1 - July 10, 2025
With the heat, poison ivy, bugs, etc., early summer is always a slow time of the year for my exploring the woods. But I got out for a bit on a warm afternoon to see what was blooming at one of my favorite spots.
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Virginia Bunchflower (Melanthium virginicum)
It bloomed a little early this year, and flowers were a bit past their prime.
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Virginia Bunchflower (Melanthium virginicum)
Close-up of a single flower; this one was still relatively fresh.
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The Tassel Rue here used to be identified as Trautvetteria caroliniensis,
but now is believed to be Ozark Tassel Rue (Trautvetteria applanata).
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Tassel Rue - upper leaves
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Shrubby St. John's Wort (Hypericum prolificum)
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Mountain Mint Pycnanthemum virginianum
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Heal-All, aka Self-Heal (Prunella vulgaris)
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Another species I hoped to find in bloom was the Virginia Agave
(Manfreda virginica). But most of the stalks that I saw had been
chewed off at about 3 feet in height. This was the only one that
was going to flower, but it was a week or so away from blooming.
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Angelica species
Either A. triquinata or A. venenosa, I believe.
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Wild Petunia (Ruellia caroliniensis)
You can tell that I dodged a few rainshowers while here.
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Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata ssp. pulchra)
I was a little early for it; still in bud...
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A few Leather Flowers, aka Vasevine (Clematis viorna) were still blooming.
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I still remember the first time I came across these
years ago; I thought I had found a new flower!
Clematis viorna forming seeds...
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2 - August 8, 2025:
Revisiting one of my favorite botanical spots, there were four species that I mainly wanted to see. Sadly, there was no sign of two of them; thanks likely to the herbicide spraying here in late 2024. On a third, the stems had been chewed off the only 3 plants with stalks; and for the fourth, I was too early (as I suspected I might be). But there are always other plants to photograph here...
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Lion's Mane (Hericium erinaceus
This was one of the smaller ones I've encountered; see ant for scale.
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Southern Slender Ladies' Tresses (Spiranthes lacera var. gracilis)
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Spiranthes lacera var. gracilis with a bee pollinator
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Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata ssp. pulchra)
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Swamp Milkweed with bee pollinator.
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Blue-flower Eryngo (Eryngium integrifolium)
For the most part these were still in bud, but a few were
starting to flower with their distinctive blue color.
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Blue-flower Eryngo (Eryngium integrifolium)
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Large-leafed Grass of Parnassus (Parnassia grandifolia)
There are hundreds of these plants here, but they don't
usually start blooming until the end of the month. I was
somewhat surprised to find this single plant in flower.
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Mountain Mint (Pycnanthemum virginianum)
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New York Ironweed (Vernonia noveboracensis)
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New York Ironweed (Vernonia noveboracensis)
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Joe Pye Weed (Eutrochium purpureum)
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Rose Pink (Sabatia angularis)
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Seed pod of Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)
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Virginia Bunchflower (Melanthium virginicum), going to seed...
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Crane-fly Orchid (Tipularia discolor)
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Spotted Jewel-weed (Impatiens capensis)
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