Hot Days, Dark Woods, Pretty Flowers

On sweltering days like today, I prefer the shady banks of the river for botanizing (see my last post).  But another option might be the deep shade of the midsummer woods (while wearing insect repellent!).  Yes, the full flush of spring wildflowers is only a memory now, but a smaller group of flowers will bloom beneath the forest's complete canopy during the latter weeks of July.  Here are a few I've encountered over the past week or so.

It might be getting a bit late to see this lovely evergreen wildflower in a deeply shaded woods, probably one with many pine trees around.  This is Pipsissewa (Chimaphila umbellata), and I usually find it in bloom somewhat earlier in July.  There's a section of Cole's Woods in Glens Falls where thousands of these flowers all bloom at once, and it's quite a sight to see!

The related Spotted (or Striped) Wintergreen (Chimaphila maculata) often shares the same woods with the Pipsissewa mentioned above, but we usually can find it blooming a week or so later. The flowers resemble those of Pipsissewa, but the evergreen leaves are quite different.

Pointed-leaved Tick Trefoil (Hylodesmum glutinosum) bears wand-like flower stems studded with bright-pink blooms that seem to glow in the shadows of the darkest woods. You often have to trace the flower stem back to discover where it is attached to the center of a whorl of pointed leaves. 

The related Naked Tick Trefoil (Hylodesmum nudiflorum) also bears long wand-like flower stems bearing similar pink flowers, but these flower stems arise from the forest floor next to its accompanying but separate leaves.  

Two different species of Enchanter's Nightshade (Circaea spp.) are blooming now, often in the same woods.  The itty-bitty flowers of both species are difficult to photograph, they are so tiny. And both grow in very low light.  But those of the species pictured here, the Eastern Enchanter's Nightshade (C. canadensis) are just enough larger than those of the Dwarf Enchanter's Nightshade (C. alpina)  to give my camera a fighting chance of focusing on its dainty white blooms.

The diminutive flowers of Lopseed (Phryma leptostachya) present a similar challenge to this photographer, especially if I want to include the leaves and flowers in the same photo. The long wiry flowerstalks shoot those flower clusters well away from their leafy origins.

If I want to more clearly show the Lopseed flowers, I have to take a separate photo. When these flowers go to seed, the pods will point straight down and cling tight to the stalk.  That's how this woodland native wildflower acquired its vernacular name.  This species usually prefers a calcareous habitat, which is why I choose to visit the limestone-underlaid Skidmore Woods when I hope to find this pretty flower.

Again, the Dwarf Rattlesnake Plantain (Goodyera repens) presents a similar problem for the photographer: trying to include clearly focussed flowers and leaves in the same photo. Plus, the small size of both the inflorescence and its basal leaves amplifies the dilemma. 

The scarcity of Goodyera repens also compounds the issue for me, since I have to drive close to 50 miles north to have even a chance of finding this tiny native orchid.  At least, they are easy to spot in the shady woods of the Pack Demonstration Forest north of Warrensburg, with the bright-white flower stalk standing out from the surrounding vegetation. The vividly marked leaves of this species are very distinctive -- unless they hybridize with some surrounding plants of the similar Goodyera tesselata, which also grow nearby.  Then, they are not only hard to photograph, they are even harder to identify.

While exploring the Pack Demonstration Forest last week, I was delighted to see large patches of Dewdrops (Rubus repens) in bloom. The bright-white flowers shine like stars among their sprawling mats of dark-green leaves.

But here was the real star of the forest floor at the Pack Demonstration Forest for me: the gorgeous purple-striped White Wood Sorrel (Oxalis montana).  Such a colorful flower amid so many plain-white companions in the mid-summer shade! And its leaves are lovely in their own right: rings of bright-green hearts.

Here was a floral surprise as we ended our walk on the Nature Trail at the Pack Forest: a  solitary specimen of Slender Ladies' Tresses (Spiranthes lacera var. lacera).  On all my past visits to this forest, I have never seen this little native orchid there. Yes, the "slender" part of its vernacular name surely applies to its very narrow spike of florets, but its most distinguishing feature is the definite green tinge to its florets' throats and lower lips.

Here was one more surprise that we encountered in a shady woods, but regarding an animal species, not a botanical one: this good-sized Wood Turtle resting along the trail.  Like all the flower species listed here, this turtle is definitely a denizen of the woods, especially woods with waterways running through them.  

While the Wood Turtle's plain brown shell provides this reptile good camouflage among the woodsy, muddy habitat it prefers, its underside is vividly colored and truly beautiful, as we discovered as we picked it up and moved it off the public trail to a (hopefully) more secret spot.

Why did we move the Wood Turtle to a more secret spot?  Well, this is a turtle that conservationists consider to be one of the most endangered freshwater turtles in North America. The loss of streamside forests to development threatens local populations, and many adults die when crossing roads between fragmented patches of suitable habitat.  We hoped to hide this individual from any trail walker that might think it would make a nice pet, for the loss of even one adult from a population could seriously threaten that population, even cause it to die out.