March 24 Wildflower Report from Savage

Wade from Nashville emailed today: Coming your way and to Shakerag Hollow soon, about when do you think the wildflowers will peak this year?

Ranger Jason Reynolds reports what's blooming today: lots of hepatica, wake robin trillium (red purple not the large white flowered trillium), rue anomonea, star chickweed, scorpion weed, halbeard leaf violet, wild geranium, butterweed, spicebush, cherry, plum, flox species. Nothing too showy yet, a lot of this is small stuff but that's the way the season starts.

In reality there is no real peak of the season. Show time for the woodland plants quickly ends when the canopy closes in. The sun loving and fringe plants will continue through the season and the later in the season the taller the plants for the most part. Timing depends on what flowers you want to see. If you like trillium and Jacks-In-The-Pulpit it may be a week or two. Blood Root should be blooming now. Violets are among the earliest as is star chickweed.

As an amateur herbaceous plant taxonomist, I have photographed blooming wildflowers on the plateau area not too far from Shakerag Hollow and in the Park from late February through December. My guess is the second week of April will be prime visiting for Collins Gulf.

Cheers,
Ron Castle