wild wild wildflowers revised

the weather has been so warm that there is a wildflower explosion going on. let me reaffirm that all the photos here are taken on our property, unless otherwise noted. readers of the blog often comment that they really like the photos. as a person striving to be a writer, i try not to take this personally.

from top to bottom: the woods are full of the regular white trillium (Trillium grandiflorum), the state wildflower of michigan. here they are competing with the umbrella-like leaves of the may apple (Podophyllum peltatum; also called mandrake: "get with child a mandrake root..." doesn't that refer to ginseng?), which hasn't bloomed yet. these trilliums aren't "endangered" but are "protected," meaning "do not disturb."




next, an unusual white trillium with a green stripe on its petals. is this a different species or a variety of white? i don't see any reference to such a flower.




and then, the white nodding trilluim (Trillium cernuum; also called Wake Robin), which has the flower blooming on a short stalk dangling below the leaves. likewise, these are protected in michigan but listed as rare and endangered in other states.





and finally, a red nodding trillium in bud, pretty rare, as it doesn't show up in any of my wildflower books but there is one on a website without a Linnean binominal designation (see what visiting Linnaeus's home in uppsala will do for you). there is a red trillium, but it clearly isn't nodding, being Trillium erectum; also called "stinking benjamin," as its flower is said to have an unpleasant odor. i didn't sniff the red nodding one. the few red individuals are blooming way far back in our woods, near the swamp.





more soon on other topics. be warned that some may have to appear without photos.