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Southern Appalachian Low Mountain Seepage Fen Spring 2026 (RBWM) |
All Text & Images: Copyright (2026) |
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Southern Appalachian Low Mountain Seepage Fen Spring 2026 (RBWM) |
All Text & Images: Copyright (2026) |
| 1 - Late May, 2026: Along with Rich Reaves and Hal Massie, I co-led a couple of GA BotSoc field trips over the Memorial Day weekend. The Saturday trip was to this TNC-owned seepage fen. I scouted the site a fews days earlier; most of these images are from the scouting visit. |
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| Green Pitcher Plants (Sarracenia oreophila) |
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| This TNC site typically gets burned every other year. 2025's burn was not effective at reducing woodies, so it was burned for a second consecutive year in early 2026. The Pitcher Plants, for one, seemed to thrive from it. |
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| Green Pitcher Plants |
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| (Sarracenia oreophila) |
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| Green Pitcher Plant flowers |
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| White Colic Root (Aletris farinosa) |
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| Ten-angled Pipewort, aka Hatpins (Eriocaulon decangulare) |
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| Ten-angled Pipewort (Eriocaulon decangulare) |
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| Narrow-leaf Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium angustifolium) |
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| Bog White Violet (Viola lanceolata) |
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| Blue Toadflax (Linaria canadensis) |
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| Creeping Eryngo (Eryngium prostratum) These flowers are TINY! |
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| A Sedge (Carex species) |
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| Helmet Skullcap (Scutellaria integrifolia) |
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| Large Red Clover (Trifolium sp.) |
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| Hop Trefoil, or Low Hop Clover (Trifolium campestre) With a tiny spider and web underneath... |
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| 2 - Early June, 2026: I visited to monitor an uncommon orchid, and the species exhibited typical orchid behavior. We found only one Ragged Fringed Orchid (Platanthera lacera). In prior years I have found anywhere from 1 to 25 here; you never know from one year to the next how many you'll see. |
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| Ragged Fringed Orchid (Platanthera lacera) The only one that we spotted. |
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| Horse Nettle (Solanum carolinense) Most folks seem to hate this thorny plant, but I've always loved the little "banana cluster" flowers. |
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| Horse Nettle (Solanum carolinense) |
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| Helmet Skullcap (Scutellaria integrifolia) Looking down on plant from above... |