More Bike Path Wildflowers

About a month ago I posted on the fabulous spring wildflower displays the Hockhocking-Adena bike path puts on in Athens county each year.  This season has been no exception with the diverse number of ephemeral species bursting forth and impressing all those who can't help but let their eyes wander as they jog or bike down its lengths.

In the past few weeks the canopy has really closed in and seen many of the earliest species set to seed and disappear into the green menagerie of vegetation continuing to grow and mature on the forest floor.  It's hard to believe just a month or so ago the under story was still just beginning to wake up and largely lifeless with last year's decomposing leaf layer still clearly visible.  Now the ground is nearly impossible to see in some areas due to the rich and diverse array of plants and wildflowers.  Unfortunately, I am quite pressed for time these days with work and other projects so this post will be all photos from here on out but I think they speak for themselves better than your blogger ever could.  Enjoy!

Rich mesic forest slopes alive with spring wildflowers

Sea of drooping trillium (Trillium flexipes)

White and red form of the drooping trillium

Drooping trillium red form

Drooping trillium white form

Carpet of blue-eyed mary (Collinsia verna)

Blue-eyed Mary (Collinsia verna)

Ohio buckeye (Aesculus glabra)

Blackhaw viburnum (Viburnum prunifolium)

Morel mushroom (Morchella spp.)

Common Yellow Violet (Viola pubescens)

Canada violet (Viola canadensis)

Toad and the trillium

Crinkleroot (Cardamine diphylla)

Blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides) leaves

Sessile trillium (Trillium sessile)

Large-flowered trillium (Trillium grandiflorum) beginning to fade

Bike Path Spring Wildflowers

Last week I posted on my time spent admiring the different color forms of the common sharp-lobed hepatica along the forested slopes of the Hockhocking-Adena bike path.  While quite cheerful, it's certainly not the only spring ephemeral to grace the landscape in that area and with the warming temperatures and recent rain things have really exploded in the past few days.

Hockhocking-Adena bike path in-between Nelsonville and Athens

As mentioned in the prior post, the Hockhocking-Adena bike path runs from Nelsonville to Athens along 18 miles of an old, abandoned railroad grade.  The overhanging trees create a tunnel-like cathedral on your walk/ride with the Hocking River flowing on the one side and rich, mesic woodland slopes and terraces on the other.

Large-flowered trillium abound along certain stretches of the path 

Come spring those forested slopes come alive with some of the finest wildflowers shows in the county and are not to be missed for those who live in the area.  It's not uncommon to come across whole hillsides covered in a mass of large-flowered trillium (Trillium grandiflorum) that will simply take your breath away. I think even the most uninterested of bikers and joggers have to notice their sensational appearance as they pass by.

Such a glorious sight

Large-flowered trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

For those that didn't know already, the large-flowered trillium is the state wildflower of Ohio and can actually be found in just about all 88 counties.  While us humans admire these fine floral wonders with our eyes only (or at least should), the same cannot be said for white-tailed deer; the trillium are a delicacy that makes their mouths water. Combine that with their over-populated numbers and it can cause this beautiful plant to quickly disappear.

Large-flowered bellwort with large-flowered trillium in the background

While the trillium will certainly be the first to catch your eye and attention, the diversity of other wildflowers mixed in will do even more to whet your appetite.  Large-flowered bellwort (Uvularia grandiflora) add a nice splash of color alongside the trillium as they dot the hillside with their drooping yellow blossoms.

Large-flowered bellwort (Uvularia grandiflora)

Rue anenome (Thalictrum thalictroides)

I'm not sure how much attention and appreciation the bellworts get from other admirers and wildflower enthusiasts but I find their delicate and unique appearance to be on par with their rest of their lily family relatives.  Likewise, the common rue anenome (Thalictrum thalictroides) may be overlooked and passed over as simply not deserving of any extended observation time but their central spreading stamens and crown of snow-white petals demand more.

The very short-lived blooms of the twinleaf (Jeffersonia diphylla)

One of spring's most serendipitous of finds for your blogger tends to be those of the very short-lived and aptly-named twinleaf (Jeffersonia diphylla). While the plant itself is not all that uncommon, finding it in perfect bloom certainly is! Much like bloodroot flowers, those of the twinleaf only retain their petals for a few short hours before dropping them and setting to seed.  As a friend of mine once said, you must be careful not to breathe when photographing these beauties.  Even the slightest breeze can send their petals scattering to the ground.

Squirrel corn (Dicentra canadensis)

Squirrel corn (Dicentra canadensis)

Another wonderful yet fleeting sight come April along stretches of the bike path are the lacy leaves and intriguing flowers of squirrel corn (Dicentra canadensis).  Now, I know what you're thinking...how does a plant get the name of squirrel corn?  Well, this member of the fumitory family (Fumariaceae) has underground bulbets that look very similar to kernels of corn that apparently squirrels like to dig up.  I've never observed this activity but I'll take the naming botanist's word for it.

Dutchman's breeches (Dicentra cucullaria)

Dutchman's breeches (Dicentra cucullaria)

Often growing right alongside its closely related squirrel corn brethren, dutchman's breeches (Dicentra cucullaria) is another uniquely-shaped member of the fumitory family.  One can find their common name to be much more transparent and understandable even at first glance.  I can easily see the resemblance of its flowers to that of a pair of pants drying on the clothesline, albeit upside down. When in flower the two species are hard to confuse but I can understand some's frustration when only in its vegetative stage.  In my experience dutchman's breeches is more of a green color while those of squirrel corn have a distinct silver-blue/teal hue to them.

