WildeHerb is a collection of wild herb and wildflower sightings.
Plant Sightings
Plant sightings is the main focus of wildeherb. Plants native to North America, and especially the Northeastern United States and Pennsylvania, are found, identified, observed and photographed to become part of a living diary about our plant friends, new and old.
Skunk Cabbage, Symplocarpus foetidus, is quite noticeable this time of year as its enormous leaves dominate the wetlands. Go driving around the countryside and where there are creeks, backwaters, or the edges of rivers in woodlands look for the very large, bright green leaves of this perennial plant.
Patch of skunk cabbage near a drainage creek at Little Buffalo State Park.
Skunk cabbage occurs in the wetland areas near the Mill Race Trail where you can see other spring ephemeral flowers at Little Buffalo State Park, Perry County, Pennsylvania. (Photo taken 3apr2010.)
Close-up image of skunk cabbage plants in a wetland area.
No flowers are visible in this image of skunk cabbage plants growing at the creek’s edge. (Photo taken 3apr2010.)
The flower of skunk cabbage is a strange one. It is the earliest flowering plant of the season by coming up as early as February. Actually, several very small flowers are grouped together in a special structure. Pollinated by flies, these posies stink like rotting flesh some say, but I don’t have any experience to make that comparison. Let’s just say, skunk cabbage has an appropriate name!
Skunk cabbage flowers appear to be miniature yellow fringes dotted on a ball which is housed safely inside a leathery sheath. The sheath is referred to as the spathe and the ball of flowers inside the spathe is called the spadix.
As the flowers become pollinated and the growth activity of the plant continues, the temperature inside the spathe becomes warmer than the ambient temperature. It gets so warm in fact that skunk cabbage flowers have been observed to melt snow from around the plant.
Skunk cabbage leaves and flower next to a creek.
The spathe in the image above – at the lower right of the plant – shows the typical mottled colors of maroon, brown, yellow and light green. The spadix cannot be seen through the opening of the spathe in the image above, but the tiny flowers are visible (in person) if you inspect inside the spathe.
Peterson’s Wildflower Guide lists skunk cabbage under both green and miscellaneous brown flowers. (Remaining photos taken 5apr2010 at Edgar’s Creek.)
Flowers are barely noticeable at the base of the skunk cabbage leaves.
The skunk cabbage plants in this creek-side group are large enough or old enough to have flowered. Note that the yellow-circled areas mark the flowers at the base of the leaves.
Leaves of skunk cabbage rise out of the ground all rolled together and rise up vertically as they emerge from the ground.
Skunk cabbage leaves emerge rolled up and unfurl into huge oval shapes.
As the leaves get bigger and bigger they open up more and more. Skunk cabbage leaves are enormous as they can grow 1 – 3 feet long and half as wide.
Crushing a leaf releases the same rotten odor that the flower gives off. Nobody wants to eat this cabbage! However, Peterson’s Edible Wild Plants Guide tells us that the thoroughly dried leaves collected in very early spring can be used as a cooked green or reconstituted in soup. CAUTION – If the leaves are not dried well, calcium oxalate crystals – which are removed only by drying completely – will burn and cause inflammation. In fall the roots can be collected and dried completely to make a flour.
I remember reading about the Trailing Arbutus and that it could be found at the Box Huckleberry Natural Area of the Tuscarora State Forest in New Bloomfield, Pennsylvania.
When I took a day-trip over there on 3 April 2010, it took a while to find them. But I finally did!
Guess what you might find growing along Arbutus Lane?
Near the entrance of the Box Huckleberry Natural Area is a side road called Arbutus Lane. Very close to the spot where Arbutus Lane meets Huckleberry Road is a patch of trailing arbutus. The patch of arbutus we saw was about 2 ft by 3 ft in size under the trees at the border of the State Forest.
Trailing arbutus, Epigaea repens, sometimes called the “Mayflower”, is a member of the heath family, just as the huckleberry is. They do occur in the same habitat, shady places under trees. These perennials both have oval-shaped evergreen leaves, but arbutus leaves are 2-3 times bigger than huckleberry leaves.
Green and brown leaves of trailing arbutus.
Arbutus leaves that last over winter may turn brown at the ends.
Flowers are partially tucked under the old leaves and may not be visible to the casual passerby. Here, the shiny trailing Arbutus blossoms were quite noticeable in the sunlight among the old brown leaves, even though they grew so near the ground.
Trailing arbutus flowers come out from under their leaves.
In the photo above there are four flower clusters, three of which are mostly hidden under the arbutus leaves.
A cluster of two or more, five-petaled, white blossoms appear like partridgeberry blooms with their elongated bell shape. The five petals flare out at the ends of the trumpet-like bell. They also smelled wonderfully sweet.
Flowers and leaves of trailing arbutus.Trailing arbutus flower clusters growing near the ground.
