[S1] After parties out hunting Bison had seen the first goldenrods on the western plains, they knew their corn was ripening back home. [S2] In early spring, shamans prayed and sang t the first Pasque Flower to encourage other plants to bloom. IS3] The passage of the seasons was marked as much by the blooming of wildflowers as by the journeys of the sun, moon, and stars. [s4] Many plain people scheduled their most sacred ceremony, the Sun Dance, during the Moon Ripening Cherries, when the mid summer heat sweetened the astringent chokecherry fruits and returned them from red to deep purple. (S5] When Wild Plums flowered, the Omaha knew it was time to plant their crops. IS6] Dozens of other plants were used medicinally or ceremonially.