The Remarkable Rosebay Rhododendron

Winter is a hard burden to bear for any botanist, birder or naturalist; let alone the one doing the typing.  The rich and vibrant greens give way to the drab greys and browns that adorn the macabre landscape for months on end.  Each day seems more bland than the last with the trees and shrubs laid bear by the chilled winds and blue skies closed out with thick, impenetrable clouds.  There is still an intrinsic beauty to the winter scene however silent or melancholy it may seem.  For not all the light and greenery is gone from the world; some plants still cling to summer's memory.


Winter's chill had finally awoken from its slumber, as if it had suddenly remembered the season.  My slow footsteps broke the stillness of the woods on the brittle ice and accumulated snow as I watched my breath hang in the air and pushed my hands deeper into my coat pockets.  I walked down a lightly-traveled path I'd been down numerous times before.  Deep in the shadows of the Hocking Hills lay the reason for my excursion into the frigid world outside.

Evergreen leaves of the Rhododendron

Rhododendron's trunk and bark

Within the cool and moist sandstone hollows my eyes spotted the leathery, evergreen leaves still tightly clinging to the branches of one of our most beautiful and rare native shrubs, the Rosebay Rhododendron (Rhododendron maximum).  Many are familiar with this wondrous species and others in the Heath family (Ericaceae) from cultivation and landscaping.  It's not hard to understand why someone would want these phenomenal plants around come blooming time as you'll soon see.

Flower bud

Last year's emptied seed capsules

Rhododendron's evergreen, thick leaves really set it apart from everything else in Ohio.  There are three other Rhododendron spp. native to Ohio (R. calendulaceum, R. periclymenoides and R. prinophyllum) but none have as thick or leathery leaves as the rosebay.  Larger shrubs of age exhibit a very aesthetically pleasing layering of the branches which help keep this shrub's beauty a year-round thing.  As I stood and admired the maturing flower buds and emptied seed capsules my mind slipped back to a time six months in the past.  Back to a steamy and hot day in early July when you could see the humidity in the air and feel the sweat dripping down your neck.  Back to a time when this rare shrub was in its prime.

Rosebay Rhododendron in perfect, full bloom

You'd be hard pressed to convince me of a more stunning floral display in Ohio than what the rhododendrons are capable of.  Come late June and into early July the flower buds open to reveal gorgeous clusters of cream-colored blossoms fringed with hints of pink.  Each flower is about the size of a half dollar and when bunched together cause for quite the jaw-dropping arrangement.  The flowers bouquet doesn't disappoint either, giving off a very refreshing aroma.

Rosebay Rhododendron flower cluster

The rosebay rhododendron is one of the most common understory shrubs of the southern Appalachians and was even given the honor of being West Virginia's state wildflower for its timeless and common beauty.  A hike through just about any mesic forest on the lower slopes and valleys in the Great Smokey Mountains will give you plenty of chances to see this plant en masse, along with a handful of other members of its genus.  Its range runs from the southern Piedmont of Georgia and South Carolina, up through the Appalachians and on into New England.  In Ohio, the rosebay is rather rare and occurs in localized populations scattered throughout the southeastern quarter of the state.  This plant is an ancient relic from a long extinct river system that brought it to Ohio's soil many, many thousands of years ago.  The primordial Teays River ushered the rhododendrons into the southeastern quarter of Ohio from the southern Appalachians as it carved its course in a northwesterly fashion through West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois before dumping into the ancestral Mississippi River. After the glaciers erased the Teays into nothing more than a geological memory, the rhododendrons remained in the humid, cool and protected coves, hollows and north-facing exposures of sandstone.  

Rosebay Rhododendron

All four species of Rhododendron are state-listed in Ohio.  *After attending the biannual rare plant meeting for Ohio, it was determined the aforementioned R. prinophyllum no longer carries the need for listing and was removed from the state's rare flora list*.  Already limited in number by a combination of restrictive habitat requirements and being on the extreme outer fringes of their range here, they have long had to battle man's shovel too.  Many pioneers and settlers prized these shrubs for their spring and summer beauty and dug them up to plant on their homesteads and property.  Digging still remains a threat to the few remaining populations of these incredible woody plants even well over a century later.  Their popularity in the plant trade has made them and their countless cultivars pretty easy to attain in a more sustainable and legal fashion by visiting your local nursery.

A tiny crab spider lies in wait on the stamen of a flower

A brief but powerful gust of freezing air pulls me back to the present and away from the reminiscing warmth and beauty of July.  If you've never seen this or any of its kin in full flower before I highly recommend seeking them out come spring and summer.  From pink to purple, flame-orange to cream they really are too stunning to pass up.  I look forward to hunting down and photographing the other species of Rhododendron in Ohio and sharing them with you when I do.  I hope this post was able to brighten your day and give you a little spring fever!  Winter is coming to a close faster each and every day.

An End of Winter Hike Through Clear Creek

The other day I decided to spend one of the first warm, Spring-like days on a romp through one of my favorite nature preserves in this area of the state.  Clear Creek Metro Park is huge at over 5,000 acres in size and protects one of the most unique valleys in Ohio.  Sandstone gorges, scenic vista views, rare flora, excellent birding opportunities and a clear, cold stream full of trout are among the biggest attractions to the park.    Honestly, I almost prefer this place to the popular Hocking Hills areas because on most days you have the entire place essentially to yourself.  No crowds or parking lots, Clear Creek offers nearly 20 miles of hiking trails ranging from deep Hemlock/Beech valleys to high Oak/Hickory ridge tops several hundred feet above the valley floor.  While it may not have the exact same "oh's" and "ah's" of nearby Ash Cave or Cedar Falls it still certainly deserves your time and attention.

