Recently my husband and Bernie Nagy and I made a trip to North Carolina with our granddaughter and her friend. We stayed near Cherokee and made small hikes in the area. On our way back to Georgia we visited the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest.
This 3,800-acre forest is a memorial to the author of the poem “Trees”. The loop trail there goes through a remnant of an old-growth forest and has more than 100 species of trees, many over 400 years old. Here are some of the beautiful wildflowers that we encountered along the trail.
Rue Anemone, Thalictrum thalictroides, was abundant in patches along with other spring flowers. This delicate perennial grows from 4 to 8 inches tall with flowers on slender stems above mostly basal leaves with distinct rounded lobed leaflets. We especially enjoyed seeing Squirrel Corn, Dicentra canadensis, with its unique-shaped blossoms similar to Dutchman’s Breeches.
Several species lilies were there including white and red Trilliums and delicate Yellow Trout Lilies, Erythronium americanum, were all around, too.
Blue Cohosh, Caulophyllum thalictroides, was just beginning to bloom. This herb has been long used in medicine by Native American tribes. We thoroughly enjoyed being in this special area and looking forward to returning to favorite areas in Colorado this summer. Look for us at the Crested Butte Wildflower Festival in July. For help identifying wildflowers in Colorado, check out our Rocky Mountain Wildflowers Field Guide at www.highcountryartworks.com.