Isotria medeoloides (Small Whorled Pogonia orchid) in northwest South Carolina — 2019-05-03

I just returned from my second visit within three days to South Carolina’s premier location for the federally endangered Isotria medeoloides or Small Whorled Pogonia orchid. The site is a gently sloping meadow within a secluded ravine in Oconee County, South Carolina. My companion on this trip was a young naturalist/photographer from Ohio, Alex Patton. He has made several trips down into the Southern Appalachian Mountains, and I have been privileged to accompany him on these forays, looking to strike several species from his life list.

This site has been known in the plant conservation community for quite a while, and its numbers have waxed and waned over the years. Since I’ve been aware of its existence, I’ve seen high population plant counts as high as 50 and, in this year, as low as 25 plants. There is no significant cause of concern for this decrease in plant count, because this orchid species, in particular, is known to disappear for several years before coming back strong. Out of the 25 plants currently at the site, 20 of them were in flower, and of those in flower, 5 of them produced double flowers. I’d say that’s pretty good!

Here is an image of a single-flowered plant from this site:

Small Whorled Pogonia orchid

Days before Alex arrived, the weather could not have been worse. Heavy rain and thunderstorms had plagued our region of the Southeast, and it didn’t look like it was going to let up soon. However, on the morning we were schedule to make the almost 2-hour trip to the extreme northwestern part of the state of South Carolina, the weather started breaking up. By the time we made it to the site that morning, a bit of blue sky was peeking between the fast-moving clouds.

To get to the gently sloping and fern-covered meadow near the creek, it was necessary to scramble down about 1000 feet (~300 meters) of open forest. Not too bad until you consider that the slope was very steep and on this day, covered with slippery, wet leaves. Because I had taken my pictures a couple of days earlier, I did not bring my usual camera equipment along; just my iPhone. I had a hiking pole to help me keep my balance both going down as well as coming back up.

I had previously marked the way down with bright orange survey tape on tree limbs about every 100 feet (30 meters), so it was easy to find our way. I had my trusty GPS in my fanny pack, just in case. The end of the trail was marked by a huge, dead Pinus strobus or Eastern White Pine, so as we approached the meadow, that dead tree came into clear view.

We finally arrived, and I pointed out the orchid plants, each one marked by a small strip of that bright orange survey tape. That bright tape helped us both see the tiny plants and kept us from accidentally stepping on them. As it turned out, we ended up locating and additional 5 flowering plants while we were looking for good photographic opportunities. They had been hiding quite successfully in the shade of Thelypteris noveboracensis or New York Fern. Here are a couple of iPhone shots of the immediate landscape and habitat for the orchids:

Alex immediately began to photograph the first orchid he found:

He soon became serious in his photography; wet ground made no difference to him:

We spent about an hour there, locating new plants and photographing the ones that I had marked with the survey tape a few days earlier.

Here are some shots of the Small Whorled Pogonia orchid flowers I photographed earlier:

Here is the same plant from both the front and the back:

That brown stick next to the plant in both images, above, is actually last year’s stem which contains, at the apex, a double seed capsule from the prior year’s flowering. Once the flowers are successfully pollinated, the flower petals drop off, and the stem continues to grow, extending itself about double the original length. Seeing those old seed capsules is a very good sign, I think, and gives us hope for future generations at this site. Here are two more double-flowering plants:

Here is a double-flowering plant that was just opening up. I had to take the shot from above, because of the way the plant was nestled in between ferns and small saplings:

I even found what I imagine is a heated conversation going on between three flowering plants:

We stayed long enough for Alex to finish photographing all of the plants he wanted to photograph. It was time to leave, so we packed our gear and began to make our way up the steep hill and back to the truck. Going up was not so bad for me this time, because I had my hiking pole and didn’t have all of my bulky camera equipment. About halfway back, I noticed a Heartleaf plant in the middle of our path. I spread apart the leaves and uncovered a wonderful group of Hexastylis shuttleworthii or Large-flower Heartleaf flowers. These Heartleaf species in the Southeast provide no end of surprise and wonder as the flowers are exposed. It’s almost like Forrest Gump’s momma always said, “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.” In this case, substitute Heartleaf flowers for Life, and you have it…

Here are a couple of iPhone shots of this wonderful plant:

The weather held out long enough for us to get back to the truck and start back toward Greenville. We decided to stop at my favorite Bar-B-Que joint near the little community of Cleveland, South Carolina. I had taken Alex to this eatery the last time he had come down, and he wanted to again partake of the fine food served by the proprietress, Janice (no last name available). As we were eating out under the picnic shelter, the bottom dropped out and left us thankful that it had not caught us down that mountain slope with no umbrella.

Another fine day out in the field with a like-minded friend. It’s always more fun enjoying the great out-of-doors when you can share it with someone else who appreciated nature’s finer things. And it doesn’t hurt to have an extra pair of eyes…

Until next time,

–Jim