This has been blooming in the sun in my yard in Massachusetts for the past two weeks. We've only lived here since last spring and since I didn't plant it, I'm guessing it's a perennial. What's intriguing is that the flower smells like it's been sprayed by a skunk. The leaves have no odor. Can anyone tell me what it is?
It looks like Cleome hassleriana, commonly known as spider flower.
Identifying characteristics are the compound leaves with seven leaflets, the long petioles (leaf stalks), the way that the individual flowers are held tightly furled around the flower head, and the long stamens visible on the older flowers lower down on the head.
It's an annual, and spreads easily, so you may end up with more of it next year if you don't remove the seed heads when they form (if they even will, this late in the year).
