Growing along the perimeter of the mucky basin between Blackwater and Great ponds in Provincetown is Spiraea alba, the white meadowsweet, a native shrub still in bloom this week though beginning to fade. The spires of five-petal flowers have been a welcome sight for pollinators — the midsummer blooms help bridge the gap between the bounty of spring and the late-season feast of asters and goldenrods. Unbranched stems reach up to four feet high on the robust specimen situated in full sun near the old observation deck off the Beech Forest trail; the pictured plant is growing on an opposite bank in the shade and has stems only half that length. Look for the spring azure butterfly enjoying the blooms — meadowsweet is a larval host plant for the species.
