The Wild And Some Cultivated

We have arrived at another Bloom Day. It is a good time to have a look at the wild gardens. April is generally their best time for bloom, before the trees fully leaf out and shade the forest floor. Anemone quinquefolia, Wood Anemone, joins numerous white flowered wild flowers in the forest. A spider lurks.



Jack in the Pulpit, Arisaema triphyllum are popping up all over.



The trilliums continue to appear. I have found more and a different red flowered species in the garden becoming.



I still want to relocate some of the Trillium grandiflorum into the more cultivated parts of the garden. These have the most impact for Bloom Day purposes.



While not in bloom, the showy foliage of the Rattlesnake Plantain, actually the orchid Goodyera pubescens is very attractive. I find them scattered through out the forest.



The odd looking Squaw Root, Conopholis americana is a parasitic perennial herb primarily on the roots of oak trees. In the spring, around the base of many of our oaks are large colonies of this odd plant.



Closer to civilization the small Narcissus bulbocodium has come into bloom. I wonder when it will bloom in a normal spring?



The Black Iris was moved to a safer location last year and is blooming much too early. A hint of its true color is revealed.



Camassia bloom on a April Bloom Day that reached 82 degrees. Can you frickin' believe it? 82 degrees. Despite a low of 26.5 a few short days ago these high temperatures are causing the rhododendron buds to swell. They could be in full bloom in another two weeks if this keeps up, three weeks ahead of my planned date for a peak showing. At least they weren't frozen like so many of the deciduous and evergreen azaleas. Many of them lost their blooms for this season. Even the new growth on the Kalmias got froze.



I feel confident I am not the only one with plenty of blooms on a Bloom Day that seems slightly out of whack. You can confirm that by visiting Bloom Day Central.



The sun looks to be in its usual position for this time of year, setting in the right location. At least we can depend on that.