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Trillium, wild phlox and bluebells show off in great numbers at Shenk’s Ferry in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania during early Spring. These plants are quite noticeable due to their pretty blooms and their size. Each one reaches at least a foot tall and their flowers are held high for all to appreciate.

Some other spring-flowering plants aren’t as showy as they’re smaller or they just blend in better with their habitats. They shouldn’t be missed though as they have their own sort of beauty. The violets are low-growing, as are the wild ginger, Dutchman’s breeches and squirrel corn, and some of the “weeds” have tiny flowers that are easy to pass by.

A couple of plants were growing specifically near the rocky areas and they’re easy to miss if you don’t look up. As you drive down the dirt road to the Wildflower Preserve entrance take a few moments to inspect the rocky outcrops and higher rock ledges where you’re likely to see Early Saxifrage and Wild Columbine.

Red Columbine, Aquilegia canadensis, was just beginning to flower when we were at Shenk’s Ferry in late April. There were many more buds to open yet. Just look among the rock faces at either end of the glen. Apparently, the wild red columbine likes to be in the damp or among the minerals as might be associated with rocky areas.

Wild columbine was growing near bluebells and early saxifrage on the road-facing slope near the trail-head. Look for the red and yellow flowers.

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Shenk’s Ferry was spectacular the third week of April. I’m thrilled I made it there this Spring flowering season. It’s a bit of a drive to get there from the mountains, but definitely worth the effort.

I was just as excited to read that the property was transferred from PPL to the Lancaster Conservancy as of 2014. We’re hoping it will remain in its present state for generations to come!

Getting to Shenk’s Ferry has been a little exciting in years past. If you’ve got a truck or another vehicle with a higher clearance that would be the vehicle to take there. The road leading to the entrance of the Wildflower Preserve was in better shape this time than past years where you worried that the car would bottom out on the deep ruts in the dirt road. You could see where somebody had some fun off-roading creating those ruts!

Shenk’s Ferry Road will lead you to Green Hill Road which leads downhill to the preserve. It’s a dirt road that lies at the bottom of several hills that drain Lancaster County as rain water rushes down into the Susquehanna River.

It appeared that recent work had been done on the road, but just go slow and you’ll be fine. Through the tunnel and bear left and keep going to the entrance. Park along the road.

Stop at the sign at the entrance to check the trail map and see some photos of the flora you might be able to see.

The trail is wide enough in most spots for a couple to walk hand-in-hand. Be watchful for

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The first flowers of Jacob’s Ladder sway on the breezes of early Spring. I found a few specimens near the nature center at Wildwood Park in the middle of April and they were just beginning to bloom.

It’s actually a new plant for me. 🙂 I did see one at another park several years ago, but it was past blooming and I just wasn’t sure of the identification back then. I should go back there to take a look around to see if I could find it near that creek.

Wildwood Park is situated on the northern edge of Harrisburg, PA and offers a convenient place to walk in a nature setting. Many dog walkers and mommies with babes in strollers take advantage of the wide trail that runs all along the edge of Wildwood Lake. The boardwalks are wonderful places to see ducks and other waterfowl and migrant birds.

A spillway in the southern end of the lake controls the water level of Paxton Creek which runs through the city. It’s not too far from the spillway where the Jacob’s Ladder grows — look between the spillway and the Nature Center.

Clusters of light blue flowers nodding in the wind caught my attention. The white anthers at the stamen tips were quite noticeable, although you had to bend down to peer into the flowers.

Each bloom on its own little stalk had five rounded petals that were grouped together into a bell shape by the five-pointed calyx at the base of the flower.

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I love that name, Running Pines, so it takes me a minute to recall the real name of these forest-dwelling plants. It’s not a misnomer though, they really do look like little pine trees running through the forest.

And when I say little trees, I mean miniature ones.

Running Pines are a type of Club Moss, which are more closely related to ferns than flowering plants. They reach less than a foot tall. Maybe 6 or 8 inches tall.

We can find two kinds of running pines on our mountain ridge. One kind looks like miniature Christmas trees and the other looks like tiny flat cedars. The Christmas tree type is called Tree Clubmoss, Lycopodium obscurum, and the flat cedars are known as Ground Cedars, L. tristachyum.

Although both species are included in the above photo (tree clubmoss is on the top right and ground cedars are on the left), it’s more usual to find them in separate colonies.

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One plant that might be found blooming very early in Spring, even before Skunk Cabbage according to a fellow garden enthusiast from New York State, is known as Hellebore.

Hellebores are so hardy they may even be found blooming in the middle of winter. Now, I haven’t seen it myself, but others report that hellebores can even bloom when it’s snowing out!

Hellebores, of the genus Helleborus, are native to the Far East. They’re members of the Buttercup Family, Ranunculaceae.

