This is a rarely reported species. I found it in a wet meadow on the North Tract of the Refuge When I first tried to determine the plant's name, I thought it was Rhynchospora capitellata,…
Ophioglossum pycnostichum (Southern Adders Tongue) is native to Southeastern North America. Some authors subsume this species under Ophioglossum vulgatum s.l. which is found in Europe and Asia. Even though it does not look like it,…
Viola primulifolia or Primrose-leaved Violet is an acaulescent viola meaning that the flowering stem grows from the crown of the plant along with the leaves. Its natural range is Eastern USA from Maine in…
Today, we visited a second site where Liparis liliifolia (Purple Twayblade) was growing on the Refuge. We looked around and found several patches of these lovely orchids thriving. In all, it is possible we spotted…
Yellow Fumewort - Corydalis flavula (Raf.) DC. - is another spring bloomer that is a denizen of bottomland woods and adjacent areas and is commonly found in parts of Eastern North America. As typical of…
Today, I forayed on the South Tract and spotted a bunch of Bald Cypress trees thriving in a swampy area next to Reddington Lake. Bald Cypress is not native this far north, but can do…
Several vines of wild yam (Discorea villosa) L. were spotted in full bloom along the Knowles 1 Pond on the Central Tract. Wild Yam is common in North America ranging from Ontario on the North,…
On the way home from work today, I took a bunch of pictures of two established colonies of Aesculus parviflora (Bottlebrush Buckeye) near our home. One of them was in the middle of someone's lawn and…
[caption id="attachment_4424" align="alignleft" width="150"] Spike with pistillate (female) flowers. (Click on thumbnail for larger view)[/caption] Today, I found an interesting exotic on the Central Tract. It is called Temple Grass and the scientific name is…
It's been a while since I blogged here. This time we will look at an obscure plant called Camphor Pluchea or Marsh Fleabane. Its scientific name is Pluchea camphorata. This member of Asteraceae is listed…
[caption id="attachment_4269" align="alignleft" width="300"] close-up of seed pod[/caption] Milkweeds (Asclepias spp.) are important to the Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) because its larva feeds exclusively on it. The recent decline of the Monarch butterfly population has…
Photo above: Close-up of inflorescence - 18 September 2010. [caption id="attachment_4231" align="alignleft" width="300"] Close up of leaf Notice the whitish stripe along the middle- 8 September 2010[/caption] Japanese stilt grass (Microstegium vimineum (Trin.) A. Camus)…
(Photo above - the twelve different types of mushrooms collected today) Click on the thumbnails below for full views.) [caption id="attachment_4162" align="alignleft" width="300"] Mushroom 1 - Bolete?[/caption] After all the rain we have received this…
Today, I spotted some Indian cucumber (Medeola virginiana L.) at Chestnut Oak Bog growing on a sphagnum moss hummock. One of the plants (pictured here) was blooming and was setting seed. This interesting looking member…
This meadow on the Central Tract is located along Beech Forest Drive near where the powerlines cross MD 197 and as far as I can determine is the largest field of Common Milkweed (Asclepias…
Spotted this interesting mushroom along Mill Race Road just past the swamp. They were growing all over the woods from the humus soil. I can't seem to find a common name for it, but its…
Spent 1.5 hours on the refuge today. Drove out to Lake Allen and spotted some white-colored flowers off in the pine woods on the east side of the lake. I got out of the Jeep…
About 15 years ago, I spotted two colonies of white roses across the street from our house. They were not the Multiflora Rose (Rosa multiflora) which had already mostly finished because blooming, and this rose…
(Photo above: flower cluster) [caption id="attachment_3668" align="alignleft" width="300"] Branch with leaves and flowers[/caption] I found some Common Winterberry that was in full bloom today along the Little Patuxent Trail. The scientific name for this member…