Going To Seed

Walking with Becky has always been a unique experience.  She is curious about what might be underfoot and her pace is beyond slow.  This new small Hepatica plant was her discovery today as I had simply moved on by without seeing it.  It is possible that a from seed new plant takes awhile to establish itself.  In our reading we frequently encounter the statement that seven years must pass for a new native plant from seed to produce a flower.  We have no way of knowing just how many years were needed to produce this next generation plant at this stage of its development.

A short distance away we again encountered this well established Hepatica plant.  Our earlier visits saw a huge mass of pure white flowers.  The forest floor beneath this beauty is now covered with cast off flower petals.  Seed production seems to be underway.  We have never taken the time to search for mature seeds as there is much to do tending our gardens.  Now we are more than content to take leisurely strolls and perhaps learn something new.  We will need to find this group of plants again as the seeds mature.  Up until now that Hepatica seeds even existed never crossed our minds.

 

Each species of plant follows its own schedule for reasons that remain unknown.  This Mayapple plant is just now sending up its plant parts.  We detected no movement while watching this plant but are certain that it will look different in short order.  This is a sight that we have never before seen in spite of the fact that our woods is home to an impressively large patch of these plants.

Just a short distance away we found this plant unfurling its leaves.  They will very soon be much larger.

Spring beauties have long captured our attention.  They grow in several different places in our forest.  We would like to include them in our native plant garden but their growth habit has to date prevented that.  From what we have read, this plant grows from a pea sized bulb that is located a considerable distance from a flower.  As its growth season is drawing to a close, one must follow the now dying just below the soil surface long stem from the flower to its location.  We have never tried to do that.  It is possible that this appearance on the side of a moss covered stone is all one plant.  There is no indication as to which end is the beginning of the plant.  It seems that a great deal of destruction would be required to locate a small root mass.  So we visit Irma's woods where several huge stones are home to extensive groups of this plant.  Beautiful to see but impossible to own.
 

Trillium Time

This is a time of year when the pull of our gardens is strong.  A seemingly endless groups of tasks calls out for our attention.  This is work that we really enjoyed doing.  My retirement life plan was centered on our future gardens.  Age has made it painful to complete tasks that focus on the ground and its weeds.  Daily trips to Irma's woods have become our habit.  As a result we get to see the growth habits of these native plants as they begin their all too short life above the rotting leaves while we walk on the edge of a dirt road.

We have caught glimpses of Trillium plants pushing their tightly coiled leaves up into the air guessing at their identity.  Today we are absolutely certain that we are looking at White trilliums.  Showers are in the forecast so this bud's opening may be delayed.

 

In my youth growing up on eighteen acres that featured wooded streams at each edge of the land, I discovered a huge patch of these plants amongst the trees.  Several stems were snapped off at ground level with the flowers presented to my Mother for Mother's Day.  Her Mother told me that I was killing the plants since the nourishment providing leaves was also being removed.  Lesson learned.  We now enjoy these plants where they grow.

The two Trillium plants pictured here are minutes apart in unfolding their leaves.  The plant to the left is beginning to loosen its leaves from the tight coil that protects the leaves as they are pushed up from the ground.  The plant to the right has flattened its leaves while its bud remains out of sight.  In the upper left corner of the picture, a Bloodroot is unwinding its leaf after the flower opened.  In the center of the photo a single mottled Trout lily leaf means it will have no flower this year.  Maturity is required for this plant to send up two leaves and a flower.

As many as five Trilliums fill this photo.  Their flower display will be amazing.  Leaves in the lower right corner belong to that nasty weed Goldenrod.  Despite is small appearance its underground root system is massive.  If I tried to pull it out, Trillium plants would also be uprooted.  It would then be easy to steal those liberated plants away.  That will not happen.  The landowner's behavioral standards will be followed. 

 

Our focus has been on Bloodroot and with their leaves unfurling that picture had to be included.  The tulip shaped opening bud is presenting a new flower.  The tattered remains of a flower to the left is perhaps only three days old.  The next plant to the left shows no flower petals but is presenting the beginnings of a seed capsule even though its leaf is only now opening.  It is difficult to understand my fascination with this plant when its time of flowering is so brief.

Two days following writing this post, the flower was found inverted on the ground.  It was intact suggesting that a gust of wind lifted it free.  The good news is that a seed capsule is now forming in spite of the single leaf still being rather tightly curled.  It is amazing just how little time was needed to begin production of seeds insuring a next generation.

This is a new from seed plant in our home garden.  Its heavy pollen load will soon be dispersed and perhaps a seed capsule will follow.  The next generation is the reason flowers are formed.  Their time open is short but they accomplish their mission.