Now that I’ve seen trailing arbutus I’ll be more likely to spot it in other places, especially when the plant is not blooming.
Peterson’s Medicinal Plants Guide states that Native Americans used a leaf tea to treat kidney and stomach disorders. Arbutus was also used as a folk remedy for urinary problems. Arbutus itself might not be toxic, but a chemical formed in our bodies – as a result of drinking arbutus tea – is toxic. We can’t recommend drinking this tea, so we’ll just admire the trailing arbutus on the trail.
Little Buffalo State Park is easily accessible from Route 322 in Perry County, Pennsylvania. Take Route 34 south through Newport and follow the signs to the state park. Turn right onto Little Buffalo Road and about a mile down the road, take a left onto State Park Road to get to the Day Use Area, where Spring ephemeral wildflowers can be seen.
Map of Fisherman's Trail at Little Buffalo State Park, Newport PA
The Fisherman’s Trail is a one mile trail that begins near the Day Use Area. It is a difficult trail for a short piece that takes you up and over some really big rocks. You’ll have to be able to climb the rocks or stairs to take the upper part of the trail.
To get to the Fisherman’s Trail from the Day Use Area parking lot, head toward the playground and continue south past the entertainment pavilion. Cross the small stream and pass the Way Car No. 12, which is an old narrow-gauge railroad car.
Wide trail at Day Use Area of Little Buffalo State Park.
From the wide trail near the old railroad car follow the hiking sign to get to the Fisherman’s Trail.
Signpost for the Fisherman's Trail at Little Buffalo State Park
From the trail sign the terrain gets steeper and rocky.
Fisherman's Trail in the rocky section near the Day Use Area.
In places it’s not too obvious where the exact trail is so just keep following the yellow tree blazes to stay on the Fisherman’s Trail.
Yellow blazes mark the Fisherman's Trail.Rocky terrain and the yellow blaze of the Fisherman's Trail.Huge rocks along the Fisherman's Trail.
Glaciers deposited these big rocks and piled them up lke so many pebbles.
The lower section of the Fisherman's Trail is an easy walk.
After the rocky and hilly section the trail runs downhill and flattens out to the lake level. From here the trail is an easy walk.
The end of the Fisherman’s Trail empties out into a picnic area right off the lake. There are plenty of picnic tables and a few grills, too. A bathroom is near this end of the trail, but it will only be open during the summer months, not in April or out-of-season.
Follow the lake side a little further and you’ll come upon the area where you can rent paddle boats. This area of Holman Lake is for boating, fishing, and watching nature and people. Besides rowboats, canoes or kayaks, only small electric motors are allowed on the 88-acre lake. No swimming allowed at this spot. If you want to go swimming at Little Buffalo State Park, check out their fantastic pool which is just beyond the boat rental and more easily reached from the Main Picnic Area gate on Little Buffalo Road.
I saw a couple of common loons drifting across the lake today. This is a great place to see migrating ducks and other waterfowl.
The Fisherman’s Trail was a nice trail and it got me breathing heavy in the beginning of the trail down by the dammed end of the lake because it’s really quite steep and rocky. After you climb up and over and then down the rocky area the trail widens out to a relatively flat pathway that follows the edge of the lake.
There are no wildflowers on this trail, but I did see lots of moss on fallen logs. The only interesting plant I found was Ground Pine, Lycopodium tristachyum, an evergreen, low-growing perennial of shaded woodlands. It’s also called Ground Cedar because the leaves are very small and flat and grow in rounded, fan-like shapes. Look for these “miniature pine trees” on the lower part of the trail near the dam.
Returning to the Day Use Area you could follow the lower section of the trail closer to the lake’s edge, which is more like a footpath, instead of taking the higher part of the trail through the rocky section.
Watch for rocks on the Fisherman's Trail near the lake.
This section of the trail has a lot of rocks and roots to trip over!
Once you come to the dam you have two options. Either take the steps up to the Fisherman’s Trail, where you’ll have to go by a few rocks getting back to the trail head, or cross the dam and take the steps down toward the parking area.
Steps take you back up to the rocky section of the Fisherman's Trail.
48 steps up to the top!
View from the dam of Lake Holman, Little Buffalo State Park, Pennsylvania
View from the dam end of Holman Lake, an 88-acre lake in Little Buffalo State Park, Newport, Pennsylvania.
The scenery was rugged and beautiful at the top of the trail and serene under the hemlocks and pines near the lake. Didn’t see one single wild flower anywhere on the Fisherman’s Trail on 3 April 2010, the day these photos were taken. At Little Buffalo State Park the best views of wild flowers are along the Mill Race Trail.
The box huckleberry is either tasteless or sweet like a blueberry depending on what you read. It’s evident that somebody has tasted the wrong berry or misidentified their berry.
