BLUE RIDGE WILDFLOWERS

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Showing Signs of Life for 2011

My personal wildflower garden has been a bit dormant since the Bloodroot bloomed earlier in the season. However, the wildflowers are starting to shake off their slumber and bursting into bloom. Appearing for the first time this year is a Jack-in-the-Pulpit that I planted several years ago. I was not sure it would take, since the soil in my garden is a bit drier than they usually like, but it came up this year.

White Dwarf Crested Iris (Iris cristata).

Dutchman's Trousers.(Dicentra spectabilis)

Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum) before it blooms.

Eastern Bluestar (Amsonia tabernaemontana)

More of the Mutants from Grandiflorum

The mutants of Grandiflorum had more numbers than I originally thought. On second inspection of the area, I found several more blooms that I had not photographed the day before. Here are those images, along with a few more blooms that I photographed again. These are amazing flowers.

Surprise Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

Trillium and Surprise Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

Monday, April 18, 2011

Arrival of the Mutants from Grandiflorum

Some of my favorite wildflowers are in bloom right now. They are Trillium grandiflorum, but not normal Trillium. They are a mutated colony of Trillium that grow with green blossoms and many more than the regular three petals of the Trillium. A fellow wildflower enthusiast recommended calling them "Surprise Trillium". I agree with her, so that is what I am calling them. I find them stunning in their odd beauty, and I cannot resist the urge to image each and every one I see., Along with other wildflowers in the area, here are the Trillium from another world.

Surprise Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

Surprise Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

Surprise Trillium and a Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

Surprise Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

A couple of Surprise Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

Canadian Violet (Viola canadensis)

Star Chickweed (Stellaria corei)

Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica).

Woodland Phlox (Phlox divaricata)

Common Buttercup (Ranunculus acris)

Common Cinquefoil (Potentilla simplex).

Sunday, April 10, 2011

April Flowers in Green Hill Park

These images were taken April 10, 2011 in Green Hill Park in west Roanoke County. The Trillium are not in full bloom yet, and I expect it will be 4 to 7 days for the majority to break open. The Twin Leaf are fading now, but the violets, Spring Beauty, and Virginia Bluebell are out in force. I hope you like these images.

Twin Leaf (Jeffersonia diphylla)

Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica).

Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

Canadian Violet (Viola canadensis)

Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica).

Monday, April 4, 2011

Spending a little time at the Mill Mountain Wildflower Garden

Being at a higher elevation, the Mill Mountain Wildflower Garden gives an opportunity to photograph some wildflowers that have already bloomed at lower elevations. That did not seem to happen this year, as the bloom cycles seem to be pretty close between the mountain top and the valley below.

Here are some images from April 4, 2011 on Mill Mountain.

The wildflowers above are known as the Common Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis).

Cyprus Spurge (Euphobia cyparissias).

A nice image of the Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris).

Primrose (Pimula vulgaris).

A close in image of a Periwinkle (Vinca minor)

Forget-Me-Nots (Myosotis scorpiodes).

Early April in Green Hill Park

I decided to take a trip out to Green Hill Park to check on the Trillium. They had not started blooming, but several other species of wildflowers were in bloom. These images are from Green Hill Park and around the Salem area.