Wild Petunia (Ruellia humilis)

Wild Petunia has attractive flowers that attract long-tongued bees, short-tongued bees, and leaf-cutting bees. The light purple color and funnel-like form of the diurnal flowers suggest that they may be visited by day-flying Sphinx moths and Hummingbird moths (illinoiswildflower.info). It is also the host plant for the Common Buckeye. It is a tough, adaptable plant that blooms throughout the hottest, driest times of the summer. It can be somewhat vigorous in the right place, so it performs well as a ground cover. When mature, the seeds literally explode from the plant and can supposedly travel upwards of 10 feet! Wild Petunia is considered threatened in Michigan (mnfi.anr.msu.edu).

Photo credit: Peganum (1), John Blair (2)