Baltimore Woods is bursting with
life this spring which blooms my curiosity and interest for all the sights and
sounds I experience on a walk through the woods. With inspiration coming from
all directions, I traveled toward the Faust Garden for a hike around our
wildflowers. Colors caught my eye from reddish-yellow bell-shaped columbines
and vibrant little violets. Fern fronds unfolded their green and mayapple showed
their single, full white flowers with a creamy yellow center. There was one
flower, however, hiding its color under cover.
Wild ginger. This perennial
ground cover packs a purple surprise if you peak under the heart-shaped leaves
at the low lying ground level. You will be rewarded by your curiosity with a
solitary purplish-brown fuzzy flower at the base of the stem. But, don’t stop
your snooping there!
Wild ginger draws you in further
still when you realize the bell shaped flower is not the flower at all! The
flower is sitting inside that cup-shaped casing. Meant to mimic rotting flesh,
this flower is placed low to the ground for good reason. Flies emerging in
early spring from leaf litter don’t have far to go before they are attracted to
these caverned flowers. And flies are not the only fellow creatures enjoying
wild ginger. Slugs slime their way to munch on the leaves and ants carry their
oily seeds underground. Native Americans and early settlers also used to use
the roots as a spice.
Next time you are enjoying a walk
through the woods, I urge you to increase your inquisitiveness, with care of
course. You never know what hidden treasures you might find!
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