that sprigs of this plant scattered in a home would repel fleas and other biting insects. But it is not a true "bane," belonging instead to the daisy family. True banes are typically toxic through through ingestion and sometimes even with contact, like wolfsbane.

Leaves of daisy fleabane can been cooked and eaten. They do have some medicinal benefits for the neurological system, as well as contain powerful antioxidants.

Fleabanes can be various colors, ranging from white to purple to orange to indigo. The varieties growing in my yard are mostly a pale lavender color, although I do have several white plants as well. Near the creek, where this photo was taken, the hues seem to be a bit deeper, while on the hillside, the lavender is very pale. White fleabanes just seem to grow wherever they choose.