March 23rd, 2012. We had a few hours. The weather wasn’t great but we felt like getting out. So we drove one of the back roads in Wilkes County, Georgia. We drove out to Lexington on US-78 and turned north on GA-77 to the road marked as the Saxon-Mattox Road. It’s the last road before the Broad River crossing. This road runs from Saxon to Norman and then to Broad. On DeLorme’s Georgia Atlas & Gazetteer, the road begins as Goose Pond Road and then becomes CR-113 to Norman. The section from Norman to Broad is Norman Rd NE. We didn’t really expect to see much but we were really in for a pleasant surprise. This road runs roughly parallel to the Broad River through dry pine and deciduous forests. Periodically the road dips to cross creeks that drain into the Broad River.
We encountered the spring beauties in the moist areas on either side of the creeks. Their pink, cup-shaped blooms were clearly visible above the grass by the side of the road and in the adjacent fields.
The plants themselves appeared insignificant. It was difficult to distinguish the leaves from the grass blades because Claytonia virginica has such slender leaves. Note the Poison Ivy to the left of the claytonia; it's that time of year again!
A side view of the plant showing the raceme arrangement of the flowers
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Closer views of the flowers.
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Variations in the shape of the petals of some flowers.
Claytonia virginica is native to the United States and is found from Quebec to Texas. In Georgia, it has been found in several counties across the state although not in the coastal plain counties. It has not been documented in Wilkes County although, clearly, it occurs there. We found it in the surrounds at every creek crossing along this road. Although usually called Spring Beauty, I prefer the name Virginia Springbeauty to differentiate this species from the 28 Claytonia species that may be found in the United States
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Identification resources:
- Southeastern Flora: Claytonia virginica (Spring Beauty)
- Name that Plant:
Claytonia virginica (Spring Beauty)
Distribution:
- University of Norh Carolina Herbarium: Claytonia virginica- USDA Plants Database: Claytonia virginica (Virginia Springbeauty)
Related post:
- Saxon-Norman-Broad, Wilkes County, Georgia: Prostrate Blue Violet, Green-and-gold & Trumpet Honeysuckle
March 17th. 2012. Last year, in June, we visited the Scull Shoals Experimental Forest in the Oconee National Forest near a swamp on Sandy Creek and found a number of interesting plants. Among them was a trillium that had developed seeds. We decided that we wanted to revisit this area earlier in the Spring to look for trilliums in bloom. We’d checked the location a couple of times but didn’t find any. Last Saturday, however, was different.
We drove along the road that parallels a swamp along the creek. We weren’t overly hopeful but then I spotted one on the bank above the road. And it was blooming!
Trillium cuneatum (Little Sweet Betsy). I clambered up the slope – no mean feat – over a carpet of loose leave and managed to settle next the plant without slipping down the slope again. (It’s been known to happen)
A closer view of the leaves and bloom. This is a relatively young plant, and…
of the flower. This flower is fully opened. The bracts are folded back against the leaves and the petals have opened as far as they will. The stamen are visible between the petals. These maroon/gold stamen are characteristic of this species.
While I was up on the slope, W was looking around on the other side of the road. He spotted..
this cluster of older plants. They blended into their background so well that he had to point them out to me. These plants were…
still in the budding stage.
A close view of the bud.
We wandered along the road to where we saw the trillium last year. Behind a tree not far from the road, W found this…
cluster of plants in various stages of blooming. This was the largest stand of trilliums that we found here.
This bud is just opening
The bracts are partially folded back
The bracts have folded back fully and the petals have opened
A close view of the maroon/gold stamen that are characteristic of this species
We were excited to find these plants. We found many more on both sides of the road in this small, shaded area where a small stream empties into the swamp. This find was well worth the wait!
Trillium cuneatum is known by the common names Little Sweet Betsy, Purple Toadshade, Whippoorwill Flower, and Large Toadshade. It is stalked, had mottled leaves and erect flowers that are purple to brown. The anthers and stamen are a characteristic maroon and gold. Trillums are found in Asia and North America. This species is found in the eastern United States from Pennsylvania and Illinois south and southeast to Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi.
