Getting back into the groove (?)

As summer draws to a close, I find that I haven't taken very many pictures during this hot, humid, crazy season. I still have quite a backlog from springtime, though, so why not go with that?

This spring was heavy on the orchids for me, with many new species finding their way into my life and on the other end of my camera lens. Some were seen in Ohio, others in Michigan. And so we will turn our attention to northern Michigan where I encountered a number of "life" orchids.

I was delighted to be the person in our group who spotted this stunner blooming amid the leaf litter. It's Striped Coralroot, Corallorhiza striata. You will notice there's no green in this plant. That's because it doesn't produce chlorophyll and thus doesn't photosynthesize. I still don't understand all the mechanics behind plants that rely only on fungi in the leaf litter or the roots of other plants for their nourishment, but it's still fascinating, nonetheless.

Another stunning orchid encountered during my May trip to Michigan was this Ram's-head Lady's-slipper (also called Ram's-head Orchid), Cypripedium arietinum. This was an especially wonderful treat due to its rarity, and was surely a life plant for almost all in our group (including moi). The population of these orchids in the area where we found this specimen was small and fragile, so we had to watch our step to make sure to not damage any of the existing plants.

Perhaps more familiar, and certainly very common along our walks, was the Yellow Lady's-slipper, Cypripedium parviflorum. The huge flowers on these are sure crowd-pleasers. You could probably fit about 3 flowers from the Ram's-head Orchid into one of the Yellow Lady's-slippers.

My final plant for this post has an orchid-looking flower, but actually belongs to the milkwort family. It's dainty and bright, and is easily spotted even though it grows rather low to the ground. It's known by a number of common names such as Fringed Polygala, Fringed Milkwort, or Gaywings (scientific name is Polygala paucifolia).


For my next post, I'll share some orchids I've encountered a little closer to home.

Mother Nature airs her dirty laundry

I've never been one for pulling pranks on April Fool's Day, and I'm not about to start now. However, after looking at some wildflower photos I took today, I couldn't resist sharing a few images that are joke-worthy all on their own.

One flower that is prolifically in bloom right now is Dutchman's Breeches. Unfortunately, these pendulous pairs of pantaloons can be tricky to photograph. Being white flowers, any imperfections show up very easily, so getting a nice "clean" set of of breeches is somewhat of a challenge. Some fun can be had with the bad shots, though. Due to the way the flowers dangle on the stalk, it's easy to infer the notion of laundry hanging out on the line.


For example, the dingy pair hanging off to the right looks like it was soaked in tea or coffee for a while, and just wouldn't quite come clean. Those stubborn stains!

I call this the "poopy diaper" shot. Shouldn't take too much of a stretch of the imagination to figure out why.
I didn't come away with too many shots of this flower that I particularly liked, but here's one shot where someone got the bleach right and all the pants are clean:

Happy April! Get out there and smell the dirty diapers wildflowers!

Springtime beauty

Spring has sprung in my little corner of the world, and how! Reports from around the state confirm that most flowers and trees are at least 2 weeks ahead of schedule (in terms of bloom time) due to the ridiculously mild winter we've had and also the early warming trend we've seen so far this spring. Tonight we are under a freeze warning, though, so I'm not sure what our heavily flowered landscape will look like upon awakening in the morning.

Luckily I was able to get out on our property and some neighboring property over the weekend to get photos of just a few of the things that are in bloom. Enjoy!

Bluebells in my garden. This is the first year they have bloomed, even though I planted them 2 years ago.

Newly emerged Bluebell flower buds, kissed by a dew drop.

Bluets, a dainty but cheery flower.

How could you not be cheered by a flower that has a sunshine burst in the middle?

Bloodroot, which is normally just starting to bloom, is already starting to fade, with many plants already gone to fruit. This one is tattered and worn, but still beautiful.

