A blossom on an eggplant in my garden this summer.

Goldenrods are notoriously difficult to identify, but Solidago flexicaulis is easy to spot because of its zigzaged stem, which gives it the name Zigzag goldenrod. It has sharply toothed, egg-shaped leaves and short clusters of flowers.
It is a member of the Asteraceae family. 

Queen Anne’s Lace, Daucus carota, is a member of the Apiaceae family, which is also known as the Umbelliferae family, because of the shape of its inflorescences.
The tiny flowers are arranged in an umbel, which is a collection of flowers on stems originating from a single point, forming a slightly curved head of flowers. 

Harebell, Campanula rotundifolia, is a fairly rare plant, at least in Vermont. It is a member of the Campanulaceae family, the Bellflower family. They have a five-parted flower, meaning they have five petals and five sepals (the green leaf-like things you see below the petals of flowers). Members of the family produce milky latex when damaged.

Pilea pumila, or Clearweed, is a member of Urticaceae, the nettle family. It gets its name from its translucent, succulent stem. It is very similar to Wood Nettle, which has alternate leaves, while Clearweed has opposite leaves. Both have flowers that grow in the axis of the leaves. Wood Nettle, however, has stinging hairs, so don’t get them confused!

Old superstition stated that anyone who pulled out a mandrake root would die. Because of that, people would dig around the mandrake, tie a rope around it, and have a dog pull it out instead. 
This drawing is a from a copy of Dioscorides’ Materia Medica, an herbal written in the first century that was in use through the 1500’s. 

Club mosses are members of the family Lycopodiaceae and are not true mosses. They are spore-dispersing plants, which means they do not flower, but reproduce from the strobili shown in this picture.

Spotted Touch-me-nots, also called Jewelweed, are members of the Sapindaceae family (scientific name Impatiens capensis).

When submerged in water, the leaves become somewhat silver and shiny, thus the name Jewelweed. The name ‘touch-me-not’ comes from the plant’s projectile seeds that burst from the pods when touched.