Low-growing palmate leaves overwinter among the leaf litter in this perennial plant. The large basal leaves sustain the plant through winter and help to give the flowers an early start in Spring.

Its blossoms can be missed for they start out life as flower buds with their heads pointing down.

Large sepals hide the colorful petals until the flower finds conditions ready for it to open.

As the flowering stems grow in height, the flower blossoms turn upward, but only partially. They always have a dangling look to them and often need a helping hand to be seen.

I liked the idea of extending the flowering season by having some hellebore flowers in the garden during a time when nothing else might be blooming.

A couple of years ago I planted this maroon-flowering hellebore in a sunny location near some purple coneflowers in a flower bed. The coneflowers are just starting to develop their leaves and have a long way to grow before they flower.

The hellebore isn’t natural to Central Pennsylvania, but it does lend a smile on a cold day in March. 🙂

(Photos taken March 7 to 26, 2016. Click on any small image to see a larger view.)

In the earliest days of Spring we have only a few splotches of color starting the blooming eruption.

Flowers of the spring bulbs and garden plants that we planted are much more visible than the native flowers that are blooming this early. The native ones tend to grow low so they’re not quite as able to be seen as the happy daffodils.

Forsythia blossoms are pushing open. They’re not fully open yet, but yesterday you could start to see the bright yellow. Today more yellow is visible.

Crocuses have come and gone — into the belly of some critter — and the daffodils are shouting in all their happy orange and yellow that Spring is here! They look great in the sunshine, don’t they?

Tulip greenery is up and the Star Magnolia blossoms should open up any day now as they are getting pretty big. You can see the petals getting longer as they grow and soon they’ll finally push their buds to bursting.

One plant that might be found blooming much earlier, even before Skunk Cabbage according to a fellow garden enthusiast from New York State, is known as a hellebore, which is native to the Far East so we had to plant it here in Pennsylvania. Hellebores can take the cold and may even be found blooming in the middle of winter.

As far as native plants go,

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At the end of Winter we’re likely to have some blustery weather as the seasons change. Spring blows winds seemingly from all directions at times, but that’s not enough to dislodge the fruits that have clung tight for months.

Before the agricultural crops are planted and before vegetable gardens are tilled come Spring, the pickings out in nature must be pretty thin.

Animals and birds have had all winter long to consume the fruits, berries and seeds that plants created in Autumn.

Note the red rose hips on the green stems that grew last year on the branches of this Multiflora Rose.

It seems strange that any of the seeds or fruit would last through the coldest season, when animals must be just as hungry as any other season. Wouldn’t they? Sure, bears and others do hibernate and slow their activities, but don’t most of them have to eat something?

Wandering around the mountain top I could find several red berries that made in through winter. Don’t they taste good?

Note the spikes on the branches with the oblong shiny red fruits on this Japanese Barberry.

(Photos of barberry and wild rose taken 31 Dec 2015. Click on small images to see a larger view.)

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Central Pennsylvania experienced record warmth for 3 days this past week. It’s not often we reach into the 70s in March so you know people were outside.

After a long winter the sun’s rays felt really good on my face. I just stood there soaking it in for a couple of moments before getting on with some winter cleanup in the yard. So many sticks to pick up!

Sure, now the tulip greens are pushing up and the daffodils are springing up, too.

A few white crocuses and these neat orange ones with dark purple veins made an appearance this week. I think the orange ones are attractive to squirrels or shrews. I’m not sure who’s been nibbling on them, but last year the orange ones disappeared quickly. Maybe they taste good or maybe they’re just an easy target as they don’t blend in well to their surroundings.

The hellebore is showing more than just the buds of her maroon flowers.

The downward-pointing blooms need a little lift for us to see their inner workings.

The hellebore has more greenery this year than last, despite the lack of fertilizer other than what Mother Nature could afford.

Besides these planted beauties, I did see a flowering bunch of chickweed over at the courthouse the other day.

Could have made off with a nice addition to a salad here, but since I don’t know how the lawns are kept in this public spot I decided a photo would suffice.

Common Chickweed, Stellaria media, is a common plant of waste places, roadsides, gardens and yards, and it’s edible.

Chickweeds in general appear to have 10 petals, but on closer inspection you’ll see there are actually 5 petals which are deeply cleft. Some look like hearts, others like bunny ears!

Besides that, common chickweed has paired leaves having long petioles (stems), its sepals are longer than its petals, and it has smooth leaves.

On Saturday, the 12th of March, we saw the first coltsfoot blooms of the season and that’s the earliest in the year I’ve ever seen them flowering. They were at the side of a two-lane country road closing up their heads for the night — as we passed by about dusk — but their bright yellow edges still were eye-catching.

(Photos taken 11 March 2016. Click on small images to see a larger view.)