Spring... in praise of wildflowers and merkels

L-R  flowers - Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)
Dwarf Ginseng (Panax trifolius)

There is no piece of music, ever, more reflective, more perfect to the emotions of spring in the mountains, than Aaron Copeland's "Appalachian Spring".

While the music is inspired by the springtime awakening and rituals in Pennsylvania's Amish heartland, anyone who goes out, into the mountains, to "feel the season" cannot help but be moved by the music.

Smelling the smells; seeing the rebirth of the woods and fields.. allowing themselves to be immersed in the miracle of it all...
 ...the simple musical themes that bring grace and wonder, over and over and over, until, just like the mountains, there is nothing but life in all its vibrant shades and colors, everywhere.
The magnificent simplicity of life.

Yes, Appalachian Spring is a thing of wonder and beauty.

Fly Poison (Amianthium muscitoxicum)

Day to day, week by week, the hills come alive more and more.. reaching a crescendo not determined by a date on some calendar, or latitude, but, rather by elevation... with the high country not fully being leafed out until late May or even early June. 

Cutleaf Toothwort (Dentaria laciniata)

Spicebush (Lindera benzoin)

First, the early forbs and budding shrubs.. spicebush, ... then the flowers... many ephemerals... they bloom, pollinate and spend the remainder of the Summer with ripening fruit as the plant itself is in decline.. the budding of the evergreens, and lastly comes the full leaf out of the oaks, maples, tulip and birch trees... nothing remains static... The Earth (northern hemisphere) is rushing to be clothed, content to be naked and cold no longer..

Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum)

And somewhere in that rush, between the warming of the ground and the frequent rain showers come the merkels exploding from the forest detritus. Merkels, as morel mushrooms are known in the Blue Ridge, are one of the true delicacies of the forest.

Morel (Morchella esculenta)

They are also quite a conundrum... Some folks will tell you they are everywhere... Others will tell you they are nowhere.. and yet others are content to remain silent. And in truth, depending on the day, depending on the year, they can be everywhere... or nowhere at all.



Few edibles from the woodlands are more tasty, more natural, more whole than a morel... Impossible to cultivate and grow commercially, they must always be hunted... sought out and harvested..

Rue Anemone (Thalictrum thalictroides)

Bellwort (Uvularia sessilifolia)

Giant (star) Chickweed (Stellaria pubera)