When out looking at nature, you never know what you'll come across. Here, a pair of snail shells, the larger being about the size of a dime (if that), the tiny one being barely larger than a pin head. Always keep your eyes peeled for magical treasures!

Still life

I really think this wraps it up in terms of posts about my trip to West Virginia (I can't believe it's only been a month since we returned home - it seems like it was an eternity ago, somehow!). There are still some images I'd like to share though. I'll let them tell you the story of how lush and beautiful the hills of West Virginia are, and how magical they can be after it has just rained and everything is still dripping wet and bursting with life. Enjoy.

Fern getting ready to unfurl


Leaf of a Wild Ginger plant - perfect symmetry


The saddest-looking Squirrel Corn flower I've ever seen


That's a long way down for a snail...


Wild Geranium flower, in repose


An example of the diverse flora on one tiny swath of hillside


I kept my distance from here, thank you very much. A large arachnid lives within.


Fern Study, I


Fern Study, II


Almost in bloom...


... and in full flower
These images remind me of the cool, damp spring morning that it was when I took them, something that sounds positively delightful now that the weather is starting to heat up.

Violets of New River

I would venture to guess that violets are one of the more recognizable flowers in the world. I bet everyone reading this blog, if presented with an image of a flower of the genus Viola, would say, "That's a violet." In addition to a staggering number of wild species, there are many cultivated species, too, and avid gardeners may be familiar with a number of them (those cute little Johnny Jump Ups and basket upon basket of pansies at the garden center come quickly to my mind). While we might easily recognize them as a genus, being able to identify individual species takes a little more work - work to which I have not yet committed myself. However, with the help of field guides, the internet, and knowledgeable friends, I was able to identify and take photos of 5 different species of violets during my trip to the New River Birding and Nature Festival. I'm sure there were many more species that I walked right past without even noticing, but we'll blame that on the fact that I was watching birds!

Canadian Violet, Viola canadensis
There is no doubt that this is a very bold, showy violet. I was surprised to learn its identity, actually - I was expecting it to be something more exotic. I'm sure I have encountered it at some point in my life, but I was very much impressed when I saw several clumps of this species one day.

The Canada Violet is large, both in stature and the size of its bloom. The back of the flower's petals have a purplish hue to them. Go check out Dawn's blog for a photo of the flower from the back. Heck, just check out her blog for the heck of it. She's done a lot of serious birding over the last month that you might want to read about.

Marsh Blue Violet, Viola cucullata
I'm not keeping a list, but if I were, this would be a "life" flower for me, for sure.

The Marsh Blue Violet was sighted during our trip to Cranberry Glades. I plan to tell you all about the very special day we had there in my next post.

Halberd-leaved Violet, Viola hastata
Yet another life flower for me. A halberd is "a two-handed pole weapon that came to prominent use during the 14th and 15th centuries" (thanks, Wikipedia), and the flower is so named due to the supposed resemblance of the its leaves to the weapon. Another common name for it is Spear-leaved Violet

Unfortunately the flowers were just past their prime, so they weren't quite as showy as they probably had been just a few days prior.

Long-spurred Violet, Viola rostrata
Yet another species that was beyond its peak bloom and had begun to fade. I'm sad that I wasn't able to actually capture the spur coming off the back of the flower that gives it its name, but I wanted to share the few images I did get because I still think it's purdy.

You'll notice some very bold lines in the middle of the flower. Those are called nectar guides, and they are the equivalent of an airport runway all lit up, telling bugs and other pollinators where to go to get to the nectar that is housed within. Many flowers have nectar guides, not just violets.

Sweet White Violet, Viola blanda
This is my last specimen. Sweet White's are tiny, and would be dwarfed by the Canada Violet that headlined this post. I heard about another similar violet that was growing on the grounds of Opossum Creek Retreat called Macloskey's Violet, or Northern White Violet (Viola macloskeyi), but my sources tell me that Macloskey's Violet has a green stem, whereas the Sweet White has the pinkish stem that you see here.

