The late English poet and artist Cicely Mary Barker referred to them as "wayside flowers."

Around here, many people simply call them "weeds." Other folks much prefer the term "wildflowers."

Whatever they are called, these plants, found growing along roadside, field, fence or untended patch of land anywhere, are undeniably lovely to look at, not to mention stubborn and hardy and sometimes invasive.

Putting aside any disdain or prejudice for the moment, take a good look and, as Barker suggests in her Flower Fairy books, "learn to see how pretty common things can be."