Botany Vocabulary Word of the Day

Ephemeral: short lived

Cardamine concatenata

Spring in Middle Tennessee might be its best season. Beautiful ephemeral wildflowers begin emerging from the leaf litter in February. Trillium, Spring beauty, Toothworts, False Rue anemone, Rue anemone, Dutchman's Breeches, Troutlily, Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum), Virginia Bluebells and Hepatica are a few of the ephemerals that can be seen in nearby parks and woodlands.

Found throughout the eastern United States and Canada, spring ephemerals thrive on the floor of rich, undisturbed woodlands. They are also very happy in the right garden setting. Most plants are available from brick and mortar native plant nurseries and the internet, so please don't dig them from woodlands, leave them for other critters to enjoy.

The solitary bee, Andrena erigeniae  specializes on Spring Beauties/Claytonia virginica

These remarkable and fragile beauties emerge early each spring, taking advantage of the rich, moist soil and full sunlight streaming through the bare branches of the deciduous trees. In the short period of time before the tree canopy emerges and blocks the sunlight they must grow, leaf-out, flower, be pollinated and produce seeds. This is called the epigeous or above ground growth phase. Once they fade they enter the hypogeous, or below ground growth phase when roots and buds are busy developing.

Freezes and frosts don't faze them. They grow very low to the sun warmed soil and some, even have hairy leaves/stems or leaves that wrap around the emerging buds, trapping warm air that keeps them from freezing.

 Enemion biternatum/False Rue anemone

They're a vital food source for pollinators at a time when there is little food available. Honeybees, bumbles, carpenter bees, flies and beetles seek out their pollen and/or nectar and ants feed on the elaiosome that surrounds some seeds. Their thick, fleshy, nutrient and carbohydrate rich corms, roots and tubers are especially attractive to white footed mice, chipmunks and voles.

So get out there and enjoy them while you can! It's already getting warm in Nashville and they'll be retreating underground before you know it.

xoxogail

Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.

The Spring Ephemerals Are Awake!

The soil had barely warmed up before they pushed out and began to unfurl their leaves and buds. 

 leaves trap warm air to protect the buds from spring cold snaps

 Such remarkable and fragile beauties. Ephemerals emerge early each spring, taking advantage of the rich, moist soil and full sunlight streaming through the bare branches of the deciduous trees. In the short period of time before the tree canopy emerges and blocks the sunlight they must grow, leaf-out, flower, be pollinated, produce seeds and die back (retreat underground).

the earliest to bloom are closer to the warm soil

The earliest to bloom in my garden are Cut-leaved toothwort/Cardamine concatenata, Hepatica and Spring Beauties/Claytonia virginica. They're just what this gardener needed to remind me that even though it's been cold and gray that spring is on the way.(Spring Beauty post)

These are flowers that one never has to worry will be nipped by the vagaries of our spring weather! They grow very low to the sun warmed soil and they often have either hairy leaves/stems or leaves that wrap around the emerging buds that trap warm air and keep them from freezing.

Isn't nature amazing!

dense hairs trap heat and protect the blooms

I don't mind crawling around on my hands and knees to look into those pretty faces.

they are visited by all kinds of critters

Of course, they're more than just a pretty face!

They're a vital food source for pollinators at a time when there is little food available. They are visited by many different critters, including honeybees, bumbles, carpenter bees, flies, beetles and their seeds are a primary food for ants. (Ants have a special relationship with the seeds of ephemerals, but, I'll save that story for another time!)

If you're like me and want to help pollinators get a good start in spring, then plant more spring ephemerals in your woodland garden. Please don't dig them them from the wild and be sure any you purchase are certified nursery grown!


The pollinators and other beneficial insects will thank you by making a home in your garden.
xoxogail

PS It bears repeating...If you want a happy and healthy garden with lots of insect visitors then never, ever, ever, ever use pesticides and be careful which flowers you bring home. You want to make sure they haven't been pre-treated with any pesticides that might harm your pollinators.


 Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.

Clay and Limestone's Season Openers

The season is starting to heat up and the earliest of the native plants are blooming.

Dentaria laciniata/Cardamine concatenata, also known as Cutleaf Toothwort is our opening act.  It's one of my favorite of the Spring Ephemerals that grace this garden starting in late February.

