Appalachian
Treasure Hunt
Journaling Native Plants of Northeast Georgia
J. Whalen
"The seasons, like greater tides, ebb and flow across the continents. Spring advances up the United States at the average rate of fifteen miles a day. It sweeps ahead like a flood of water, racing down the long valleys, creeping up the hillsides in a rising tide. Most of us, like the man who lives on the bank of a river and watches the stream flow by, see only one phase of the movement of spring. Each year the season advances toward us out of the south, sweeps around us, goes flooding away into the north. We see all phases of a single phase, all variations of this one chapter in the Odyssey of Spring. My wife and I dreamed of knowing something of all phases, of reading all possible chapters, of seeing, first hand, the long northward flow of the seasons." (From North With the Spring by Edwin Way Teale, 1951)
May 1
In May we can find the last of the native azaleas blooming: Flame Azaleas (Rhododendron calendulaceum, Ericaceae). These look so much like Oconee Azaleas that it's easy to be confused. Just remember that the Oconees bloom much earlier. (Unicoi State Park)
May 2
Mountain Laurel shrubs bloom alongside the Flame Azaleas in May in Northeast Georgia. The buds as well as the open blooms are beautiful from every angle. The inside of each small bloom has been said to resemble a beautiful piece of needlework. (Lake Winfield Scott)
By May every year the tree canopy has closed over. So the show moves to the roadsides!
This is one of the first sun-lovers we see: Small's Ragwort
(Packera anonyma, Asteraceae) Hall County
To the right is an Oxeye Daisy. It's actually not a native wildflower (it was brought here from Europe) but is often seen growing next to the golden ragworts. Since it has not been found to be a nuisance, it's one of everyone's favorites. (Chrysanthemum leucanthemum, Asteraceae) Lake Winfield Scott
May 3
May 4
If you are "of a certain age" you'll remember noticing these white blooms in early May and knowing that blackberry cobbler was in your future! (Rubus spp, Rosaceae) Hall County.
May 5
Golden Alexanders are eye-catching relatives of Queen Anne's Lace. (Zizia aurea, Amiaceae) Desota Falls State Park.
May 6
With a little wandering you'll discover that May has its share of reds. This one is called "Fire Pink", because the petals are "pinked," as in old fashioned pinking shears which cut zig-zags. (Silene virginica, Caryophyllaceae) Lake Winfield Scott.
May 7
This red beauty, Indian Pink, opens to show a yellow lining to the inside of the red exterior. Although it is more common a little west of Northeast Georgia, it will grow perfectly in this area if you can get the plants from a plant rescue. (Spigelia marilandica, Loganiaceae) Cohutta Wilderness Area
May 8
Indian Paint Brush (Castilleja coccinea, Scrophulariaceae) is a rare plant to spot in our area. This one was growing along highway 60 north of Dahlonega. You will need a "designated driver" along these curvy roads if you want to catch a glimpse of them. They were growing into the rock wall on the mountain side of the road.
May 9
Take a minute to appreciate the fragile new leaves that are on all the trees now. The "earlobes" on the top leaves tells us that this is a Frazer Magnolia (Magnolia frazeri, Magnoliaceaae). The leaves to the left are on a shrub-sized chestnut tree. In the next year or two they will be attacked by the chestnut fungus which devastated the east coast forests in the early 1900's and still thrives today.
May 10
The Fleabanes (Erigonum philadelphicus, Asteraceae) begin to open their delicate "daisies" in May, and the three foot tall plants will continue to decorate the roadsides all summer. Because ot the common name we can guess that they were used to repel fleas.
May 11
Just when you think trillium season is over, you may come across a fragile single bloom that is still hanging on to life. This one, a painted trillium (Trillium undulatum, Liliaceae) was seen on a rainy day in May in Union County.
May 12
Sundrops (Oenothera fruiticosa, Onagraceae) can often be seen on granite outcrops such as the Rock and Shoals preserve near Athens.
May 13
Pipsissiwa (Chimaphila maculata, Ericaceae) has evergreen leaves that can be spotted along woodland paths in the winter. The common name is a Creek Indian word that implies medicinal use to cure unrinary problems.
May 14
Umbrella Leaf (Dyphilleia cymosa, Berbericaceae) has HUGE leaves as you might guess. The small clusters of white flowers are lovely, but the fall blue berries and bright red stalks are the showiest. Always look for Umbrella Leaf along shady creek banks. (Sosebee Cove)
May 15
Showy Orchis (Galearis spectabilis, Orchidaceae)
Lake Winfield Scott (left)
Below: Yellow Lady Slipper (Cypripedium parviflorum, Orchidaceae)
Union County
Left: Pink Lady Slipper, Moccasin Flower (Cypripedium acaule, Orchidaceae) Vogel State Park.
