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Spring ephemeral wildflowers1/29/2024 ![]() Waterfalls & Wildflowers in the Southern Appalachians It also describes a few fine wildflower hikes-and drives. It has fine photographs and lore, is a cinch to use and fits in a pocket. Wildflowers of the Smokies (Peter White, Great Smoky Mountains Association) covers more than 250 native wildflowers, organized first by color and then by shape. Actually, there is no time other than the present. And I loved every minute of it.ĭon’t wait. I learned that wild stonecrop does, indeed, crop up on stones. I checked damp seeps until I discovered-and tasted-brook lettuce. I studied the minute blooms on bishop’s cap until I finally saw how they got their name. So I went on a half-dozen wildflower strolls. That was always true of me, as well, until last spring when I realized what is, ultimately, the true spring ephemeral-me. One last thought: if you’re like me, you’ll read an article like this and think, “That sounds wonderful I’m going to do that sometime.” Then you’ll get so caught up in the blur of contemporary life that you never even remember your resolution to go wildflower hunting-much less do it. Walk past the car-blocking gate and enjoy! Park at the far end of the campground, staying on the near (right as you drive in) side of the stream. A couple of miles past the Oconaluftee Visitors Center, take the marked right turn to Smokemont campground. To get there, head north out of Cherokee on U.S. The first few miles of the trail are level and easy (albeit a bit wet if it has rained recently) after which it climbs-forward in height, backward in time-from 3,500 to 5,000 feet in a couple of miles. Even my favorite ephemeral of all, crested dwarf iris, shows its precious, three-stemmed purple blooms in greater numbers than I’ve ever seen before. Swaths of woodland phlox intermingle with bands of speckled wood lily. Wild geranium wrestles with giant chickweed for the best view of the trail (and sunlight). Long swaths of Canada mayflower applaud you from one side, while clusters of fringed phacelia wave white pom-poms from the other. It’s like being at a parade-only you are the one parading and the banks of wildflowers lining the dirt-road trail are the crowds of spectators. I have never been on a walk so carpeted with wildflowers. So, while I normally keep my favorite spots in the woods secret, I’m going to make an exception here and share the most profuse wildflower venture I know: Bradley Fork Trail at the southern end of the Smokies. Still, not every spring walk yields a plethora of ephemera. Changing altitude lets you move forward and back in time! The trilliums haven’t started blooming where you live in February? Drop down to Jones State Park in South Carolina. Did you miss your chance to admire the speckles on those super-early trout lilies when you looked at 3,000 feet in late March? Go up to 4,000 feet and seek them there-the old naturalists say every 1,000 feet you gain in altitude is equivalent to being 300 miles farther north. The trick, of course, is finding the flowers during the small windows when the plants are up and in bloom.īut here you can cheat. Spring ephemerals aren’t that hard to find. Start in on colorful blooms and you get trout lily, sundrops, yellow mandarin, meadow parsnip, little brown jug and pink lady’s slipper. But there are so many more to admire, most of them small, delicate, and enchanting.Īnd their names! Who can resist wanting to see rue anemone, trailing arbutus, sweet cicely, squirrel corn or Dutchman’s breeches? And those are just some of the white ones. Trilliums, those large, three-leaved woodland beauties, are ones we all know. ![]() The distinguishing trait of these plants is that they bloom and complete their life cycle before the trees leaf out and block the sun from the forest floor-hence, the name ephemeral. So is pursuing those most delicate of early spring offerings, ephemeral wildflowers. Relaxing on a gentle summer day is a pleasure, to be sure. Henry James once said, “Summer afternoon-summer afternoon to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.” I don’t want to argue with a famous author, so I’ll just say that, in my opinion, the other most beautiful words in the English language are “spring ephemerals.”
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