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Identification resources:
- Southeastern Flora: Trillium cuneatum (Little Sweet Betsy)
- Native and Naturalized Plants of the Carolinas and Georgia: Trillium cuneatum (Little Sweet Betsy, Purple Toadshade, Whippoorwill Flower)
Distribution:
- University of North Carolina Herbarium: Trillium cuneatum
- USDA Plants Database: Trillium cuneatum (Little Sweet Betsy)
Related Posts:
- Plants We Find In The Woods At Dusk
- 2010: Year Of The Wildflower – Wildflower Index
Joy, at A-roving I Will Go, has just honored this blog with a Liebster award. 
Liebster – and she struggles desperately to remember her high school German and, luckily, Google Translate concurs – means ‘favorite.’ An award is one thing but ‘favorite’ is quite another. Wow! What a wonderful surprise! Thanks so much Joy!The Liebster Award is a way for bloggers to spread the word about other small blogs. The rules for giving the award are:- Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you (done, see above)
- Reveal the five blogs (with fewer than 200 followers each, though this is my best estimate) you have chosen (see below) and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog (to do)
- Copy and paste the award onto your blog (see above)
- Request the people you have chosen to receive the award pass it on to five of their favourite bloggers (consider it done)
And the winners, in alphabetical order, are:- Beyond My Garden: Beyond My Garden explores nature both in and, as the name suggests, beyond her garden.
- Count Your Chicken! We’re Taking Over: Jill goes all over in search of wildlife photographs; you never know where she’ll turn up next.
- Georgia Girl With An English Heart: Kay’s sharing life and nature in the Atlanta, Georgia area
- Rebecca In The Woods: Rebecca’s pursuing postgraduate studies in the North Woods and sharing her adventures with us along the way.
- Slugyard - The World Beyond Your Door: Mike shows us just how much we can find in our own yards!
Congratulations and keep up the great work!
Continued from here…
March 10th, 2012. On our recent trip to the Piedmont NWR a couple of weeks ago, we saw Dimpled Troutlilies just beginning to bloom. We figured that they’d be full bloom now so we drove back down to photograph them.
We took a slightly different route from our last trip. We took the route from GA-83 south on Starr Road through the Oconee National Forest into the NWR. We drove through Tribble Fields to the bridge over Little Falling Creek and then north to Pond 2A. We returned the way we’d come and then took the first road on the right down to the Round Tree – Juliette Rd, drove east and then back into the NWR on the first road on the left. From there we drove north to the intersection with Sugar Hill Road, turned west and forded Stalking Head Creek. We then drove north and took the first road on the right to ford Stalking Head Creek again, east past a small pond and southeast to meet Sugar Hill Road again and then east to GA-11.
The last surprise on this trip was an accidental discovery. I’d gone down the slope to look at the small patch of Mayapple plants and started to wander around looking for trilliums. And, at the base of a tree nearby, I found some…
Fungi. Five of them in a neat row. The largest was about 1-1/2 inches in diameter.
A closer view. At first I thought they were puffballs. They were growing along a short section of a fallen branch; I wondered if they were attached to it. So I picked up the branch carefully. Three of the fungi remained attached to the branch. Upon closer examination I realized they were cup fungi. The others were growing in the leaf litter. A ‘Google’ search revealed that they are Urnula craterium, known by the common names Devil’s Urn or Black Tulip fungus.
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Views of these fungi from the side
A closer view showing the spore-bearing surface inside the cup. There’s a nice diagram of the structure of the cup fungi here.
I’ve seen very few cup fungi so this was an exciting find for me and these were beautiful specimens. Interestingly, upon reviewing the photo of the trilliums I posted here, I can see two more of these fungi at 4 o’clock to the trilliums. One is quite obvious and the other is sitting at an angle and not so obvious; these were not growing on wood. Apparently it’s quite common in the eastern United States in the Spring. I’ll have to wander around in the leaf litter in the woods more often.
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Identification resources:
- Jim Conrad, Backyard Nature: Devil's Urn (Urnula craterium)
Related Posts:
- Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge: Late Winter Surprises (Part 4)
- Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge: Late Winter Surprises (Part 3)
- Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge: Late Winter Surprises (Part 2)
- Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge: Late Winter Surprises (Part 1)
- Piedmont NWR: The First Dimpled Troutlily (Erythronium umbilicatum) Of Spring
Continued from here…March 10th, 2012. On our recent trip to the Piedmont NWR a couple of weeks ago, we saw Dimpled Troutlilies just beginning to bloom. We figured that they’d be full bloom now so we drove back down to photograph them.
