The Wildflowers of Early May

Welcome to the latest entry in my "Year in the Woods" series, where I document all the native plants I can find in our woods in one year.

Many of the wildflowers I see have small and fairly inconspicuous blossoms. I find them fascinating nonetheless.

This is one of my favorites, called Heart Leaf. Not sure of species, but it's in the Hexastylis genus. That's the blossom on the lower left, and it's often covered by the leaf litter. I believe it is pollinated by ground insects such as beetles.

Here's an interesting fern. I'll have to get back to you on the species, but it's quite spectacular, reaching three feet in height. The brown structure in the middle is where the spores emerge.

Here's a closeup of that spore producing structure. Amazing!

Jack is in the pulpit! There is one spot where we have a little stand of Jack in the Pulpits (Arisaema triphyllum) and seeing them in bloom is a thrill.

 This one is not very interesting, but I'm trying to be comprehensive. I believe it's a Euphorbia.

I looked back at old photos today and realized that the Coral Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens) should be in bloom. Sure enough, I found it on the morning dog walk!

 

I have no idea what this is. I'll be contacting the Herbarium at NCSU to find out. Hope it's not some exotic invasive, because I found a lot of it. [Update: It's a native! It's called Nestronia umbellula]

8/16 UPDATE: The next image was actually taken in early May, but I opted not to post it at that time since I did not have an ID. I know now that it is Blisterwort or Hooked buttercup (Ranunculus recurvatus).

Just for kicks, here's a close up of some lichen, which is technically not a plant. It's formed through a symbiotic relationship between an algae and a fungus. I'm guessing the bright orange has something to do with sporulation.

To see additional posts in this series, click the "yearinthewoods" label in the left column.

Here's a description of my wildflower "hunting" techniques and the references I use to identify them:
http://timberwalkers.blogspot.com/2015/05/how-to-find-native-wildflowers-and.html

Here's a description of how I take photos:
http://timberwalkers.blogspot.com/2013/07/how-to-take-half-decent-photos-of.html