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Golden Alexanders
A favorite of mine, late May trailside. Golden Alexanders (Zizia aurea). The color might be the catch for me. Or perhaps it’s the tiny flowers arranged in flat-topped umbels. A short-lived herbaceous perennial that enjoys moist soil, and full sun to part shade. I tried once, long ago to add it to one of my…
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Purple-flowered Raspberry
I had no idea such a thing existed. A raspberry bush with such pretty flowers. Raspberry blossoms of a bright magenta rather than white. Being up on Skyline Drive at just the right time, during bloom time revealed this unusual plant to me. Purple-flowered Raspberry (Rubus odoratus). Since it was growing in Shenandoah National Park,…
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White Turtlehead
I’ve only ever seen the caterpillar of the Baltimore Checkerspot (Euphydryas phaeton). Never the adult. That one sighting was an hour from my cabin at Buck Hollow in Shenandoah National Park. Since that brief observation I’ve learned that the main larval host plant of the beautiful Baltimore Checkerspot is White Turtlehead (Chelone glabra). I’ve learned…
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Christmas Fern
A tough fern often spotted on the trails up here in the mountains. Christmas Fern (Polystichum acrostichoides), one of the most common ferns in eastern North America which is its native range. These are called crosiers, or more commonly, fiddleheads. In them I see movement, dance, music. Certainly grace and beauty. I love it in…