Take a Virtual Walk in the Woods

For those whom COVID-19 is keeping isolated, please join me on a virtual walk through our woods. I'm one of the lucky ones who has little need to (or interest in) commingling with others. Some days, it pays to be an introvert.

Yesterday, March 12, I walked through our woods to check on the wildflowers now up, specifically the lilium types that I have surrounded with dog hair in an attempt to keep the deer from eating them. So far so good.

First stop, the trillium grove. Lots of sessile trillium, with their mottled leaves, will be blooming soon...

Sessile Trillium in bud

  Western Trillium, with flower stalks and unmottled leaves, seem to open first

Western Trillium

 Next stop was the lilium which I don't yet know what is because every year the deer or slugs or something underground eat it before it can bloom. This year I put a cage around it and then dog hair in hopes the predator smell would deter hungry herbivores. It now has an unopened bud... first time it has ever got that far!

  These plants were coming up nearby, but I think they are trilliums just starting to unfurl. We have lots of trillium. Nothing seems to eat them.

More trillium...

We have lots of yellow wood violets, too, but only a very few in bloom so far.

The first wildflowers always to bloom are the Cardamine types, which I call Spring Queens. I used to call them Spring Beauties but have learned that Spring Beauties have 5 petals and all these have 4. They are so confusing to me than I started an entire blog post on Cardamines (Toothworts) which are in the huge Mustard family:  https://fffwildflowers.blogspot.com/2014/03/toothworts.html

As I was looking up and down the creek for Dippers, I spotted a distant small bird with its feet in the water, shaking a long, small, something and, presumably eating it. It was so far away that I could not get a good photo, but it was definitely a Song Sparrow. After subduing the creature, the sparrow went right back into the water, looking for more. There are lots of tiny creatures in the creek so I guess this sparrow was finding what it could where it could. But I thought sparrows ate seeds. I guess those conical bills of theirs are good for more than cracking open seeds. Live and learn.

I have been seeing Ginger along the path, but could never find a flower... until this day. It is in the photo below, upper right corner, believe it or not.

Here it is close up.

And then I wound my way to the Columbia (Tiger) Lilies that are just now coming up. I know what they are because one or two years, one has managed to bloom before slugs or deer nipped off their buds. They are beautiful flowers and I'm hoping slugs don't like dog hair! Below are all three that are up this day. I'll go back down in a few days and take more photos of, hopefully, taller stalks.

Thank you for joining me on this virtual tour. Let's do it again soon!