Bigleaf Periwinkle – Vinca major – Added to USWildflowers Database

Bigleaf Periwinkle,  a non-native  species, has been added to the USWildflowers.com database.  Scientific name is Vinca major. This plant also goes by the  common names Large Periwinkle, Greater Periwinkle, and Myrtle.  Some folks consider it to be invasive, so use caution in propagating this plant.

Bigleaf Periwinkle - Vinca major

Roundleaf Violet – Viola rotundifolia – Added to USWildflowers Database

Roundleaf Violet,  a native  species, has been added to the USWildflowers.com database.  Scientific name is Viola rotundifolia.

Roundleaf Violet - Viola rotundifolia

Twinleaf – Jeffersonia diphylla – Added to USWildflowers Database

Twinleaf,  a native  species, has been added to the USWildflowers.com database.  Scientific name is Jeffersonia diphylla. This plant also goes by the  common name Rheumatism Root.

Twinleaf - Jeffersonia diphylla

Tiny Bluet – Houstonia pusilla – Added to USWildflowers Database

Tiny Bluet, a native species, has been added to the USWildflowers.com database.  Scientific name is Houstonia pusilla. This plant also goes by the  Common names Small Bluet and Least Bluet due to the diminuitive size of both the blossom and the plant.

Tiny Bluet - Houstonia pusilla

Hepatica – A Slightly Deeper Dive

My Twitter friend OurLittleAcre tweeted for an assist in a species identification on a Hepatica photo a day or so ago.  As we tweeted back and forth a few times about the species and color variation, it became clear that the subject was going to be difficult to discuss in 140-character messages, and since I wanted to record my thoughts and what I was learning as I researched the subjects, a post here on the USWildflowers Journal seemed to be in order.

Sharp-lobed Hepatica

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03/27/2010 The Pocket at Pigeon Mountain with GA Botanical Society

On Saturday I participated in the Georgia Botanical Society outing to The Pocket at Pigeon Mountain, led by Mike Christison.  I’m a new member of the BotSoc, as they call it, and this membership in this organization is already paying dividends in many ways.  In addition to showing me two more wildflowers sites on Pigeon Mountain, I picked up two new species at The Pocket.  One of those was the Roundleaf Yellow Violet.

Roundleaf Yellow Violet

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Swamp Smartweed – Polygonum amphibium – Added to USWildflowers Database

Swamp Smartweed, a native knotweed species, has been added to the USWildflowers.com database.  Scientific name is Polygonum amphibium.  This plant goes by the  Common names Water Knotweed, Swamp Smartweed, Water Smartweed.

Swamp Smartweed from the BWCAW - Sep 1, 2005

American White Water Lily – Nymphaea odorata – Added to USWildflowers Database

American White Water Lily, a native waterlily species, has been added to the USWildflowers.com database.  Scientific name is Nymphaea odorata.  This plant also goes by the  Common names American White Water Lily, Fragrant Water Lily, White Water Lily.

American White Water Lily in the BWCAW

Purple Deadnettle – Lamium purpureum – Added to USWildflowers Database

Purple Deadnettle, a non-native mint species, has been added to the USWildflowers.com database.  Scientific name is Lamium purpureum.  This plant also goes by the common names of Red Deadnettle and Purple Archangel.

Purple Deadnettle blossom 03/19/2010

03/19/2010 The Pocket at Pigeon Mountain – The Variety Show Has Begun

A beautiful sunny day with temps near 70 drew Cindy and I down to The Pocket for a quick look around.  As anticipated, the Bloodroot has burst forth in all its glory.

Bloodroot from 03/19/2010

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Sweet Breath of Spring – Lonicera fragrantissima – Added to USWildflowers Database

Sweet Breath of Spring, a non-native honeysuckle species, has been added to the USWildflowers.com database.  Scientific name is Lonicera fragrantissima.  This sweet-smelling plant also goes by the common names of Fragrant Honeysuckle and January Jasmine.

Sweet Breath of Spring on 3/13/2010

03/13/2010 The Pocket at Pigeon Mountain – Bursting with Potential

The Georgia Botanical Society’s annual trek to The Pocket is on March 27 this year, and with the state of things last Saturday I was beginning to worry, so Cindy and I braved the cold and rain to make a status check in the boardwalk area on Saturday, March 13.  For those who read the last chapter 1st – I breathed a sigh of relief.

Early Bloodroot pushing through the leaves

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Common Chickweed – Stellaria media – Added to USWildflowers Database

Common chickweed, a non-native species considered by some to be invasive or weedy, has been added to the USWildflowers.com database.  Scientific name is Stellaria media.

Common Chickweed - Stellaria media

03/06/2010 The Pocket at Pigeon Mountain

Add common chickweed to Hepatica and Harbinger of Spring as the wildflowers in bloom in this late-starting season at The Pocket on Pigeon Mountain.  There is a lot of foliage pushing up, including the start of baby leaves of Trout Lily.  A huge area of beautiful Hepatica are blooming along the base of the bluff above the horse trail.

Deep blue Hepatica nobilis

I can’t get enough of the beautiful sharp-lobed hepatica this spring, and not just because it’s almost the only thing blooming…

White Trillium – Trillium flexipes – Added to USWildflowers Database

White Trillium, aka Nodding Wakerobin and Nodding Trillium, has been added to the USWildflowers.com database.  Scientific name is Trillium flexipes, so named because the blossom nods over on its pedicel.

Nodding Trillium - Trillium flexipes