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| Rue Anemone (Thalictrum thalictroides) |
Ok, ok, I know, everybody here in Ohio is tired of the ark jokes. Just to fill you in, if you live somewhere else, it has been the rainiest April
EVER in the recorded history of Ohio with 13.52 inches of rain! Yeah, kinda insane. Consequently, the ark jokes overfloweth.
Though we are all water-logged here, the good news is that the wildflowers and mushrooms have been more abundant than ever. As I've been super duper busy with school and the countdown to finals, I haven't gotten around to posting the
tons of pictures I've taken or writing about the spring blossomings (sorry).
So this will mostly be a picture gallery to catch you up. Enjoy and don't forget to comment; I'd love to hear all about your spring adventures.
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| Redbud flowers (Cercis canadensis) |
The buds and flowers of the Redbud are sooo tasty! Great in salads.
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| Ground ivy (Glechoma hederacea) |
Ground ivy is a mint and removes lead from the body.
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| Dwarf Larkspur (Delphinium tricorne) |
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| Ramps/Wild Leeks (Allium tricoccum) |
Ramps are a native delicacy in some areas.
Use like onions, especially good sauteed in olive oil with morels.
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| Sweet White Violet (Viola blanda) |
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| Toad Trillium (Trillium sessile) |
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| Celandine Poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum) |
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| Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium reptans) |
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| Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense) |
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| Wild Ginger flower |
Tastes ginger-ish and grows in wet places. This beautiful flower is pollinated by beetles.
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| May Apple (Podophyllum peltatum) |
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| May Apple flower |
Not sure if it's true, but I've heard it takes seven years for May Apples to fruit. All parts of the plant are poisonous, except for the ripe fruit, but good luck getting some before the local fauna.
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| Dogwood flower (Cornus canadensis) |
This was a sweet shot of this dogwood blossom after it had fallen onto some deadwood.
Lots of fallen dogwood flowers litter the ground after all the storms lately.
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| Shooting Star (Dodecatheon meadia) |
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| Shooting Star |
This was the first time I've seen these in the wild. Awesome!
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| Jack in the Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum) |
I love the fantastic fantasy-like colors and shape of these.
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| Ohio Buckeye (Aesculus glabra) |
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| Ohio Buckeye |
Ah, the state tree.
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| Germinating acorns |
This was so cool to see a bunch of these germinating right in the middle of the muddy trail today.
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| Paw paw flower Asimina triloba) |
One of my very favorite plants and fruits! The flower is pollinated by flies. Some people tie bags of rotten meat in the trees to attract the pollinators. The paw paw is the largest native fruit in North America. It tastes like banana custard, yum!
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| The Magical Morel Mushrooms (Morchella spp.) |
Morels are another local delicacy. The tastiest mushroom! It's always an adventure morel hunting; some days you'll find one, some days you'll find twenty. They smell and taste earthy and tempting. With the ridiculous amount of rainfall we've had, they are popping up more this year, often in the most unexpected places.
Some people say all this rain is a natural progression, like the ice ages, some say it's climate change, some say it's a spiritual lesson about slowing down. Maybe it's all of the above, but it definitely makes me think about what water means to to life . . . and how fun it is to jump in puddles!
