ellen 
What a surprise to watch something you know you didn’t intentionally plant flower. This is my butterfly weed. I’ve admired butterfly weed at garden centers for their bright orange clusters, and now, I’ve got one! This past year I put to use some aged composted cow manure, and I believe this has been the source of my new plant. Hardy in zones 3-10, a member of the milkweed family, and as the name suggests, loved by butterflies. With a long tap root, butterfly weed is best started by seed, since the transplanting usually disturbs the root and the plant dies. It likes heat and poor soil, great for easy gardening! If you have a chance, plant some seed this fall (to give it a head start for the spring and it’s needed cold treatment).