A trip up Hwy. 276 in Greenville County, SC to Brevard, NC and the Pisgah National Forest — 2015-04-23

Yesterday, I made my spring pilgrimage up Hwy. 276 in Greenville County, SC to Brevard, NC and the Pisgah National Forest. On or around this date in previous years, I’ve seen a number of pretty wildflowers including orchids in bloom. I was especially interested in one orchid species in particular, Isotria verticillta or Large Whorled Pogonia orchid. There is a special site for it in downtown Brevard, NC (Transylvania County) on private property. In the past, we have seen hundreds in flower at one time, but today, there were no more than a couple of dozen, at most. It was a bit of a disappointment, but I’m always happy to find any orchids to photograph. Here are some shots of the few that were in flower:

Also at that location, were a large number of Uvularia puberula or Mountain Bellwort in bloom. Although they are smaller than our other native Bellworts, I find them very attractive:

And, trying to hide in the corner, was a beautiful pair of Trillium grandiflorum or Large-flower Trillium:

As I pointed out in a previous post, the great majority of this species is pure white, and as they age, they turn a gorgeous pink shade. There is a form of Large-flower Trillium that begins pink and remains that way until maturity — I believe this represents this form, Trillium grandiflorum forma roseum. A very handsome plant, regardless of the name. A photograph of this forma appears on the front of the dust jacket of Fred and Roberta Case’s book, Trilliums.

After photographing the plants at this site, I drove the short distance into the Pisgah National Forest, where I was hoping to find Galearis spectabilis or Showy orchis. Last year was a banner year for this species at my favorite site for them in the Pisgah NF. This year, there were fewer plants in bloom, and the flower scapes were smaller. Who knows why the plants did not show as well this year. In any case, here are a few of the Showy orchis flowers that I was able to photograph:

This one, in particular, was especially interesting because of the blush of purple on the lip:

Nearby, actually scattered along the edge of the forest service road, were clumps of Trillium plants. They are really unusual, having a wide variation in coloration. Here are some shots of the flowers I saw. I had to tilt the plants over to photograph them, because these are “nodding” Trilliums, whose flowers hang beneath the leaves. There are some Trillium erectum in the area although I did not photograph any on this trip. I suspect that these are all hybrids between Trillium erectum or Erect Trillium and Trillium rugelii or Southern Nodding Trillium. Anyway, the variety of color was amazing:

After photographing that last Trillium, I spotted a couple of darkly striped Arisaema triphyllum or Jack-in-the-Pulpit flowers. I especially like the dark ones, but the all-green ones are nice too — I just didn’t see any of those at this location:

A few feet away, was a large population of Podophyllum peltatum or May apple. Although I had posted an image of one of these in my previous post, I just couldn’t resist shooting this one as it was just opening up:

Iris cristata or Dwarf Crested Iris is another of my favorites, and there were a couple of fresh flowers just across the road:

I believe the bud is almost as beautiful as the flower, so I included it, as well.

Well, it was time to think about heading back toward home. But my quest was not complete, by any means. There is a South Carolina state Heritage Preserve nearby that is home to a federally endangered wildflower known as Helonias bullata or Swamp Pink. The flowers are quite heavenly, with their bubble-gum pink petals and powder-blue stamens and delightful fragrance. It is a very fragile site, and for that reason, I will not divulge its location. And do not bother calling the Department of Natural Resources, because they will not divulge the site, either. Last year, after I had posted some images of these plants on my blog, the supervisor of this preserve got a number of calls and had to tell the callers that she could not tell them where the plants were. Sorry… The flowers do not last long, and I was about a week late getting there this year. I was able to find only a few of them that were suitable for photography:

Here is a “group” shot of a number of plants, but most of them were past perfect bloom:

I finished with the Swamp Pink and headed on down the mountain. As I rounded one of the many curves on Hwy. 276, I caught the glimmer of blue out of the corner of my eye. More Dwarf Crested Iris — I had to stop and check them out. It was a fairly large group of them, and I thought they might make a pleasing photograph:

There were quite a few of them close enough to each other for me to capture a pair together:

Farther on down the mountain, I stopped at a spot where I know Aplectrum hyemale or Putty-root orchid grows. On the left, below, is a shot of what the flowers of this plant looked like in mid-May of last year. On the right, you can see the budding spike as it has just appeared out of the ground. The large, pleated leaf is still fairly fresh, but it will be withered and brown when the plant blooms:

One last stop to make on this day’s adventure. That is back down Persimmon Ridge Road — the place I blogged about last week. Today, however, the Rhododendron carolinianum or Carolina Rhododendron was in full bloom. It blooms much earlier than its larger cousin, Rhododendron maximum or Rosebay Rhododendron. The clusters of white flowers make Carolina Rhododendron visible from quite a distance. Farther up in the mountains, this species will have rosy-pink flowers — here, they are mostly white, with perhaps a slight blush of pink:

Just inside the woods, growing around a stand of pine trees, is a population of Cypripedium acaule or Pink Lady’s-slipper orchids. I showed some of the buds and immature flowers in my previous blog, but today, they were showing nice color:

What a way to end the day!

Recently, I was reminded via a TEDx video that “today is not just another day in your life. It is the one day that has been given to you — today. It’s a gift. It’s the only free gift you have right now. The only appropriate response is gratefulness. If you learn to respond as if it were the first day of your life and the last day, then you will have spent this day very well. Begin by opening your eyes and being surprised. The constant array of colors is offered to us for nothing more than pure enjoyment. This day gives us a unique view on things — and this view may never come again just like it is right now. Open your eyes and feast on this gift that millions and millions of people in the world will never experience. Open your heart to the experience, and then it will really be a good day…”

–Jim