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)

Further down the path near my residence the forest opens up due to a tornado that passed through the area a few years ago.  It's been interesting to observe what species have responded positively to the increased sunlight conditions and vice versa.  The bloodroots (Sanguinaria canadensis) have been one to take full advantage of the canopy opening; quickly spreading and sending up more plants each year.  The scattered patches in this area have nearly doubled in size in just the past three years.

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis) closed

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis) open

I'm not sure which stage I find more pleasing when it comes to the bloodroot's flowers.  The closed version with its petals unfurled and appearing like a tulip have a beauty all their own, even when compared to the more traditional and crowd favorite fully opened.

Yellow trout-lily (Erythronium americanum)

It wouldn't truly be spring without the charming trout-lilies adding their colors to the landscape.  The yellow trout-lily (Erythronium americanum) typically blooms about a week before its white cousin (E. albidum) here in the hills and hollers of southeastern Ohio and is a personal favorite of this botanist.

Fragile fern (Cystopteris protrusa)

Large-leaf waterleaf (Hydrophyllum macrophylla)

It's not all about the wildflowers as some plants purely in their vegetative forms can add a touch of class and color to those willing to keep a keen eye open for them.  The suitably named fragile fern (Cystopteris protrusa) is one of our state's most frequent pteridophytes but often goes unnoticed for its small size and humble personality.  On the opposite end of the spectrum is that of the large-leaved waterleaf (Hydrophyllum macrophylla).  It's conspicuously marked leaves densely line the bike path for much of its journey in such a manner that the unknowing might mistake it for an invasive weed.  It's "water stained" leaves add an artful touch to any stroll or ride down the bike path.  They won't begin their flowering cycle until closer to summer once the canopy is leafed out and the shade thickened.

I highly encourage any readers and followers living in the Nelsonville and Athens area to get out and experience the Hockhocking bike path for themselves as spring begins to really kick into gear and hit peak levels.  There's so much more to see and experience along its scenic route than I could ever share here!  I'll be back in a couple weeks to bring the next wave of floral sights as spring continues its inevitable march towards summer.

The Many Faces of Sharp-lobed Hepatica

Your blogger decided to take full advantage of the sunny and warm afternoon mother nature bestowed upon southeastern Ohio today and laced up his walking shoes and strolled out to the bike path for a bit of exercise.  The long and cold winter certainly softened me up a bit and with prime hiking season nigh on arrival, I certainly could use the physical activity!

I'm very fortunate to have the Hockhocking Adena bikeway pass very close to my residence and I've used it countless times both on foot and on my road bike in the past.  The bike path runs along the Hocking River for a large majority of its 18 mile trek from Nelsonville to Athens and conveniently allows for a very scenic and stunning country ride at almost any time of the year.  However, I would be quick to vote spring as the prime time to set foot down its hardened asphalt stretches.  Few other spots in all of Athens county has the wildflower displays and species diversity as some select, well-known hillsides and ravines do!

As I headed down one of my favorite sections I found it hard to keep at a steady, fast pace as my eyes scanned the steep gradients and deep, sweeping hollows for signs of spring's influx of color.  I quickly noticed the prominence of sharp-lobed hepaticas (Anenome acutiloba) blooming en masse all throughout the woods and was surprised to see so much diversity in the different shades of color their sepals were portraying.  As I mentioned in my earlier post, this species of early spring ephemeral can range from white to pink, to purple and blue as it emerges from underneath the leaf litter and the bike path was certainly backing up that claim with a splendid performance. I decided to make use of my iPhone's camera and documented as many of the varying color shades as I could and figured it would make a fun, short post to share on here.  All six photographs below were taken along the two mile stretch of bike path I walked today and only increased my giddiness for the avalanche of wildflowers soon to break loose!

Classic white-colored form

The most commonly found and occurring of all the hepatica's color schemes is the classic off-white.  It's not at all rare to see some pinkish hues as they first break bud but that quickly disappears and is replaced with a brilliant snow white radiance.

Blue-purple hue

Majestic lavender form

There's a hundred and one different shades of purple to try and discern from with the hepaticas and I'm not one to be picky on how you want to go about it.  Other than white, I think the most commonly seen color pattern seems to be the purplish-blue mixture as seen on the left.  You can also have one of my personal favorites in the perfectly saturated majestic hues of the lavender specimen on the right!

Lovely deep pink coloration

Crowd-pleasing white and light purple/blue hue

Every once in a while I would see a few small clumps of a lovely deep pink coloration hiding in the shade of the towering trees overhead.  They were wonderfully accompanied by the bi-coloration of some specimens exhibiting a white and bluish-purple mixture.  I've observed before other hepaticas showing off the same pattern but in varying shades of pink and purple instead of blue.

Brilliant, rich deep blue heptaticas

It's only appropriate I save the best for last in the royal, deep blue hued hepatica clumps.  You have to catch these early on before their colors fade to a softer blue/purple in my experience and I was certainly pleased to be lucky enough to have my timing just right.

Dozens of other spring ephemerals were just beginning to break bud and sprout along my walk and it won't be long before the bike path is set ablaze with their seasonal beauty and splotches of color.  I'm sure I'll be back again soon to share the Hockhocking's priceless spring fireworks show!