Some Woodland Flowers

I made a check of the Yellow Lady’s Slipper orchid to see what I might expect in the way of blooms this year and found a single stalk growing.  Last year’s two stalks produced a total of three flowers.  Unfortunately, the flowers ended up withering before there was even a hope of them producing seed.  Each year seems to bring some new surprise from these plants.  I’m still waiting for the year the surprise turns out to be more plants.

I searched the slope in vane for more Yellow Lady’s Slipper plants.  This hillside doesn’t have an abundance of wildflowers, but there are a few of interest.  Basal leaves of the American Columbo are looking bright and fresh.  For some reason, I was reminded of tropical climates when I looked at this plant growing at the base of a young Sugar Maple.

A few Columbo plants have produced stalks that will bear a crop of flowers.  It’s always an odd sight to find one of these tall plants towering in the woods.

The Columbo flower buds are in place awaiting the elongation of the flower stalk.  A few of these plants bloom each year.  The other plants remain as a collection of basal leaves and return as such each year until the conditions are right for them to reproduce.  The flowering year is its last year of life.

Mayapple numbers seem to increase each year.  There are now large sections of the woods that support these plants. 

Many plants produced flowers this year.  Annual flower numbers fluctuate greatly, but I haven’t noticed any correlation between weather conditions and flowering.

Fruits are already developing in some flowers.  Most will disappear long before they become ripe. 

One of the showiest blooms on the hillside is that of the Violet Wood Sorrel.  These petals seem to luminesce in the woodland shadows and catch my attention whenever I walk by.

The plants prosper in places that tend to be free of leaves.  The downhill side of a fallen log is a perfect place to find these plants.  Leaves displaying a purple blush are almost as attractive as the blooms.

Violet Wood Sorrel also commonly grows in the raised soil around the base of large trees.  Not all leaves are heavily marked with purple patches, but all show some degree of violet coloring.

This hillside used to support a good population of Jack-in-the-pulpit.  Now I rarely see any blooming plants.  Most of the population is now composed of young, non-flowering plants.

Squawroot has finally pushed itself up through the leaves and is beginning to bloom.  These parasitic plants are without chlorophyll, so their color is quite pale.  They may look like a sign of ill health, but only a healthy ecosystem can support parasites.  I take them as a sign that the overall health of the Blue Jay Barrens woodlands is good.

Squawroot

Squawroot, Conopholis americana, is an odd plant that has the look of something struggling to stay alive. The photo shows it in full bloom and despite the pale coloration, this is a plant in peak condition. My first encounter with this plant left me wondering just what kind of oddity I had found.

The flower spikes emerge from the ground looking like malformed pine cones. Squawroot is like the person that never seems to fit in. In the middle of a woods full of enchanting and delicate spring flowers, you have this brute of a spike pushing through the leaves, displaying its unhealthy looking browns and pale yellows. It’s not hard to see why some hikers give it a wide berth, as though afraid of contracting whatever disease has ravaged the plant.

The flower buds are hidden behind rough looking scales. The emerging flowers push themselves up over the lip of the scale.

Squawroot is parasitic on oak trees. The bulk of the plant is underground where it bonds with the roots of the tree. It’s one of those odd plants that lacks chlorophyll and takes all of its energy from the host. I’m always encouraged by plants like this since a healthy parasite population is normally indicative of healthy hosts.

Squawroots often form large clusters of flower stalks. I’ve never seen any flying insects around these plants, so I don’t know what the pollinator might be. Crab spiders often hide on the flowers indicting that there must be some insect that visits. It’s possible that it is visited by some species of moth or other night flying insect. Maybe I should design a trap that can be put over the flowers to collect any insect visitors. I’ll add that to my ever growing list of things to do.