Blushing Young Trillium /  by Todd Henson

Blushing Young Trillium

Towards the end of April my father and I were fortunate to visit a location near what appeared to be peak bloom for white trillium (Trillium grandiflorum), a beautiful spring wildflower that is larger than most other spring wildflowers in this area. The forest floor was covered with flowers. It was overwhelming for me as I bounced from one flower to another, trying to find scenes that might make pleasing photographs.

I’m still going through my photos, but today I’m showing the first photo I’ve finished from this day. Instead of focusing on the trillium in full bloom I decided to go with one just opening, and to use as shallow a depth of field as I could, throwing most of the flower and background out of focus.

This particular white trillium has a lot of pink to it. There were a number of flowers with more pink than white in this area. My understanding (possibly wrong) is that they are all still Trillium grandiflorum, just with a range of colorations from white to light pink. Let me know if you know more about them.

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Whispy Dreams of Wild Geranium /  by Todd Henson

Whispy dreams of wild geranium

Spring is a wonderful time for wildflowers, and a wonderful wildflower is wild geranium. I found a lovely example while walking back to the car after a hike with my father. I decided to get down low, resting the camera just about on the ground to explore how the geranium would look set off against the background, with my father standing beside me to shade the flower but not the background, and rotating a little here and there to explore both different views of the flower and of the background. I hope you enjoy the results.

Wildflower fountain

Dreaming of spring

A wildflower daydream

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Stages of Growth of Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis) /  by Todd Henson

A pair of early spring bloodroot flowers in full bloom

Bloodroot, Sanguinaria canadensis, is a beautiful early spring wildflower native to eastern North America. The name bloodroot and Sanguinaria refers to the reddish color of the rhizome that grows underground and of the poisonous sap of the rhizome, and canadensis refers to Canada, one of the locations where this plant can be found. In this case we found the bloodroot growing along trails through the eastern slopes of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the northern part of Virginia.

In the sections below I show some of the stages of the growth of bloodroot. The earlier stages were photographed in the first week of April 2024 and the final stages, after the flower is gone, where photographed in the final week of April.

Leaf-wrapped Bud

Bloodroot is a fascinating plant. A single curled up leaf breaks through the leaf litter on the forest floor and grows above ground, and a single flower stem grows within that single curled up leaf. A bud forms on the stem and emerges from the shelter of the still curled leaf.

A bloodroot bud wrapped in its leaf

A bloodroot bud just emerging from its leaf

The Bud Emerges

The flower stem will continue growing, pushing the bud outside the protective shelter of the curled leaf.

We found this pinkish bud having just emerged from the curled up leaf below

With just the right positioning and lighting this bloodroot bud almost glows

Opening of the Bud

When the sun comes out the bud opens revealing the beautiful white petals and yellow stamens. At night the flower will close back up.

A bloodroot bud beginning to open. I liked the look of the tuft of grass in the background.

The white bloodroot bud begins to open its petals revealing the yellow stamens within

With the petals unfurled we can more clearly see the yellow stamens at the center

Bloodroot in Full Bloom

The pollen of the flowers attract insects, with mining bees being one of the star pollinators because they collect the pollen. But insects looking for nectar will be disappointed as bloodroot doesn’t produce any.

A beautiful bloodroot flower in full bloom

Looking down on a bloodroot flower

A bug in the bloodroot flower

Bloodroot Flower Details

I enjoyed trying to get in closer to the center of the bloodroot flowers to show some of their details and beauty.

Bloodroot flower details

I thought this view looked a bit like a bloodroot throne

The Leaf Unfurled

After the flower fades the leaf will open, and a pod will form on the flower stem. You can see the leaves through the middle to end of summer, after which the plant goes dormant.

A bloodroot leaf unfurled after the flower is gone, and the beginnings of a seed pod.

Seed Pod

Seeds grow inside the pod and when it opens ants will collect the seeds and bring them back to their nest, eating the part that attracted them and leaving the seed, itself, to germinate and grow in their debris piles. And just as worms can create more fertile soil, so can ants.

The beginnings of a seed pod after bloodroot has flowered

The seeds will form new plants, while the rhizomes of existing plants will continue to grow and branch off, spreading over wider areas creating colonies of bloodroot. Next spring the curled up leaves will break through the ground and the entire process will begin again.

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