Blueberries are similar to huckleberries. There are several types of each plant, so one would expect that they don’t all taste the same. It seems that the plentiful huckleberries of the Northwest might be different than the box huckleberry of Pennsylvania, especially in regards to taste.
Since the fruits are similar recipes using blueberries could be used interchangeably with huckleberries. If the huckleberries are not sweet, adjustments will have to be made.
Ok. So I probably won’t be making huckleberry pie anytime soon because the fruit won’t ripen for a month or more, but I did want to collect a few links about eating huckleberries or using them in the kitchen somehow.
We look forward to the box huckleberry fruit ripening in June. If that doesn’t pan out, we could always use these recipes with the blueberries we have growing out back.
The morning of April 3, 2010 was a beautifully sunny one. We drove straight through Newport via the River Road where we saw some beautiful stands of Dutchman’s Breeches and they were flowering just profusely. They are really pretty with their little flower frond held high in the air. They made me stop and turn around they were that pretty. Since it was private property we didn’t take time to ask to get a picture because we were on the way somewhere.
Anyway, we continued on through Newport, PA on Route 34 south to New Bloomfield, turned left at the town square and continued on Route 274. About where the houses end at the edge of town, we turned right onto Huckleberry Road and about a half-mile down the road came to the Box Huckleberry Natural Area, land protected by the forest service.
The Box Huckleberry Natural Area is a 10-acre site in the Tuscarora State Forest.
Sign at the entrance of the Box Huckleberry Natural Area
The Box Huckleberry Natural Area of the Tuscarora State Forest has been managed by the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry since 1974, and is located in Perry County, Pennsylvania. Route 34/274 are half a mile away and New Bloomfield is 1 1/2 miles away. Take the Newport/Route 34 exit of Route 322 and continue south on Route 34. When you turn onto Huckleberry Road there is a small pullout for a parking area. The creek across the road feeds into Trout Run.
Steps at the entrance to the Box Huckleberry Natural Area
Walking up the steps into the natural area you come to a trail where there is a map posted. No pamphlets available. Rules and regulations are posted by the Forest Service. To be highlighted among these rules is that you shall do no picking of flowers according to the rules on forest products.
Map of the 10-acre Box Huckleberry Natural Area
The trail is well-worn with pine needles, pine cones, leaves or moss covering the trail in places. It’s a short trail running maybe half a mile up and over a hill. In a few spots you could see the tire imprints of a mountain bike rider that rode through the trail recently.
Well-worn trail of the Box Huckleberry Natural Area
The nature trail has a moderate climb and a few steps in appropriate locations to help you up the trail.
Going up the trail at the Box Huckleberry Natural Area
The Box Huckleberry, Gaylussacia brachycera, is like a low-growing blueberry. The plants are green everywhere with their evergreen leaves shining in the sunlight.
Shining leaves of the box huckleberry carpet the area.Box huckleberry by the trail.
Small oval leaves are leathery to the touch, with a shiny slick upper surface and a paler rougher surface on the underside of the leaves.
Close-up image of the box huckleberry leaf underside and a few blooms.
Huckleberry blossoms are just starting to come out now. The flowers are similar to blueberry blossoms because the bell-shaped white flowers hang in clusters.
Dangling flowers of the box huckleberry.Group of flowering box huckleberries.Pink flower buds of the box huckleberry.
Most plants have tight pink buds for flowers, not opened blossoms. Blossoms that catch an early morning sun might be opening, but not very many huckleberries are blooming just yet.
Flower buds of the box huckleberry.Close-up image of box huckleberry flower buds.Box huckleberry blooms getting ready to open.
I came over here to find a trailing arbutus as I had never seen the “mayflower” before and it’s been reported to be at this location. Trailing arbutus, Epigaea repens, has rounded evergreen leaves and five pointed bell-shaped blossoms in pink or white. I combed the area in and around the pine trees trying to find trailing arbutus but with no luck.
A couple groups of striped wintergreen were close to the trail in the shaded areas, especially on the hillsides. This land is pretty much covered with white pine and hemlock which creates deep shade and the perfect type of area for the box huckleberry.
Box huckleberry has not spread to areas underneath the more open canopy of the deciduous trees on the far side of the hill. The areas with more sun reaching the ground, like the far side of the hill from the entrance, might be the natural limit of the huckleberry due to the lack of shade.
I found it interesting that the only known colony or plant in North Carolina is associated with mountain laurel, just as the PA plants are.
Besides the striped wintergreen we saw the single leaf of the dogtooth violet but no blooms, and wintergreen – some still with their red berries. Where the box huckleberry grows almost nothing else is growing as it heavily carpets the whole area. Rattlesnake-weed with its heavy, purple-veined leaf ribs were seen at the edge of the shady area near the entrance.
