#bluntleaf waterleaf

[vandaliatraveler]

The spring ephemerals, making the most of the warm weather and rain before the canopy closes in May, are pushing hard in the lower elevation woodlands around here. One of the best spots locally to enjoy the spring wildflower bounty is Toms Run Preserve, owned by the West Virginia Land Trust.

From top: Elizabeth's Woods showing a bit of early spring green; sharp-lobed hepatica (Anemone acutiloba, Hepatica acutiloba or Hepatica nobilis var. acuta) and foliage, whose leathery, thrice-lobed leaves give it the common names of liverwort and liverleaf; a scarlet cup fungus (Sarcoscypha coccinea or Sarcoscypha dudleyi), whose luminous fruiting body appears in late winter through early spring; smooth yellow violet (Viola eriocarpa), distinguished from downy yellow violet (Viola pubescens) by smooth stalks and the presence of one or more heart-shaped, basal (base) leaves; early blue cohosh (Caulophyllum giganteum) and foliage, whose herbacious, shrub-like habit is one of the most beautiful sights in Appalachia's spring forests; bluntleaf waterleaf (Hydrophyllum canadense), whose mottled, early spring foliage illuminates the dull leaf litter of the forest floor; cutleaf toothwort (Cardamine concatenata) with pink-tinged rather than pure white petals; yellow trout lily (Erythronium americanum), whose sprawling colonies in the preserve, spread by clonal reproduction, could be hundreds of years old; azure bluet (Houstonia caerulea), also known as Quaker ladies, whose delicate clumps bounce in the wind along trail edges and in open meadows; bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), a member of the poppy family with red, poisonous sap; Toms Run at full flow from recent rains; great white trillium (Trillium grandiflorum), which forms vast clonal colonies on moist hillsides and along streams; red trillium (Trillium erectum), also known as purple trillium, wake robin, and stinking Benjamin, the latter beause it draws in its primary pollinators - carrion flies and beetles - with the odor of rotting flesh; and rue anemone (Anemonella thalictroides orThalictrum thalictroides), a member of the buttercup family and closely related to hepatica, wood anemone, eastern red columbine, tall thimbleweed, golden seal, and the meadow rues.

[vandaliatraveler]

A week and a half into April and despite a cold snap, the first wave of spring ephemerals is making a hard push along the Mon River Trail. Even when striking demure poses under a cold spring rain, these short-lived beauties put on a memorable show. Among the early arrivals are: Carolina spring beauty (Claytonia caroliniana), which has broader leaves than its close relative, Virginia spring beauty (Claytonia virginica); purple trillium (Trillium erectum), also known as wake robin, a gorgeous stinker pollinated by carrion flies and beetles; Dutchman’s breeches (Dicentra cucullaria), also known as little blue staggers, whose narcotic properties are known to cause grazers to stagger drunkenly after nibbling on them; great white trillium (Trillium grandiflorum), which when left undisturbed forms enormous drifts on Appalachia’s rich, well-drained slopes; and bluntleaf waterleaf (Hydrophyllum canadense), also known as mapleleaf waterleaf, a stunningly-patterned and increasingly rare perennial of moist, rich soils.

Field Notes:

1. I have a real fondness for the waterleafs, whose ornately-patterned foliage and tolerance for moist soils make them well-suited for poorly-drained spots in native wildflower gardens. Bluntleaf waterleaf is my favorite, however.  The plant’s distinctive watermark, a distinguishing feature that gives the waterleafs their common name, is particularly striking in early spring - a vivid and evocative Rorschach test courtesy of nature.

[vandaliatraveler]

Elizabeth’s Woods was the first tract of land protected by the West Virginia Land Trust as part of Toms Run Preserve. Ensconced on a wooded bluff overlooking the Monongahela River, the tract’s mature hardwood forest has become a local mecca for spring wildflower hunters and birdwatchers. The parcel is named in honor of its benefactor, Elizabeth Zimmermann, who donated it to the Land Trust nearly 25 years ago. This past weekend’s spring bounty included (from top): bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides); slender toothwort (Cardamine angustata); Virginia spring beauty (Claytonia virginica), distinguished from Carolina spring beauty by its narrower, grass-like leaves; blunt-lobed hepatica (Hepatica americana); bluntleaf waterleaf (Hydrophyllum canadense); and downy yellow violet (Viola pubescens).

[vandaliatraveler]

After the last leaves of October have fallen, the stone-faced ghosts of the Monongahela River’s industrial past, draped in moss-and-lichen cloaks, reveal themselves to those who are willing to notice them. In an abandoned stone quarry along the Mon River Trail, broken millstones speak muted testimony to the long-silent engines that fired the industrial revolution and poisoned the ground around them. Now, almost a century and a half after the stone was roughly hewn from the steep bluffs along the river and bent to man’s will, nature has reclaimed the quarry for herself, a slow, methodical march won by the most delicate of organisms, including bluntleaf waterleaf (Hydrophyllum canadense), Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides), white bear sedge (Carex albursina), and ebony spleenwort (Asplenium platyneuron).