We took a slightly different route from our last trip. We took the route from GA-83 south on Starr Road through the Oconee National Forest into the NWR. We drove through Tribble Fields to the bridge over Little Falling Creek and then north to Pond 2A. We returned the way we’d come and then took the first road on the right down to the Round Tree – Juliette Rd, drove east and then back into the NWR on the first road on the left. From there we drove north to the intersection with Sugar Hill Road, turned west and forded Stalking Head Creek. We then drove north and took the first road on the right to ford Stalking Head Creek again, east past a small pond and southeast to meet Sugar Hill Road again and then east to Ga-11.
Wild Turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo). We almost ran down this pair of wild turkeys – Mum and Dad – following the kids who were already making their way down the slope from the road and up the hill on the other side of the gully. Interestingly, they seemed totally unfazed by our suddenly coming up on them. They simply sauntered off down the slope. Not the hustling to get off the road and into the woods that is their usually behavior. In spite of their leisurely pace, always, by the time we got the truck stopped, turned on the camera, got into position for a shot, I could only get a view of their backs. Ah, well…
One of the kids making its way up the hill on the other side of the gully
Further along the road, we reached one of the areas where…
Red-cockaded Woodpeckers (Picoides borealis) nest. The red-brown spot at the bottom of the trunk is a metal plate that has been placed to protect a nest box entry. Woodpeckers have been working the holes above recently but we’ve yet to see the birds in person. It’s coming up on breeding season so, maybe, this year.
We turned west on Sugar Hill Rd and made our way down to Stalking Head Creek. On the way, we ran across another family of Wild Turkeys.
This isn’t a great shot but if you enlarge it – click on it – you might be able to see the tom displaying. These turkeys were also heading in the same general direction as the first family – towards the hunting-free zone near Allison Creek. I joked that they were going there to find sanctuary in the hunting-free zone around the woodpecker nesting area ahead of the turkey hunting season scheduled for a few weeks from now.
Last year, we saw Mayapple (Phodophyllum peltatum) plants at the edge of the road after we climbed out of Stalking Head Creek. Since there was a wide ledge on the north side of the road at the creek, it seemed worthwhile looking around here.
I looked down the slope from the road and spotted a small patch of Mayapple plants. All were single stalked – not going to bloom this year.
From above… There is a single, ‘circular’ leaf, indicating that the stalk is not forked.
At about the same time, W spotted a larger patch of plants on the other side of the road.
These were older plants and were setting blooms. (The leaves of this plant are a little the worse for wear; they may have suffered from dehydration)
There are two leaves – two halves of the ‘circular’ leaf - when the stalk is forked. The developing bloom is just visible.
The bud has developed from the fork.
A closer view of the bud in profile
. We'll be following these plants.
We found trilliums here too.
We didn’t go down onto the ledge above the creek but as we drove up the hill, we saw a larger patch of May Apples further along the ledge. This area will be worth walking when we have more time. In addition, we had seen a large patch of green – possibly covering an acre or so - east of the road up to Pond 2A. We had wondered if they were May Apples but thought it was too early for them. Looks like we’ll be coming back to follow these plants. To be continued…
Click on an image to view a larger image
Identification resources:
- Southeastern Flora: May Apple (Podophyllum peltatum)
- Name That Plant. Native and Naturalized Plants of the Carolinas and Georgia: Podophyllum peltatum (May-apple, American Mandrake)
Distribution:
- University of North Carolina Herbarium: Podophyllum peltatum
- USDA Plants Database: Podophyllum peltatum (Mayapple)
Related Posts:
- Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge: Late Winter Surprises (Part 3)
- Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge: Late Winter Surprises (Part 2)
- Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge: Late Winter Surprises (Part 1)
- Piedmont NWR: The First Dimpled Troutlily (Erythronium umbilicatum) Of Spring
- 2010: Year Of The Wildflower – Wildflower Index
The plants themselves appeared insignificant. It was difficult to distinguish the leaves from the grass blades because Claytonia virginica has such slender leaves. Note the Poison Ivy to the left of the claytonia; it's that time of year again!
A side view of the plant showing the raceme arrangement of the flowers
*****
Closer views of the flowers. 
*****
Variations in the shape of the petals of some flowers.
