Botany Apr 16

Thalictrum thalictroides

Commonly known as Meadow Rue, this thin, dainty plant grows a cluster of showy sepals rather than petals and supports several handfuls of stamens around its group of green pistils.

Mitchella repens

Partridge berry, a small evergreen with creeping, “repense” growing habits that cause it to mat forest floors and occasionally this plant produces small red edible berries.

Erythronium americanum

The yellow trout lily, much like its name sake, this plant supports dappled leaves like that of a trout as well as downturned yellow flowers with red, “eryth” stamens.

Podophyllum peltatum

This short and squat leafy plant is commonly known as the mayapple, a favorite of box turtles.

Tussilago farfara

This dandelion look a like is called colts foot, it supports large basal leaves much like the foot of a colt. The stalks of this plant also are often brown and scaly unlike that of dandelions, one could argue this plant looks much like the sore throats it was used to treat.

Dendrolycopodium

Not to be mistaken for a sapling, this plant, the woody lycopodium, is a pteridophyte common to the underbrush that stands tall with whorling needle like scales.

Polystichum acrostichoides

The Christmas Tree Fern, an evergreen pteridophyte often seen in holiday decor, the leaf margins “stich” out in serrated edges often puffed out and sprawling into the air like acrobatics.

Diphasiastrum digitatum

The fan club moss, this pteridophyte has sprawling fronds far below the towering, shooting star like strobili stalks. The leaves are made up of flattened spade like scales that are composed with dichotomously splitting sections.

Houstonia caerulea

Bluets, Quaker ladies, whatever you call them, this petite wildflower has two larger basal leaves and two smaller internal stems. The color of the four petals is blue, as the name says, but it often features a small yellow interior.

Kalmia latifolia

Mountain laurel, a calm shrub with soft white or pink flowers and stamens looping into the petals creating a nautical sort of compass look. The flowers arrive in clusters often going laterally rather than vertically on their stems.

Potentilla indica

The false strawberry, this small creeping five petaled yellow darling produces a similar fruit to the much more well known true strawberry. But given its appearance in America this powerful little plant is also known as the indian strawberry.

Berberis canadensis

The American barberry gathers its name from the spiny margined leaves and spined stems that protect the plant and its tart red fruits. The introduction of nonnative barberry species has led to a spread of plant rust.

Tsuga canadensis

The eastern hemlock, or rather the Canadian Hemlock, is a conifer common to the east coast of Northern America. Currently it is threatened by the woolly adelgid, but in areas where it survives it can be found along the same streams as brook trout.

Smilax rotundifolia

An encounter with this plant might not leave you smiling, green brier is a climbing and often times sprawling woody spined vine with rotund heart shaped leaves that frequently snatches the pants legs on ongoers.

Symplocarpus foetidus

A plant that quite frankly smells wretched, like feet, is the fore-bearer of spring in much of eastern North America. Skunk cabbage grows deep below with a rhizome and shoots up a spathe and spadix, the spathe a sort of covering or tarp for the spadix that simultaneously protects the spadix and developing flower as well as generates heat for growth.

Anemone lancifolia

The lance leaf anemone, this plant supports five white downwards curling petals and a trio leaflets of long serrated lance like leaves.

Hamamelis virginiana

While many plants bloom in spring, this plant holds quite fitting to its name as it blooms in the fall. Witch hazel grows as a shrub with yellow long, spidery flowers in Virginia with round toothed leaves.

Goodyera oblongifolia

This orchid is characterized for a downy mottled snakeskin like oblong leaves. The margins are smooth and all leaves are basal coming up from the rhizome. Also from the rhizome up shoots a tall stalk that will eventually become overwhelmed with white flowers. This plant, downy rattlesnake plantain, is surely a sign of a good year.

Uvularia grandiflora

Long and large yellow downturned flowers droop from this plant like the uvula down the back of the throat. The petals of the large flowered bellwort sag and spiral downwards emphasizing the use of “bellwort” as this plants name.