As with the Long-spurred Violet pictured earlier, you will notice an ant up inside the flower, assisting with pollination duties. Makes me wonder if ants are a common, perhaps major, pollinator of violets?

Sit with me

Another springtime entry from the archives...


Ground Ivy
Cool breezes and lazy clouds. Sitting on a wooded hill, dog at my side, surrounded by Spring Beautys, listening to the first calls of the Brown Thrasher. Waiting... watching... found him! Soaking in the sun and the sounds - and the silence. Taking pictures of wildflowers, watching the Bluebirds visit a nest box, crossing the creek. Paddling in kayaks with my beloved, floating the lake. Watching a Kingfisher, then a Great Blue Heron. Spotting from afar Trillium blooming near the bank, coming closer to also discover Toad Lily mixed in. Beauty abounds all around. If only all days could be this perfect.

In search of the ephemeral

Crocus flowers in bloom
Spring is a season for celebration. It is a time of bursting forth after a long season of gray dormancy. Such bursting forth is noticeable in eye-catching flowers like crocuses, daffodils, tulips, and hyacinth. Also there are trees that catch our eye with their beautiful blooms and blossoms, like magnolia, cherry and redbud. We can also hear spring coming alive, as the peepers and toads sing their songs of love, birds serenade us, and maybe we'll even hear a group of bees as they work on pollinating a blooming fruit tree. Birds can be seen carrying nesting material. Gardens start getting cleaned up and lawnmowers start roaring.

All of these, such obvious signs of spring.

There are, however, flowers out there that are not so easy to spot; flowers that, although small and fleeting, are very much an important part of the early spring landscape. These are the spring ephemerals. Their bloom time is short, sometimes lasting only a few days, if that. They take advantage of the fact that the trees are not yet in bloom and soak up all energy of the sun that a still-open forest canopy offers. And finding them requires some effort. You will likely have to get your knees dirty if you want to really see them, as seeing them from a standing position often does not afford you the best view of their true beauty.

Going on expeditions with those who know where to look helps, too!

Leavenworthia uniflora - Michaux's Gladcress. Had the morning been sunny, the flowers themselves would have been showier, but we made do with seeing any portion of these Ohio rarities at all. At right is the basal rosette that we began to see everywhere once we found the first flower or two.

The very unique leaf of the Virginia Waterleaf plant.

Common Wood Rush

White Trillium flower, ready to bloom

Spicebush blooms

Field Pansy in a sea of Dead Nettle

Mouse-tail (Myosurus minimus) - an Ohio rarity
Driving around rural Adams County, our caravan stopped here and there, pulling off the road to poke around in a field, a nature preserve, a cemetery, and a seemingly nondescript patch of land that's actually a lovely little cedar prairie. Someone would shout out, "What are we looking for?" "Something that looks different!" would be the reply. Eventually, a sharp eye would latch on to the object of our searching. And then, on hands and knees, we would each get down and look at the specimen, often not much more than an inch tall. We would look around, trying to find yet a better, more beautiful, more fully bloomed specimen.

Little Whitlow-grass, in fruit (Draba brachycarpa) - another Ohio rarity. This is a flower that grows best in dry, sandy soils, and benefits from regular disturbance. This was one of our cemetery finds.

Pennywort (Obolaria virginica)

White Trout Lily and Yellow Forest Violet. The forest floor was literally covered with Trout Lilies in flower and in fruit.

Twinleaf (Jeffersonia diphylla)
Now here I am, several weeks after our excursion into small and rare mustards (officially known as The Annual Adams County Ohio Lilliputian Mustard Expedition and extensively written about at Ohio Birds and Biodiversity, Weedpicker's Journal, Red and the Peanut, Nature Remains, and Indy Parks Nature Blog), internalizing some new botanical vocabulary, and making sure to pay better attention to even the tiniest of flowers on my own property. The season of ephemerals has just about passed, but I will keep a better eye out in years to come.