Eastern Hemlock

Ancient Red Oak and E. Hemlock

I began my hike walking through a narrow valley that instantly made me feel like I was somewhere much farther to the north than Hocking and Fairfield counties in southerneastern Ohio.  I was surrounded by thick, towering cinnamon brown trunks of Eastern Hemlocks (Tsuga canadensis) and the ghostly grey and smooth barked American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) trees that rose precipitously skyward.  Enormous Red Oaks (Quercus rubra), such as the one pictured above on the right, added to the excitement that such a place still exists in today's world of chainsaws and dollar signs.  Looking up through the layered canopies of the Hemlocks took me back to my time spent in the rain forests of the Pacific Northwest.  There I gazed up into the branches of our eastern Tsuga's kin; Western Hemlock (T. heterophylla) and Mountain Hemlock (T. mertensiana).  Anyone who has spent any time out in those phenomenal gardens of Eden are sure to understand my reminiscence at the picture above right.

Rhododendron maximum

Rhododendron maximum

Meandering my way through the moist and darkened forest I was quick to notice large shrubs full of evergreen and leathery leaves catching the streaming sunlight through the thick needled marquee of Hemlocks.  Great Rhododendron (Rhododendron maximum) can be seen in home landscaping quite often in southeastern Ohio but Clear Creek offers one of the few indigenous and naturally occurring populations of this threatened species left in Ohio.  The pictures above capture the mood of the opposite ends of the blooming schedule.  In mid June the buds will open and reveal gorgeous white flowers that really set this plant apart.  The resulting capsules will persist through the winter creating a still rather aesthetic touch of scenery.

Lycopodium lucidulum

Lycopodium digitatum

Mixed in amongst the Christmas Ferns (Polystichum acrostichoides) and Hayscented Ferns (Dennstaedtia punctilobula) on the moist forest floor were two members of the Lycopodiaceae family.  On the left is Shining clubmoss (Lycopodium lucidulum) which bears its sporangium (where the reproducing spores are held)  in its leaf axils.  Those are the little yellow dots seen running along the stem.  While in the same family, Fan clubmoss (Lycopodium digitatum) differs in its growth habit and sporangium location.  The branches grow in a spread-out fashion and have a strobilus.  the strobilus is a club-like spike that rises up from the vegetative mat of branches and is where this species sporangium are found.  I found some Rattlesnake Plaintain (Goodyera pubescens) with its distinct evergreen leaves and fruit capsule growing in a sea of the Fan clubmoss and thought it made for a fun photograph.

Epigaea repens

Epigaea repens

Making my way deeper into the narrowing valley I found myself coming across many rock faces and boulders strewn across the forest that had fallen from the gorge walls.  Taking a closer look at their moss and lichen covered  surfaces proved to be a good idea.  Delicately calling these seemingly barren growing conditions home was one of my absolute favorite little woody gems in Ohio; Trailing Arbutus (Egigaea repens).  On the plants I found their tiny little flower buds were just starting to mature and should reveal their inner beauty in the next couple weeks.  An event I am very excited to see and capture with the camera lens!

Aralia spinosa

Black Rat Snake

Shortly after making the acquaintance of the Trailing Arbutus plants on the rocks the trail took to higher ground and I quickly found myself climbing up and out of the valley onto the lower slopes of the adjoining hillsides.  I stopped to take notice at one of the more intriguing plants to be found locally in Clear Creek.  Reaching it's northern limits in southern Ohio is the spiny and intimidating Devil's Walkingstick (Aralia spinosa).  I can picture the first person describing this to science taking one look at the spine covered stems and branches of this shrub/small tree and immediately conceding it as a malevolent and cruel invention of Lucifer, thus the common name.  I don't think its intentions can be related to the dark lord of the underworld though.  What animal would ever want to even think about making that a snack?  While that question was being pondered in my head a rustle in the leaves a few yards up slope caught my attention.  Upon closer inspection I discovered a large Black Rat Snake warming himself in the sun.  He was kind enough to keep a good pose for a photograph and seemed just too happy about the years first warm day to pay much worry my direction.

Rock Polypody Fern

Rock Polypody Fern

 

Noticing the sun was starting to wane in the sky I decided to turn back and make my way back down into the valley and back to the car for the lovely drive back to the apartment.  A large patch of vibrant green on a rock caught my last glance and I decided to make a quick and short detour to investigate.  Growing profusely on the large boulder was the fern Rock Polypody (Polypodium virginianum).  If that name sounds familiar it's probably because I briefly mentioned in my earlier post on some over-wintering greenery.  It's just too attractive and photogenic a fern to just ignore it and not get at least a couple photographs.  Making my way back I noticed some fresh rosettes of green starting to work their way out of the ground as well as the swelling buds of the Red and Silver Maples.  Even the Red and American Elm buds were showing strong signs of Spring's arrival.  As I'm writing this many of the first species of plants are starting to flower and I look forward to bringing them to you as soon as possible!  I'll leave you with a photograph of two sister Hemlocks that really show the final product of time and opportunity for this species.  Hope you enjoyed the post and look forward to more Natural Treasures of Ohio.

Ancient twin Hemlocks