 Like many early blooming spring wildflowers this one is low to the ground (and you can count on getting dirty knees trying to take a decent photo).  While you're crawling around you might notice their sweet fragrance.  It's especially noticeable on sunny warm days.  The pollinators appreciate their scent; look for honey bees, bumblebees, Mason bees, Cuckoo bees, Miner bees, Halictid bees, and Andrenid bees which are attracted to its nectar.

My favorite Toothwort photo from a past season

This is a common plant in Middle Tennessee and if you have one plant, you will soon have more. It spreads by rhizome and seed. But, don't be afraid, it's an ephemeral and will disappear after setting seed.

Claytonia virginica is also in bloom all over the neighborhood.  It blankets neighboring lawns for almost a month and makes me green with envy!  I am working hard to add this pretty to the garden and I am happy to say~it's working.  It prefers dappled sunlight with rich loamy soil.  

It looks fantastic in lawns and if you can delay mowing and let it go to seed you won't ever be sorry.

False Rue Anemone

The anemones are also opening.  Enemion biternatum blooms first and produces a beautiful leafy mat with a few scattered flowers and prefers partial sun, slightly moist, rich loamy soil with abundant leaf mould.

Such a pretty face.  You can totally understand why I don't mind crawling around on the ground to see them!

xxoogail

Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone." She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.

Clay and Limestone's Spring Ephemerals

Neither rain, nor cold, or even more rain, can stop the delightful harbingers of springtime that are blooming all over Clay and Limestone. The delicate white or pinkish flowers of ephemerals bloom early in spring, set seed, then disappear until the next spring. I love them all~But, please, don't ask me to choose which one is my favorite. No way, not now, not ever, would I be able to choose.

Could you?

Claytonia virginica or Spring Beauty

Would you choose the candy striped Spring Beauty? Claytonia virginica's flowers are about the size of a dime with five petals that spread wide as the sun warms them. From a distance, the flowers appear white, but, each petal is suffused with a delicate network of pastel pink veins. Those pink veins are nectar guides. Spring Beauties are pollinated by over 100 species of insects. That's a lot of bees, flies and other winged creatures relying on nectar and pollen. That makes them an important early food source.

Hepatica acutiloba or Sharp lobed hepatica

Does your taste run to hepaticas? Another, small and delightful white flower that leans toward pink. It appears to emerge leafless from the soil, but, if you look closely you'll see last summer's deep purple brown, heart shaped leaf nearby. Be careful when you're cleaning them up each fall~those leaves are an important food source for the plant all winter. Small bees collect pollen, while Syrphid flies and other flies feed on the pollen. Bee visitors include honeybees, Small Carpenter bees, Andrenid bees, and Halictid bees.

Dentaria laciniata or Cut-leaved toothwort

Perhaps, you would choose the perfumed flowers of Cut-leaved toothwort! This is a common plant in Middle Tennessee, but that would never detract from its charm. If you have one plant, you will soon have more. It spreads by rhizome and seed~But, don't be afraid...It's an ephemeral and will disappear after setting seed. Look for honey bees, bumblebees, Mason bees, Cuckoo bees, Miner bees, Halictid bees, and Andrenid bees.

Isopyrum/Enemion biternatum or False rue anemone

False rue anemone is a lovely ground cover with columbine like leaves and the sweetest delicate white flower that is often confused with Rue anemones ( Thalictrum thalictroides). This is another little spring flower that makes pollen, but, no nectar. Small bees and flies visit to collect or feed on the pollen.

Erigenia bulbosa or Harbinger-of-Spring

Harbinger-of-Spring is the earliest and smallest of the spring flowers to bloom in my garden. The pure white flowers and chocolate colored anthers contrast beautifully and, are surely, the reason for one of the common names, "Pepper and Salt". Little Carpenter bees, Mason bees, and flower flies visit for nectar. It grows in rich moist woodlands.

What do you think is emerging!

So, tell me my friends~Could you choose a favorite among these pretties?

xxoogail

This post was written by Gail Eichelberger for my blog Clay and Limestone Copyright 2011.This work protected under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Please contact me for permission to copy, reproduce, scrape, etc.