July 6th. I started to walk again at Fort Yargo State Park
in Winder, Georgia. One of my favorite walks is from the Group Shelter A to the Old Fort and back.This
is a rewarding walk for viewing wildflowers and I’ve been trying to walk it
weekly and document the wildflowers I see.
The route, which I described here, here, and here. The early spring wildflowers have finished blooming; it’s time to
watch the developing fruit. A few late spring/summer wildflowers are blooming
now.
Starry Rosinweed (Silphium astericus) were still blooming by
the trail just beyond the Strawberry Bush. I wonder how long they will continue
to bloom.
The seed capsules were still developing on this Strawberry
Bush (Euonymus americanus). The seed capsules may have swollen slightly but
there weren’t as many as there had been at first.
A small Hairy Angelica (Angelica venenosa) was blooming. It
was barely three feet tall. At one time, there were several large plants in
this area. I wonder if continued mowing of the area, particularly at the wrong
time, has resulted in their demise.
A small Spurred Butterflypea (Centrosema virginanum) vine
was starting to bloom. The vine was climbing up a blackberry cane; the flowers
was partly hidden by its leaves.
The surviving Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum biflorum) plants,
that had not been eaten, still had berries that were ripening. They ripen
fairly slowly.
There is a large fallen log between the Solomon’s Seal plants grow and the first bridge. As I walked past, I
saw some, what I through at the time were Coral Slime (Ceratiomyxa
fruticulosa var. fruticulosa)
fruting bodies. I almost didn’t stop to photograph them but they were in a much
more open, sunny area than I would expect to see these. I photographed them
almost half-heartedly. Imagine my surprise when I processed the images to find
that I had photographed…
Ceratiomyxa fruticulosa var. porioides
fruiting bodies early in their formation. The fruiting bodies were still
transparent, and it was easy to see the honeycomb structure. This was another
one of the slime molds that I hadn’t expected to ever see. An exciting find!
The seed capsules on the Pipsissewa (Chimaphila maculata)
just past the first bridge, were still healthy – and enchanting.
The seed capsule on the Eastern Sweetshrub (Calycanthus
floridus) plant was still hard. I’m very hopeful that it will ‘make it’ now.
The seed capsules on Wild Yam (Dioscorea villosa) vines were
still doing nicely too. Once I found them, I haven’t had much doubt that they
would survive to maturity; my only regret is that I missed the very early stage
of their development.
The seed capsules on the witchhazel bush (Hamamelis sp.) were
still doing well. I haven’t seen any attrition of these at all. But, on this
occasion, a change caught my eye.
Small ‘growths’ at the leaf axils. The first signs of flower
buds for this season. Judging by the number, I don’t think there will be as
many flowers as last season.
The seed capsules are still healthy on the Mountain Azalea
(Rhododendron canescens) bush at the top of the cliff.
The Nakedflower Ticktrefoil (Desmodium nudiflorum) stalks were still blooming. I noticed,
when processing this image, that there is a tiny seed pod forming at the right
side of the flower stalk. Did you know that the seed pod of a leguminous plant
like this is called a loment? A loment, when mature, breaks up into one-seeded
joints.
The seed capsule on the Eastern Sweetshrub bush
at the top of the cliff. This combined image shows the capsule partially hidden
under the leaves (left), and with the leaves held aside (right). It’s easy to
miss this capsule if I forget to look.
Just a little further along the trail above the
cliff, I found a…
small Dog Vomit (Fuligo septica) fruiting
structure. The white material at the left is plasmodium that has not been
incorporated in the fruiting structure. I had never seen a Fuligo septica
fruiting structure as yellow as this one.
I walked down towards the Fishing Area and found
these fruit, drupes, on a…
Blackgum (Nyssa sylvatica) tree. I had seen
flowers in the past but this was the first time I had seen the fruit.
I walked over the bridge into the Fishing Area.
Fruit are still in the early stages of development
on the Buttonbushes (Cephalanthus
occidentalis). I’ve never seen these mature before either so I’m following them
with some interest.
The fruit on the Silky Dogwood (Cornus
alternifolia) and the…
Hazel Alder (Alnus serrulata) looked healthy.
Sadly, these bushes were pruned severely and I won’t see these mature this
year.
The final sighting before heading towards the ‘Rock Garden’
was Carolina Wild Petunia (Ruellia caroliniensis), quietly blooming in the
shade near the point.
(To be continued…)
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