Native Rhododendron in Bloom

A quick post to let you all know that the native rhododendron, Rhododendron maximum is now blooming. This is just the beginning stages of the blooming season here in Ohio, so the next few weeks should provide good viewing. The best shrub now in bloom is located along the exit drive between the parking area and the road. TS

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood...

A beautiful day with some beautiful new flowers in bloom. Here is this week's list:

Sundrops
Smooth Penstemon
Purple Meadow Rue
White Clover
Wahoo (native)
Ghost Pipe
Orange Butterflyweed
Elderberry
Silky Dogwood
Smartweed
Honewort
Enchanter's Nightshade

Hiding in Plain Sight

Can you see the fawn? 

See it now?

During the first few weeks of life, a fawn uses its ability to be still and hide to avoid predators. Its heart rate and breathing will even slow down when someone or something comes too close. The mother deer is nearby, browsing on lots of different plants in the woods. These fawns may look abandoned, but be sure they are not. During the first few days after birth a fawn has no scent! Just another way to outsmart others who may want to eat you! In addition, the white spots on the fawn's coat help to break up the deer's shape and keep it camouflaged in the dappled shade of the forest. 

Here is the latest "In Bloom" list:

Moneywort

Mt. Laurel

Stonecrop (cultivated)

Green Dragon

Wild Columbine

Venus's Looking-glass
Deptford Pink

Flower Mania

That's what spring always is. Just a race to try and enjoy the spring wildflowers before they fade. As we progress into summer, things become a little longer lasting and we don't have to hurry as much to see our favorite blooms. We are also entering the time when we have many kinds of flowering shrubs in bloom. These are nice too - they tend to be closer to your face so you don't have to bend down as much!

Next week we will see our last school group for the spring season. I am hopeful that with some more time freed up I will be able to provide you with a post that has a little more "meat" to it. So stay tuned.

To conclude this week's post here is the new list of flowers and a few pics to go with. Have a safe and enjoyable holiday weekend!

Yellow Iris
Blue-eyed grass
Mock Orange
Multiflora Rose
Rhododendron (cultivated)
Day Lily
Hawkweed spp.
Cynthia
Rattlesnake Weed
Twayblade Orchid
Shasta Daisy
Spiderwort
Foxglove (cultivated)
American Holly
Arrowwood Viburnum
Black Raspberry
Blackberry
Hop Tree
Sweet Scented Waterlily

Yellow Iris

Ohio Spiderwort

Hawkweed

Flower Eye Candy

We are going to continue with our list and pictures theme this week. Here is the list:

Highbush Cranberry (cultivated)
Star of Bethlehem
Indian Cucumber Root
Canada Mayflower
Common Cinquefoil
Dewberry
Sweetflag
Solomon's Plume
Wild Comfrey
Yellow Iris
Maple-leaved Viburnum


First up in our picture line-up is Pink Lady's Slipper, in case you haven't been able to see one in person yet.

Showy Orchis is still in bloom, along with Puttyroot. Pictured below is the former. Both are small, but really pretty.

 Next up is a lovely little flower that reminds me of a pale blue winter sky. Borne atop a tall stalk which emerges from large, fleshy, and seriously hairy leaves is Wild Comfrey. 

Growing in the wet meadow at the beginning of the boardwalk is a cool plant called Sweetflag. The leaves are long and might remind you of cattail or iris leaves. In the first picture, the yellow colored spiky thing is where the flowers are. In the second picture, you can see the individual flowers.

Moving back into the woods, here is Common Cinquefoil. Often confused with indian strawberry, cinquefoil has 5 leaves, indian strawberry has 3.

Our first Rubus to bloom is Dewberry. Rubus is the genus to which things like raspberry and blackberry belong to. Dewberry doesn't have the long, arching canes like raspberry or blackberry.  Instead, this guy trails along the ground making weak attempts at growing up onto other plants.

This next guy is so very small. Canada Mayflower or Wild Lily-of-the-Valley grows in patches of mostly non-flowering plants. Those few that do bloom, send up a second tier of one leaf and then the flowers. Otherwise, this plant is just a single, glossy green leaf growing out of the forest floor.

Here is a close-up of Aniseroot. It's close cousin, Sweet Cicely looks pretty much the same.  A couple of subtle differences can help you tell them apart. The easiest way is to look at the stem. Aniseroot has a smooth stem while Sweet Cicely has a hairy stem. 

This little forest of star shaped plants is Indian Cucumber Root. Can you guess what the root might be like? This one is often like the Canada Mayflower in that there can be many plants in the area but very few with flowers. It also sends up a second tier of leaves when there is going to be a blossom. The second picture shows a close up of the very unusual looking bloom.

Coming into bloom a little later that its cousin Solomon's Seal, is Solomon's Plume. Often referred to in field guides as False Solomon's Seal, we like the "Plume" name better. It certainly is more descriptive of how the plant looks when in flower. Once again the second photo shows the flowers up close.

Lastly, here is a possible remnant from Carmen. Japanese Primrose pops out at you along the shelter trail. Not invasive, but definitely looks out of place back in the woods!

Azaleas and Orchids 2013

Hey gang, the Flame Azaleas are in bloom! They are looking gorgeous as usual and nice and orange-y.

Also, I have an orchid update for you. Sadly, there will be no Pink Lady Slipper blooms for your viewing pleasure this year. I know, it is disappointing  This just seems to be a resting year for all of our populations. Clear Creek is probably the closest place that also has these guys. On a happier note, a flower stalk has arisen from the Puttyroot leaf that was mentioned in the winter orchids post. It is in bloom now. Yes, a little early perhaps, but that's okay because it will make up for (sort of) the lack of PLS blooms. There should still be Showy Orchis in bloom (it's Wed. morning so I haven't checked on it for this week yet) and we will look forward to the next native orchid to bloom which will be Twayblade.

Keep an eye out for the next "in bloom" list!

May Flowers

Here is this week's list of new flowers in bloom along with a few pics - enjoy!

Dwarf Crested Iris

Mountain Azalea R. roseum

Cultivated Pink Azalea

Blackhaw

Cleavers

Sweet Cicely

Anise Root

Japanese Primrose

Squawroot

Bugle or Aguga is a non native garden plant that belongs to the mint family. These purple flowers seem to attract butterflies and hummingbird moths, so we don't mow them down until they are done blooming.

Creeping Phlox is named for the foliage which creates a blanket of leaves along the ground. A taller flower stalk will shoot up with the blossoms at the top.

Visitors often ask us about the weird pine cone looking things they saw in the woods. Well, it's actually a native wildflower! It is called Squawroot. In the photo above, there are a few of the flowers in bloom. They are the white parts of the plant. Notice anything different about this plant? Yep, it doesn't have any green parts to it! This flower cannot make its own food so it is parasitic on the roots of oak trees.

Our official state tree is the Ohio Buckeye. We don't have any here, but we do have lots of Yellow Buckeye. Here is an up close look at the flowers. They seem sort of reminiscent of snap dragon flowers, yes?

Dwarf Crested Iris is in bloom now. Individual flowers don't bloom for very long, but they sure are nice while they last!

Finally, lots of butterflies are our and about now, including the Harvester butterfly. The larval form (i.e. caterpillar) of this particular species does not eat plants like most other caterpillars. It eats aphids!