A major curiosity is that the entire box huckleberry colony is actually one giant plant that is estimated to be at least 1300 years old! It grows by expansion of roots at a rate of about 6 inches per year. Currently, the New Bloomfield Box Huckleberry, as it’s referred to by the forest service, is about 8 acres in size. There’s another box huckleberry plant not too far from here that is reportedly over 13,000 years old, which makes these plants some of the very oldest organisms on the planet.
Worthy of protection, don’t you think? The box huckleberry has a threatened status in Pennsylvania and is protected by virtue of being in the State Forest.
Under Title 17 Pennsylvania Code, Part 1 Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Subpart C State Forests, Chapter 21 General Provisions, under Forest Products part 21.31 Prohibitions. The following activities are prohibited…
Cutting, picking, digging, damaging or removing in whole or in part a living or dead plant, vine, shrub, tree or flower on State Forest land without written permission of the district forester or designee, except that edible wild plants or plant parts may be gathered without authorization if they are gathered for one’s own personal or family consumption. Dead and down wood for small camp fires may be gathered without prior authorization.
I would interpret that to mean that we can’t take any clippings or cuttings of the plants themselves, but we could come back and sample the fruit without getting in trouble. I wonder if huckleberries taste like blueberries…hmmm, maybe we’ll come back to this berry patch in June.
Take Route 34 exit off Route 322, go south on Route 34 through Newport, PA and just after a sharp bend in the road to the right (near the feed mill), turn right onto Little Buffalo Road. Continue for a mile or so and turn left onto State Park Road. Pass in front of the Blue Ball Tavern Museum and cross the one lane bridge. Turn right onto the first lane and proceed to the parking area on the left.
Map of the Day Use Area in Little Buffalo State Park
The red path shows how to get to the Day Use Area and where to park. The yellow circle marks the best place to find Spring wild flowers in Little Buffalo State Park.
The Day Use Area is set up for picnics with plenty of picnic tables and pavilions, grills, a playground, and easy access to trails and scenic overlooks.
Walk toward the creek and through the covered bridge. Take the Mill Race Trail if you want to see the Spring wildflowers. It’s an easy trail, only one-half mile long, and it is the best place to see the Spring Ephemeral flowers at Little Buffalo State Park. You’ll see some wildflowers on the hillsides and other flowers in the lowlands near the creek. Shoaff’s Mill is an attraction in itself – the water wheel is supposedly one of the biggest in existence!
Spring Ephemeral flowers blooming on 3 April 2010 –
skunk cabbage
round-lobe hepatica
spring beauty
bloodroot
Also saw the sword-like leaves of the trout lily, but its yellow flowers were not visible yet.
Spicebush trees or shrubs were blooming along the far end of Mill Race Trail near the creek. Bright yellow clusters of flowers bloom all along the length of the branches before any leaves appear.
If you’d like a more challenging hike, stop by the visitor’s center and pick up a map of the park. Try the Volksmarch 10K loop, the Buffalo Ridge Trail, or the Fisherman’s Trail.
In reviewing the many pictures I’ve taken of hepatica in the woodlands I found a couple instances where the leaves were four-lobed instead of three-lobed.
Lower leaf of this round-lobed hepatica is a four-lobed leaf.Upper leaf of this round-lobed hepatica is a four-lobed leaf.
Some leaves will have four rounded lobes instead of the typical three rounded lobes, although the fourth lobe seems like an afterthought. Chalk it up to individual variation.
If you sit long enough in a clover patch, you’re bound to find a four-leaf clover!
Round-lobed hepatica appears to bloom over a couple weeks time, with flowers coming and going according to the weather. Rainy, overcast and cooler weather hold back their blossoming.
Like a lot of flowers hepatica blossoms close up at night, too. This daily opening and closing of blooms is probably related to changes in temperature. Springtime evenings are cool and even cold, so perhaps there is some advantage to the plant in keeping the reproductive parts warm by closing up their petals.
Round-lobed hepatica blooms open in the daylight.
The colorful “petals” of hepatica close up around the stamens overnight. The photo above was taken at 11 am and shows the blossoms just opening up in the daylight. Note that the three rounded bracts are visible.
Close-up of round-lobed hepatica flowers opening in the daytime.
Close-up photo of morning hepatica blooms taken 1 April 2010. The same hepatica flowers at about 6 pm the previous day were fully open (photo below taken 31 March 2010).
Round-lobed hepatica blooms fully open after a sunny day.
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states that Native Americans used a leaf tea to treat kidney and stomach disorders. Arbutus was also used as a folk remedy for urinary problems. Arbutus itself might not be toxic, but a chemical formed in our bodies – as a result of drinking arbutus tea – is toxic. We can’t recommend drinking this tea, so we’ll just admire the trailing arbutus on the trail.
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