The rich humus which makes up most of the soil in the mountainous areas of Northeast Georgia is a perfect home for members of the orchid family. Many of our orchids are so tiny that they are easy to overlook. These three, however, are hard to miss...if you look in the right places. Showy Orchis and Yellow Lady slippers are more rare, and are often loners. Pink Lady Slippers are more common and can often be found in large colonies. This picture was taken along the Bear Hair Gap Trail in Vogel State Park on May 15. It was one of about 25 growing together.
May 16
The tiny white flowers of Woodland Stonecrop are now blooming above the succulent green leaves that have been there all winter. (Sedum ternatum, Crassulaceae) Union County
May 17
Purple Flowering Raspberry (Rubus odoratus, Rosaceae). The flowers are beautiful, but the berries are hard and, though edible, are not particularly tasty. (Sosebee cove)
May 18
When the tree canopy closes over around the first of May, the woodland flowers begin to disappear. Taking their place are the flowering shrubs of summer. This one is Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis, Caprifoliaceae). The flat-topped clusters of fragrant white flowers bloom along roadsides and sunny places in the woods. Animals and birds know to hang around until September to enjoy the tasty and nutritious berries.
May 19
Catawba Rhododendron is the first of our native rhododendrons to bloom and is often found growing next to the Mountain Laurels. This was one of many growing around and inside of Tallulah Gorge. Rhododendron catawbiense, Ericaceae (Rabun County)
May 20
Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium augustifolium, Iridaceae) is a little taller than Yellow Star Grass. As you can see from its name, it's in the iris family.
Yellow Star Grass below (Hypoxis hirsuta, Hypoxidaceae) is only a few inches tall. For ID, look for the fuzzy stems
May 21
Lousewort (Pedicularis canadensis, Scrophulariaceae) is a semi-parasitic plant which gets some of it's nourishment from the roots of other plants. The common name refers to the belief that animals who grazed on the plant would get lice.
May 22.
Carolina Silverbell (Halsia carolina, Styraceae) is also known as Mountain Silverbell. Its interesting seedpods can be useful in identification and can be seen in late summer or fall. Union County
May 23
Our latest blooming violet is the Canada violet (Viola canadensis, Violaceae). It's also our tallest violet (it gets more than 8 inches tall) and is fragrant.
May 24
Leather Flower is a rare find, in part because it is the flower of a vine (Clematis crispa, Ranunculaceae) and is often obscured in a tangle of leaves. Look for it at Sosebee Cove in May.
May 25
Dwarf Crested Iris (Iris cristata, Iridaceae) forms colonies along the hill and mountain sides in Northeast Georgia and seeing one of these swaths of blue in May is breathtaking. Look for the fuzzy white and yellow "crest" on the three sepals, with solid blue petals in between.
May 26
By May the Mayapple flowers have disappeared but the apples remain. I've read that box turtles often enjoy these fruits and disperse the seeds. (Podophyllum peltatum, Berberidaceae)
May 27
Clinton's Lily (Clintonia borealis, Liliaceae) can be found along woodland trails, and will be noticed first for its shiny dark green leaves. Stop and appreciate the delicate white flowers clusters. The roots contain an anti-inflamatory agent and were particularly useful when doctors were scarce. (Jarrard Gap Trail, Union County)
May 28
Become a part of the "Monarch Corridor" along the east coast. If you have several of these milkweeds in your native plant garden watch for the migrating monarchs who will leave their tiny white eggs behind sticking under the milkweed leaves. Interesting yellow and black caterpillars will hatch from the eggs. When these have had their feast of milkweed leaves they will spin a gray chrysalis around themselves. The chrysalis will split open shortly to reveal beautiful newborn monarch butterflies. These new butterflies will remember your plants and return again next year to lay their eggs.
May 29
One of our native locusts, Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia, Fabaceae), blooms in great fragrant panicles of white in May. Bees love it for their spring honey-making frenzy.
May 30
This little beauty is Indian Cucumber Root (Medeola virginiana, Liliaceae). The roots, as you might guess, are edible and taste like cucumber. Native Americans also used the roots for fish bait.
May 31
There may be a few red berries still hanging on to the May groundcover of Partridge-berry vines, but by the end of May the vines should be covered with lots of "twin flowers" like the ones above. By fall the ovaries of these two flowers will have fused to form one red berry. Take a closer look now, or then, to see the two tiny marks indicating that the berry came from two flowers! (Tallulah Falls State Park) Michella repens, Rubiaceae
Fishing under the Mountain Laurel
Field of Buttercups, Lumpkin County
